The Lord Is My Shepherd -Part I
There is a human instinct, when times become stressful, when life feels like it is moving beyond our control, we tend to revert back to things that are familiar. We seek past experiences to help provide us a sense of peace. We may watch old movies, listen to old albums, call old friends; sometimes we might sit quietly and thumb through old photos. We find comfort in the nostalgic, but surprisingly we often find more. Sometimes as we rustle through the past we find unexpected treasures along the way; a twenty dollar bill in an old jacket, or a tucked away love letter in the pages of a favourite book.
Quite probably the most beloved and familiar chapter in all of Scripture is the 23rd Psalm. This ancient song of David has blessed and continues to bless countless people across the globe and across the ages. This is the chapter of Scripture we turn to during our most meaningful moments. Psalm 23 is shared at births, baptisms, weddings, and at hospital bedsides and gravesides. It is the familiarity and the beauty of this timeless poem that draws us back to it again and again, and it is during both the precious and precarious of times of our lives where it beckons us to return to its green pastures, still waters and even to the dark valley with our Shepherd.
I have always loved this psalm, but it was in 2012, while in the ancient lands of the Israelites and in the presence of Bedouin shepherds that helped me find new meaning and new depths in this ancient masterpiece. Over the next number of weeks, my desire will be to draw inspiration and comfort from this beloved chapter. Hopefully, as we meditate on David’s familiar words and breathtaking images together, we will also find surprising gems hidden in the familiar .
Next week, we will consider what King Tut can teach us about the, “Lord being our shepherd,” but for this week, it is best to simply pause and reacquaint ourselves with the Shepherd’s song:
Psalm 23 A Psalm of David.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul:
He leadeth 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 thou art with me; Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:
Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life:
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
