Ryan's Ramblings

I am the good shepherd.
— John 10:11, NIV

My daughter and son-in-law have a German Shepherd named Rio. She’s the smartest dog I’ve ever met—alert, calculating, and watchful. She doesn’t just look at you; she reads you. One glance and she seems to know whether you’re calm or anxious, confident or uneasy.

She’s not like other dogs I’ve known and loved. Most dogs are all bounce and belly rubs, chasing anything that moves and eating everything that doesn’t. But Rio? She’s selective. She’ll turn her nose up at gourmet kibble but crunch a Cheeto like it’s filet mignon.

She’s fearless when it comes to strangers in the neighborhood, yet she trembles at the sight of the vacuum. She’ll face down a Pit Bull twice her size, but you show her the little bottle of ear drops and she quakes like thunder’s rolling in.

Rio is a paradox—strong yet scared, discerning yet distracted, brave yet baffled. She’s a living reminder that courage and fear often share the same space. When I’m around her, I’m amazed—and that turns my thoughts to another amazing Shepherd, one who embodies every holy paradox.

God is a paradox. In Jesus, that paradox takes on flesh and blood—He is infinite, yet He became an infant (John 1:14). He is the Lion and… the Lamb (Revelation 5:5–6). He commands the storm with a word, yet weeps beside a tomb (Mark 4:39; John 11:35). He washes His disciples’ feet, yet holds the universe together by the power of His Word (John 13:5; Hebrews 1:3). He lays down His life as the Good Shepherd, even as He reigns as the Overseer of our souls (John 10:11; 1 Peter 2:25).

He protects with gentleness. He rules by serving. He wins by losing. He lives by dying.

Rio seems to understand more than she should—but Jesus knows us completely. He sees every fear, every failure, every fragile part of who we are. Yet His knowing doesn’t lead to judgment—it leads to mercy. The One who knows you best loves you most.

Where Rio keeps watch over gates and grounds, Jesus guards the door of our hearts (John 10:9). Where Rio trembles at ear drops, Jesus took up the cup of suffering and drank it down for love’s sake (Luke 22:42).

He is never distracted, never unsure, never afraid. The One who laid down His life is still the Author of life. So when it all feels like a contradiction—when faith feels fragile or fear feels stronger than trust—remember the paradox of Jesus: the all-powerful God who stooped low to carry you close.

In His kingdom, paradox is the pattern. Life is found in losing. Strength comes through surrender.

And in love—His love—the Shepherd became a Lamb… to lead the sheep safely home.