Sometimes people are like goats

….So I was riding along a bike path that follows the Cumberland River in Nashville when I saw the strangest thing. I saw a herd of goats living on the riverbank between the water and the bike path. They were contained inside an electric fence enclosure. I’m not sure if the fence was to keep the goats in or the people out but I suspect it’s a little of both. I applaud the person who dreamed up this business model.  I’m guessing he rents the goats to the city to maintain the overgrown foliage, they eat for free, every few days he comes along and moves the fence down the river and the goats keep the overgrown vegetation from taking over. Eventually, I suppose he sells the goats for a profit. He makes money 3 ways: He rents the goats to the city, they eat for free saving his food costs, and then he sells them for a fat profit. I’d call that a trifecta. I had to stop my bike to get a picture. It’s the craziest thing I’ve ever seen!

It reminded me of something Jesus once said: “I know my sheep and my sheep know me... and no one can snatch them from my Father’s hand.” (Strickland paraphrase) I bet you’ve heard that before.  I don’t know much about sheep and I don’t know much about goats. But I wonder why he used the analogy of sheep instead of goats? “I know my goats and my goats know me...”  It just doesn’t have the same ring, does it? It’s not poetic. And it makes me laugh.

I can see why he said people are like sheep. We need someone to watch over us and protect us and to keep us from harm. We need someone to make sure we have enough to eat and to keep us out of harm's way. Sometimes we don’t live like we believe that about ourselves but just wait until we have a crisis then we’re screaming for help! The shepherd doesn’t beat the sheep or starve the sheep or put the sheep in harm's way. He tends the flock. He takes good care of the sheep. I don’t know but I bet sheep are pretty docile animals. They may try to wander off and do their own thing but I bet they’re not that hard to bring home.

Goats are another matter. Sometimes we are more like goats than sheep in my humble opinion. These Nashville goats are contained inside of an electric fence. Otherwise, you would see those goats wandering all over Nashville, which would be pretty funny. However, they would be getting hit by cars, abused by drunken urban cowboys coming out of the bars on Broadway, climbing onto buses... It would be a hot mess!

Which leads me to conclude that sometimes we act like goats: stubborn, ornery, bad-tempered and combative, determined to do ‘it’ our own way.

Disclaimer: I don’t really know much about sheep or goats. Some of the above information may be tainted. But I’m pretty sure it’s dangerous to act like a goat. You better watch yourself!