The Lord is My Shepherd

Are you familiar with the 23rd Psalm?  It is written by King David of Israel many years ago.  Before he was annointed by the prophet Samuel as Israel's second king, he was a shepherd.  I'm sure he spent many days and nights tending his father's sheep for they were many.  David was the youngest of his brothers so that meant he got the most unpleasant  of the family jobs.  Tending sheep would be a very difficult job as the sheep would fall over and had to be righted or they would die. Sometimes the sheep would wander off and get caught in thickets or down in some ravine.  David also had to protect the sheep from animals.  On more than one occasion he used a sling shot to kill off predators such as bears and lions.
In addition to all this, David was responsible for leading the sheep to green pastures and good, clean drinking water.  The 23rd Psalm (song) really takes one though a year in the life of a shepherd.  Though it is only 6 verses long, there is much to be learned from this psalm of David.

Let's start with verse 1:  "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want."
Wow!  That short verse tells us so much!!!
David here is putting himself in the place of a sheep. The Lord is his personal shepherd. David belongs to all the sheep under God's care.  God is personally responsible for the well being of David (and all His sheep.)
Because the Lord is David's shepherd, He supplies all David's needs.  God is the "all in all" for David.
We who are under God's care don't need to go anywhere else to have our needs met.  He amply supplies ALL our need so that we are not in want for anything. The grass is not greener in any other pasture.  The water is not sweeter in any other stream.  The care we get being under God's care as His "sheep" cannot be any better anywhere else.  Is it any wonder that God didn't want his chosen people to have any other gods before him?  Why should we worship anyone or anything else when God (Jehovah) loving cares for us like a shepherd cares for his sheep?

The rest of Psalm 23 describes in detail just how God provides for us.

vs 2 "He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters."
Sheep won't lie down unless they are full an content.  God fills us with good things, green pastures if you will.
Sheep also won't drink from a running stream.  They have to have still waters. Thus God leads us his sheep to "quiet waters."  So we see in verse 2 that God, the good shepherd, knows what we need to satisfy us.  He understands what we his sheep require so that we can be content and satisfied.

vs 3 "He restores my soul.  He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake."
When we are weary, God restores our soul.  He makes all things new.  He re-energizes us so that we can keep on going.  He gives us rest.  He gives us peace.  God leads us in places that will bring Him glory.
But sheep have to be humble and wiling to be led.  What if a sheep goes astray and does not stay on the path the shepherd desires?  That is the sheep that must be disciplined, carried, sometimes its legs must be broken as well.
Isn't it great that God leads us or guides us in paths of righteousness?
In order for God to lead he has to go ahead of us. That means he has already been where we are going.
And where does God lead us?  In righteous paths or right going places.  In the Lord's prayer there is a line that goes "and lead us not into temptation....."  God isn't going to lead us astray.  No!  Instead He leads us in the way He intends for us to go.  Why does he do this?  "for his name's sake."  God has a reputation to uphold!  If God were to ever once mis lead us, his reputation would be runined!  But for God to lead us, we have to be willing to follow.  He didn't leave his sheep to find their own way, to develop their own paths of right living.  We have a guide to help us live rightly before God. 

vs 4 "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 staff they comfort me."
The sheep would be guided with the staff of the shepherd.  In this way, though a sheep might be fearful of predators, he would know his protector is nearby and be comforted. The rod and staff of the shepherd could be used to rescue a sheep with its crook or help a sheep up that had fallen over which happened often I'm told. The rod and staff could be used to fight off predators as well.  Sometimes they were used for discipline, but even in discipline, the sheep would be comforted for they knew the shepherd cared for them enough to help them not do wrong.

vs 5 "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.  You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows." Sheep needed oil applied to their heads to keep flies away from them.  They would not rest or eat if they were constantly bothered by flies and other pests. We have a Shepherd who triumphs over our enemies and shares a meal with us.  This would designate a sealing of a covenant and a bond of friendship.  What a wonderful thing to know we are invited to eat at God's table!! We are considered His friends and He makes covenants with us.

vs 6 "Surely goodness and love (some say mercy) will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."   David concludes with this wonderful thought.  The good things God provides are eternal.  We get to enjoy them not just for a season but for always.  God's goodness never runs out.  He never tires of taking care of us.  His riches are so vast that we will never exhaust them.  Best of all we get to live in the same house as God!!!!  Only the kings sons and daughters could come and go as they pleased.
With God as our Shepherd, we have access to all his wealth.  We are heirs to the throne!
So ask your Father what you need and be amply supplied.  Be comforted, be at peace, be content, be filled, and be in want of nothing!!!