This thesis uses the metaphor of a sheep dog as a role for pastor within the story of the Good Shepherd as revealed in Psalm 23 and John 10. A pastor's identity informs how a preacher witnesses to the Word of God. Using The Witness of Preaching by Thomas G. Long, I discuss the various images he used to illustrate the roles of preachers: the herald, the pastor, the storyteller/poet, and finally, the witness. I have drawn upon my own experiences as a child raised in the Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod and how I moved from a theology based in fear toward a theology based in grace. As a secondary discourse I draw on Edwin H. Friedman's A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix. Friedman uses the terms 'non-anxious' and 'well-differentiated' to define these aspects of leadership; throughout this thesis I discuss what it means to become a leader and bear witness to God's Word as a preacher.
