Afflictions

"These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16.33

There's no other way, those who want to follow the Lord Jesus cannot expect flowers in this world. There is no avoiding hardship when trying to practice the Word of God. Escaping the afflictions is like putting the cross aside, satisfying the flesh and not following the Lord Jesus. Is this what you want? 

The sheep

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me." John 10.27

What characterizes the relationship between shepherd and sheep is the shepherd's voice. No sheep from a certain flock follows the voice of a shepherd of another flock.
It was common that several shepherds would gather their respective flocks to drink from the same stream. But once their thirst was quenched, each sheep would follow the voice of their respective pastors.
The followers of the Good Shepherd, hear His voice and follow Him. That is, obey.

Righteousness

"...For a throne is established by righteousness." Proverbs 16.12

In other words, it is through obedience to the Word of God that salvation is conquered.
One thing is to conquer salvation, another thing is to remain saved. The greatest difficulty is to maintain what you conquer, especially salvation. That is why Jesus said, "If anyone wants to follow Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow Me." Not only for a few days, but every day. Follow Him every day to remain saved, and establish the throne of eternal life.

Look

"Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah who bore you; for I called him alone, and blessed him and increased him.”         Isaiah 51.2

Look to Abraham means to follow his example of faith. He sacrificed his will to do the will of God. This is, his obedience demonstrated his faith.

THE BEGINNING OF KNOWLEDGE

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction."        Proverbs 1:7

   Do you want to avoid making mistakes. Do you want peace? Do you want direction in all aspects of your life? Do you want to be happy? Then put this into practice:
   Don't walk in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of the scornful. Instead, take pleasure in reading the Word of God and meditate about it day and night. 
   Follow these steps and you will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaves do not whither and whatever he does is successful.

One Flock and one Shepherd

"And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd." John 10:16

The Holy Spirit is the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ in the heart of the Christian. For this reason, the person recognises His voice and follows His instructions towards the green pastures.

Sacrifice

God was the first to sacrifice. He sacrificed an animal to clothe Adam and Eve and with this, He showed us the way to a beneficial faith. Just as love demands attitudes of sacrifice, so does faith. In the past, no hero of faith conquered anything without the use of faith with sacrifice. Abel is one of the greatest examples of this; he was considered righteous before the Most High just because of his sacrifice. 
Jesus taught us sacrifice when He said:
"If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." Matthew 16:24