Yesterday I was supervising afternoon recess at the small Christian school where I teach music when the following interaction caught my eye. A little girl had just taken a tumble off of the monkey bars. She began to cry and carry on in a rather dramatic fashion, so I headed over to her to make sure she wasn’t injured. One of her little friends who had been comforting her suddenly jumped up and started to run off. The girl left sitting on the ground yelled out “You don’t even care!” Her friend yelled back, “I do, too, care. I just want to go play!” Upon further examination, there weren’t any physical injuries, but a tender little heart was bruised.

I don’t know about you, but I have acted like each of these girls at different times in my life. I have been the hurting one crying out, “You don’t even care.” “Doesn’t anybody care?” “Nobody cares about me.” And I have been the one who sees the need, but really just wants to go do something else instead of help.

All too often our circumstances invite us to jump to the conclusion that no one cares. It is so hard to think clearly when experiencing pain of any kind. When we are hurting it is easy to think that we are all alone without any hope of comfort. We focus on the pain and it begins to grow. Soon we can hardly think about anything else.

The truth is that we are never without someone who cares. Even when we feel abandoned or forgotten, there is One who cares deeply about our need. Isaiah 40:11 describes Him like this:

“He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.”

Isn’t that a beautiful picture of loving care? Our Good Shepherd tends to our every need. He gathers us up and carries us so close that we can hear His heartbeat. He gently leads us through every season.

This divine gift of loving care is meant not only to sustain us, but enables us to freely care for others in need. Just this week we have heard the stories of countless heroes who served others in crisis. A tender heart filled with compassion readily seeks out those who need care.

A receiver of care. A dispenser of care. Sounds like living simply loved to me.