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The Lord is My Shepherd

                 The twenty-third Psalm contains some of the most hopeful and life-changing words in scripture.

                It says, “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.  He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul.  He guides me along the right paths 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 your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever”.

                It is good to remember that we are not the shepherd; we are the sheep!  We like to think we are in control, but that is an illusion.  The truth is that we do not even know what will happen tomorrow (James 4:13-16).  It is comforting to know that we are in God’s hands and that he is taking us where he wants us to go.  If we believe that, we can go through anything, even the most difficult circumstances, with hope.

                Note, too, that when David thinks about the shepherd, he comes up with words like comfort, peace, calm, and mercy.  He is not fearful or worried.  David does not have to fight for God’s attention.  In fact, he knows that God provides abundantly and that his blessings overflow.

                Lastly, David states that his goal is to “dwell in the house of the Lord forever”.  Life will have ups and downs.  Some will have more and others less.  Yet, the quality of this life is not to be our focus.  We have another destination in mind.  When heaven is our goal, then we see and value things differently here (Matthew 6:19-34). 

                For centuries, people have turned to this Psalm in times of need because David’s words bring us comfort and they remind us of what is most important. 

                We would find even more peace and assurance if we did not just read the words, but if we lived by them every day.

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