Rest

The LORD is my shepherd;

       I shall not want.
     He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
         He leads me beside the still waters.
 He restores my soul;
         He leads me in the paths of righteousness
         For His name’s sake.
Yea, 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 runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.

 

These verses have been on my mind and heart for a couple of weeks now.  I was teaching a study on the names of God. When I got to Jehovah-Rapha, the Lord Is My Shepherd, I was struck by how perfect Psalm 23 really is.

First of all, those first nine words are so awesome. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. Because the Lord is my Shepherd, I don't want for anything.  Park there a moment.  Dwell on this fact. 


In the natural, a Shepherd provides everything the sheep needs.  He shelters them, protects them, provides for them, leads and guides. All the sheep have to do is follow.


Spiritually speaking, it's the same deal with us.  If we are obedient to the great Shepherd, His promise to us is that we won't want.  If we truly believe that, we don't have anything to worry about!  And if you are not worried, then your heart is at rest.

Is there something you need?  The Shepherd provides shelter, food and water for the sheep.  He anoints them (gives them medicines ... or you could look at it as health and beauty aids).  The sheep trust Him to provide what they need.  God promises you won't see "... the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread." (Psalm 37:25) You can rest knowing your Shepherd will provide!


You don't know the path to take? Come sit at the Shepherd's feet.  He promises to lead you in paths of righteousness - the path of right standing.  What better place could you be?  The bible says, "A good man's steps are ordered by the Lord" (Psalm 37:23) If you are trusting the Lord, and doing what you feel He is leading you to do, then you have no worries. Everything will be all right, you can rest.

I've heard some say, "What if I mess up and take the wrong path?" Honey, He is Big enough that He can get you back into that right path!

What if you are facing physical danger?  Nestle close to the Shepherd. He will protect you and you will fear no evil.  You can rest knowing He is on the job.


Have you been treated unfairly? Take it to your Shepherd.  You shall not want for justice. He says, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay."  (Romans 12:9) He will take care of it, you can rest knowing it's His problem now.

I'm so thankful for God's Word.  I love it so much that He promises that I shall not want.  Then He caps it off by telling me that goodness and mercy are going to follow me around forever!  A sheep can't ask for more than that!

No need to worry or fret ... no need for stress ... you can rest!


I wrote this devotional for my series, Words to Stand On.  I felt it also tied in with the theme at Thankful Thursday this week.  Iris at Grace Alone wrote of being thankful for vacation.  I began thinking about how a vacation is supposed to be a time of rest (although often we are glad to be back from vacation to get some rest!) So, I am linking this post to Thankful Thursday.

If you would like to join other thankful hearts, join this month's hostess, Iris, at her blog:  Grace Alone.