The Lord is My Shepherd

The Lord Is My Shepherd
A Psalm of David. Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
     He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
     He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness
         for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
          I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
       your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
       in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
       my cup overflows.


Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
       all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
       forever.  ESV




Many of us grew us memorizing the 23rd Psalm and if we didn't, we at least heard of it during our lifetimes.  The psalm is used to encourage and lift us up when we are going through rough patches.  Taking time to think about this well-known Psalm can be eye-opening and inspiring.  

It begins by comparing us to sheep following the shepherd.  Even though this was written many years before the birth of Christ, the Shepherd is Jesus who is God.   

Shepherd were known for taking great care of their sheep.  They lived with them, slept with them and rescued them when they were in trouble.  They even carried them on their shoulders.  The shepherd took their flocks to the best areas of grazing and pure water.

Jesus does the same for us.  He provides the best for those who love Him and He restores not only our physical bodies, but our souls.  If we love and  follow Him, we will follow the path of righteousness and when times are really bad, we will not be afraid.   Jesus is always with us. 

The rod and staff  can be compared to the word of God and His Spirit.  They are comforting because they are used to guide us, but the rod and staff were also used to protect the sheep in times of danger so even though we will experience evil, we do not need to be afraid. 

King David then went on to describe how the Lord  honored Him in front of His enemies and His head was anointed with oil.  Oil was used to anoint one as King.  It was also used to set someone apart as Holy for God's use.  Oil was used to anoint for healing.  When God anoints a head with oil, we know it is a great honor and that person is well loved, protected, provided for, and guided by Him.  His cup surely overflowed. We may not be royalty, but Christ gave His life for us and anointed us with His blood. 

Because of all that God had done for King David, he knew that if He followed the path that God laid out for Him, goodness would follow Him and also mercy for His mistakes. After his life on earth was done, he would be with God in heaven. 

What a great psalm for us today.   He is our shepherd.  If we love and follow Him, He will guide us, love us, provide for us, protect us ,and set us apart for His use. We will live with Him in eternity. 

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What is WRONG with people?

Image
  What is WRONG with people? I find myself saying this more often than I would like.    But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. (2 Timothy 3:1-5 ESV) I think the world has gone crazy.   But it has gone evil. Whatever happened to the golden rule?   Why do people think it is ok to stab someone over a seat at a track meet, to key a car because they don’t like the owner of the company, or shoot a businessman on the street because his company hurt you?   This is what the world has become.   Paul writes it clearly to Timothy.   Many p...
Read more

Importunity- Huh? Luke 11

Image
There is a story that Jesus tells in Luke Chapter 11, vs. 5-13. Many of us overlook all but the 9th verse. We want to skip right where it says "Ask, and it shall be given you, seek and ye shall find, knock and it shall be opened." That sounds pretty good.  However, the verses before and after verse 9 are significant to the meaning behind the story.  In the Bible, context is very important.  We need to understand what is being said, who it is being said to, why and by whom. In this case, Jesus had been off praying by himself and the disciples came to him asking to be taught how to pray. Jesus gives them a beautiful, respectful way to pray which becomes what we call the Lord's Prayer. He teaches them to pray for God's kingdom, His will to be done, our daily needs, and forgiveness.  All of these come from the Holy Spirit. Then He goes on with this story. [ 5]  And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto h...
Read more

What is stopping us?

Image
What stops us from doing what we know God has called us to do? I returned from my travels more than a week ago and I haven't written a word since I got home.  I haven't added to my book.  I haven't blogged.  I haven't even sent texts or messages to the Women's Fellowship group. Why?  The first few days, I told myself I was resting and didn't need to do anything for a while (except laundry). The next few days, I was busy - yes - that's it.  After that, I forgot about writing and just went about the duties of life.   During my trip I started this blog and started a new book because I knew that God wanted me to continue my work for Him, but for some reason, when I am home, it is difficult to follow through.  Do you have that problem too? Has God called you to do something, given you a passion for His work, or led you to take on something at church? Have you answered the call? I have been reading in Luke lately and there are many times that Jesus talk...
Read more