Through love slave for one another.—Gal. 5:13.

Jehovah manifests his love for the flock as a whole when he provides it with an abundance of spiritual food. (Isa. 65:13, 14; Matt. 24:45-47) Yet, he does more than just feed the flock. He feels a personal attachment to each individual sheep. (1 Pet. 5:6, 7) Spiritual shepherds imitate Jehovah and Jesus. They display love for God’s flock as a whole by “applying [themselves] to teaching” the congregation. Their Bible-based talks help feed and protect the flock, and their hard work in this regard is visible to all. (1 Tim. 4:13, 16) Less visible is the time they spend maintaining records, processing correspondence, making schedules, and caring for numerous other details in order to ensure that congregation meetings and other activities take place “decently and by arrangement.” (1 Cor. 14:40) Much of this work is done out of public view and may receive little recognition. It is truly a labor of love. w 5/1/06 4, 5