A psalm of David Psalm 23
poetically describes the life of an Oriental shepherd from beginning to end. All that the shepherd means to the sheep, his care and his love is beautifully described by the inspired poet. Davind and his ancestors knew the sheep. He was certainly an exceptionally good shepherd. His name means Beloved and he is a wonderful example for the Lord Jesus Christ the Divine Shepherd, whom the Father has given us. Whoever reads this psalm calmly and thinks of his beloved Lord is blessed and looks up to him with trust and gratitude. Who is infinitely good to his own.
The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want. This is the keynote of the song that will ring out until the end. If he is my shepherd, I shall not want. He lives for me and I receive all that his love and power can give me to make me happy. Do we live in the knowledge that he is our shepherd and do we thank him for it?
He lays me down in green pastures.
The first thing a sheep needs is food. In our country there are only a few flocks of sheep left, but in the East there are still many hundreds. There the work of a shepherd is much more difficult than with us, often it goes downhill and uphill and on narrow mountain paths, past dizzying abysses, but always with the aim of finding good grazing grounds. Sheep graze there from about half past three in the morning until one o’clock. The shepherd prefers to lead them in the morning to meager pastures, and later to more lush ones, so that they can graze on magnificent pastures before the sun is high in the sky. Afterwards they rest for three or four hours in the shade. It is good for their growth if they can ruminate in peace. Shouldn’t the sheep be happy there? The food for the believer is the Word of God. Do we enjoy it daily? Do we get to know our Lord more through it? Is growth in our spiritual life?
The Lord wants to lead you out of the turbulence’s of your life into his loving and caring arms. He is waiting for you until you come and rest at his feet, read his word and know HIM and his voice. Just be still – close your eyes and say JESUS.
Much love for you and your loved ones – shalom