Psalm 23:1-4 says, “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.”
This season has been full of many unknowns. We feel it on a personal level. We feel it with our families. We feel it with our communities. We feel it with our churches. It’s confusing and scary and unknown. And in that, I think it can be easy to become discontent and dissatisfied as begin questioning why things are happening, or maybe why they aren’t, and really just become upset and discouraged. But as I was reading Psalm 23 this week, I was reminded of just how at peace David was. He wasn’t at peace because there was no chaos. He wasn’t content because everything went the way He wanted. He wasn’t worry free because life was perfect in every way. He was peacefully content because He knew he was in the care of His good shepherd.
What I love is the key phrase in verse 4, “even though I walk.” A while ago, I came across a quote by Charles Spurgeon, “To walk indicates the steady advance of a soul which knows its road, knows its end, resolves to follow the path, feels quite safe, and is therefore perfectly calm and composed.”
David had every reason to be at peace.
He had every reason to be content.
He had every reason to be joyful.
He had every reason to trust his good shepherd.
And the same goes for us.
We have a Good Shepherd. We have a faithful Shepherd. We have a wise Shepherd.
Where He leads, He provides. We have no reason to be discontent when our Good Shepherd is with us, providing our every need and being with us in every moment. May we cling to that truth today and every day.
by Chelsea Mason, Canyon Hills Worship
