Stimulus & Response

The Space Between Stimulus and Response

Some of you may recognize the name Viktor Frankl. He was a Holocaust survivor who went on to write 39 books. His most well-known work, Man’s Search for Meaning, has impacted millions of people around the world.

One of his most profound insights is simple, but deeply powerful:

Between stimulus and response, there is a space.

The stimulus is what happens to you—the circumstances you can’t control.
The response is how you react.

And in between those two… there is a moment.

A space.

A place of choice.

What’s remarkable is that Frankl discovered this not in comfort, but in the most unimaginable suffering. Even there, he believed that space never disappeared.

And that idea connects deeply to something Jesus invites us into.

The Image of the Shepherd

This past Sunday is often called Good Shepherd Sunday—a time when we revisit one of the most meaningful images in Scripture.

“The Lord is my shepherd…”
“I am the good shepherd.”

Rather than just analyzing these words, we’re invited to step into them.

To imagine the scene.

Sheep.
A shepherd.
Open fields.
And yes—wolves.

What It Means to Be a Sheep

At first glance, being called a sheep doesn’t sound flattering.

But sheep are not trying to be in control of everything. They’re not building empires or striving to prove themselves. They live with a kind of quiet dependence.

They eat.
They rest.
They stay together.

They recognize their shepherd’s voice and follow someone who knows the terrain better than they do.

And if we’re honest, that’s closer to our reality than we often admit.

We don’t know everything.
We can’t control everything.
We need guidance.

We also need each other.

A lone sheep is vulnerable. And in the same way, we aren’t meant to navigate life alone. We need community, support, and shared direction.

The question isn’t if we’re following a voice.

It’s which voice we’re following.

The Good Shepherd Stays

Jesus says:

“I am the good shepherd.”

Not a hired hand. Not someone halfway committed.

Because there’s a difference.

A hired hand runs when things get hard.
The good shepherd stays.

More than that—He lays down His life for the sheep.

All of us, in one way or another, are searching for someone to guide us. A leader. A voice. A sense of direction.

Sometimes we try to take that role on ourselves.

“I’ll just be my own shepherd.”

And sometimes that works—for a while.

Until it doesn’t.

Until life reminds us that we are human. Limited. Not in control.

When the Wolves Come

Jesus is honest about something we all experience:

Life is not easy.

There are “wolves”—moments of anxiety, fear, conflict, uncertainty.

He doesn’t promise those things will disappear.

Instead, Psalm 23 offers a surprising picture:

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.”

The enemies are still there.

The wolves haven’t gone away.

But in the middle of it all, God sets a table and says:

Come. Sit. Eat. I’m here.

Sometimes those “wolves” show up in the middle of the night—worries about your family, your future, the state of the world.

And in those moments, the Good Shepherd is still present.

Not distant.
Not absent.
Right there with you.

The Space Where We Choose

This is where Frankl’s insight meets Jesus’ invitation.

The anxiety, the tension, the uncertainty—that’s the stimulus.

But before the response… there is a space.

And in that space, we are not alone.

We can pause.
We can remember.
We can choose.

We can picture that table in the presence of our enemies. We can even imagine the anxiety sitting there like a wolf.

But it’s not the only presence at the table.

The Good Shepherd is there too.

The One who has faced darkness—and overcome it.

The One whose love for you knows no limits.

A Different Way to Respond

So when something hard comes your way this week, consider this:

Pause.

Step into that space.

Remember the Shepherd is with you.

You don’t have to react out of fear.
You are free to respond with trust.

You can take hold of the presence of Christ and, in a quiet but firm way, say to the fears and anxieties:

You don’t lead me.

Because you are not alone at the table.

Your Good Shepherd is with you.

And in His presence, there is peace.