Little Lamb Story

This is the story of a little lamb and how a little boy's love for his little lamb is compared to God's love for us.

Once upon a time, there lived a little boy named Michael. He loved God, and was a good Christian boy. He wasn't like the other kids. He always tried his best in school and he listened to his Mom and Dad, and never told lies or sassed them at all. Michael just knew inside that it was right to be that way. He never complained about helping whenever he was asked, and he always did his chores when he was supposed to. Michael's Mom and Dad were very proud of Michael. There weren't many children that they knew of, that were as good as he was.

Michael and his family lived on a farm and they owned all kinds of animals. It was Michael's job to feed the chickens in the morning and gather up all the eggs. Michael's Dad told him that as he got older, he could help him with bigger chores like helping with the cows and the horses. Michael knew that animals on their farm were bought and sold all the time but he always wanted just one, that he could keep for his very own, to take care of all by himself. He would feed it and give it water and watch it grow. Michael's parents always told him that he wasn't old enough yet to take care of an animal all on his own.

Michael was a special child. He didn't know why at first, but he knew he was different from all the other children he knew. He loved to pray, and every chance he could get, he would go to the garden, or ask if he could go to the side of the hill so that he could talk to God alone. Michael would tell God everything he could think of. He was the best friend Michael had, and he couldn't understand why everyone didn't feel the same way that he did about God. Michael had heard of some kids that had invisible friends, but he knew that they were only make believe. He knew that the only REAL invisible friend anyone could ever have, is God.

Sometimes Michael would tell other children about God, but a lot of them didn't believe him. He told them how God was always there to listen, no matter what he wanted to talk about, and no matter where he was or what time it was. If he woke up in the middle of the night and was scared about something, Michael didn't go running to his Mom and Dad's room crying. He would just close his eyes and ask God to keep him safe, and then Michael knew everything was alright and there was nothing to be afraid of while God was with him.

Whether he was at school, or riding in the car, or riding his bike, Michael took God with him in his heart, everywhere he went. His friends always made fun of him because he was a Christian, but he didn't let anything like that bother him, because he knew in his heart, that he was right about God, and he wanted to be a good boy, and a good Christian ... forever. Michael just wished that he could explain to his friends better, what he knew in his heart about God and Jesus. Then maybe his friends would believe him.

Michael's parents had friends who believed in God, and Michael loved to listen to them talk about Him. One day he heard them talking about something called sacrifice. Michael figured out that people in the Bible did this when they wanted to thank God for something, and it was also their way of saying, "I'm sorry" to God, when they sinned. They would give God a gift of something that was the very best of what they had, like the best baby lamb of their flock, or a baby goat or bull or ram. They would burn it and then watch the smoke go up to Heaven as they praised God or prayed for His forgiveness for what they did wrong. Michael remembered stories in the Bible where many people died because they didn't live the way God wanted them to. Michael didn't understand everything about sacrifice, but he knew that if he ever could give God a gift, he would give him the best thing he had.

Michael's Dad gave him a baby lamb for his birthday when he turned seven years old. He was so happy! Finally, he was old enough to take care of his own little lamb all by himself. Michael named her Libby and he promised that he would take such good care of her, that nothing bad would ever happen to her. He loved Libby so much, he could spot her in the middle of all the other sheep in an instant. Michael would sneak part of his dinner into his pockets so he could give it to Libby when they would play together before dark. They would run through the fields together and go fishing together. Wherever Michael went on the farm, Libby was always right there by his side. Michael would read to Libby and sometimes they would fall asleep looking up at the sky as Michael would sing songs about God to his precious little lamb. It almost seemed like Libby wanted to sing along with him.

Michael thanked God for Libby each and every day. Libby was more than just a lamb to Michael ... she was a friend. Michael missed Libby terribly whenever he was in school or had to go somewhere with his Mom and Dad. He couldn't wait to get home so he could be with Libby. There was something about Libby that was different from all the other lambs, and Michael knew there was something special about her, just like there was something special about him.

One day Michael was thinking about all the beautiful flowers in the field that he and Libby played in. At the end of every summer, the flowers would die, and the seeds from them would blow away in the wind during autumn. Then in the springtime, the seeds from the flowers that were there the summer before, would grow once again into beautiful field flowers. Michael was always amazed at how God made everything work so wonderfully. He always told Libby whenever he thought about things like this, and Libby would look up at him with her little lamb eyes, like she understood everything he said, just perfectly. Michael wished that his friends understood him as well as Libby did.

When Libby grew a little older, she was going to have a baby lamb. Michael took extra special care of her then, making sure she always had plenty of food and water, and he made a special place for her in the stable to sleep with a bed of hay, where none of the other sheep were allowed to go. He even took one of his old blankets and gave it to Libby to snuggle up with and to keep her warm during the night time.

Each and every morning, Michael would say good morning to God when he first woke up, then he would run out to the stable right after that, so he could see Libby and make sure she was okay. Michael just knew that he was going to love the baby lamb just as much as he loved Libby. Then he would have two animals to take care of. Michael was very happy about the baby lamb and couldn't wait for the day when it would be born.

Libby was getting closer to the time when she would have her baby lamb. She didn't play as much with Michael as she used to, and she slept a lot more during the day, but Michael understood, so he would just sing and read and talk to her more. Instead of running or taking long walks through the field, they would walk slower and not nearly as far. If they went fishing, they would only stay half as long. He knew that soon there would be a baby lamb to take care of and Libby would be her old self again.

One early morning, when Michael went out to the stable to see Libby, he knew something was wrong. His Dad was there kneeling down and petting her head, and the look on his face was very serious. She was breathing very hard and making noises that Michael never heard her make before. "What's the matter with her, Dad? Is she going to be alright?" Michael asked. Michael's Dad said, "I don't know, son, there seems to be something wrong. I've seen a lot of lambs come into this world but I've never heard such a fuss, and it seems like Libby can barely breathe. I'm just not sure both of them will make it."

Michael leaned down and petted Libby on her head. He could feel tears starting to fill his eyes. "Everything's gonna be okay, girl", Michael whispered in Libby's ear. "Don't worry, I'm not going to let anything happen to you." Michael tried his hardest not to, but soon he started to cry. He had never felt so sad or so helpless in all of his life.

Michael closed his eyes tight and prayed. "God ... It's me ... Michael. Dear Lord, Please don't let Libby or the baby lamb die. I promised her that I'd never let anything bad happen to her. I didn't do anything wrong. Oh, please God, let them both live."

Just then, Michael heard a voice whisper softly in his head, "Jesus was my sacrifice. I didn't do anything wrong either." Michael kept his eyes shut tight, hoping that God would talk to him more, but he heard his Dad say, "Here comes the baby, Michael. You best tell Libby you love her now." Michael hugged Libby and petted her gently. He knew there was nothing he could do for her. He said softly, "I'll always love you, Libby", then he kissed the top of her head and felt her stop breathing.

"It's another girl", Michael's Dad said, "She's gonna be just like her mama! Better take her and clean her up, Michael. Libby needs you to take extra special care of her little baby now." Michael held Libby's face in his hands and said "Goodbye, my precious little lamb", as tears streamed down his face.

Michael stood up slowly and took the baby lamb from his Dad's arms, and started to clean her up. He gave her a bath and dried her off very gently with a towel. Even though he loved Libby dearly, he felt the new little life in his arms. She looked just like Libby did when she was a baby lamb. He started thinking about the flowers in the field and how he had told Libby that sometimes things have to die before there can be life again.

Then Michael remembered God's voice. Jesus. Sacrifice. It was all starting to make sense to him now. People sacrificed lambs in the Bible, so that their sins would be forgiven. And Jesus was God's Lamb, that He sacrificed for all of us, so that our sins could be forgiven, and so we could live with Him forever. Now Michael knew why he was special. Michael thanked God for helping him to understand all that had happened. Michael couldn't wait to explain to all of his friends, all the things that he knew now. God had showed Michael in his own life, how he could explain to people from now on, the reason why Jesus died, and arose, and he knew they'd believe.