The Beauty and Promises of Psalm 23

Psalm 23 reads:

1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4 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.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 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.

I grew up memorizing the 23rd Psalm. In fact it is my mothers favorite passage. I never really understood why, but as I have gotten older these words have come alive in my soul. For me to fully understand what David was writing here, as well as understanding why my mother loved this chapter so much, I had to go through an experience of my own, in order for these words to spring living water in my spiritual life.

David was an anointed king. David had victories, defeats, trails and tribulations and joy unspeakable while walking with the Lord. It is because of these experiences that David could write these beautiful words.

My mother has had a rather unusual life. She had a difficult childhood, filled with both very good times and very bad times. She has experienced the ugliness of war; laying on the floor of her house, with my father, older brother and unborn sister in her womb as soldiers shot at them from their front yard. And while staring into a barrel of a gun as soldiers threatened to kill them she said out loud Psalm 23.

I have had a rather privileged life. Two parents that care for me, two brothers and a sister that are also my best friends. I have traveled to many countries, lived in great places and went to great schools. When I moved to NY, I came face to face with my spiritual walk and more so on my incapability to take care of myself. I knew God was always there, taking care of me, but somewhere I added myself into the equation. I was the one that went to work everyday, I paid my bills, I bought food to eat and the clothes on my back, I, I, I, I. Well let me tell you something. I have been unemployed for almost 3 months, living in Manhattan and I can say that I am not doing it! It is God! One night I was laying in my bed and I started saying Psalm 23 and the most amazing thing happened; I started to cry. I have never cried while saying those words, but at that point in my life, those words took on a new meaning for me.

1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want: God said that He would be our Good Shepherd. A shepherd feeds his flock, looks after it, cares for it, provides for it and protects it. The sheep can do nothing for themselves so the shepherd is the one in control. God provides everything we need. I stress the word NEED. Right now, I have no job and yet I do not want. I have an apartment to live in, food on the table, Divine protection, clothes, means of communication and transportation and so much more. I want for nothing! Everything else is extra, I have all I need! God is Good!

2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters: Even with all the uncertainty in life, God makes us to lie down in green pastures. A green pasture is a place of good soil, prosperity and beauty. Green pastures produce beautiful flowers and food. Imagine a sheep, they are always searching for green pastures where they can eat and sleep. The sheep don't have to search for it in this case because the Good Shepherd has brought them to it, and makes them lie down there. Then there is the still waters. Pure peace. No matter what we are going through there is peace in the name of Jesus. Have you ever seen still water? Not a ripple goes through it. That is the kind of God we serve. With all that is going on around us, there is green grass to lay on and still waters. Some scientist have found that the people with less stress in their life are Christians. Why? because our God provides this beautiful peace to us if we just lay claim to it. The 1st verse says, I shall not want, now it says I lay on green pastures and am lead by still waters. Because we do not want, we have nothing to worry about. That is why we can lay in green pastures and by still waters with total and utter peace because he has it all! He is in control! He provides it all he is the Good Shepherd!

3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake: And when doubt sets in and we are weary; when sin starts to hover and we are unsure, here He comes to restore our souls. Telling us, "I have got it all under control, continue to lay in this green pasture, continue to enjoy the still waters". He doesn't just stop there, he leads us in the paths of righteousness for HIS name sake. You see, God is not man that he should lie. When God said, "Come to me and you shall be my people", He meant it! God has to abide by His word. So when we feel doubt or our faith is failing or if sin is trying to attack us, He leads us in the paths of righteousness! He gives us the strength to keep going. He is saying if you follow me, even with a heavy heart and a lowing soul I will restore you and lead you down the righteous path. He promises to, therefore He has to and is willing to. His name and word is on the line so He is faithful to it.

4 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: When everything seems scary, when it is dark and you can't see, God is still there with His rod and His staff. That is our protection. You must keep the image of a shepherd and a sheep in your mind to understand this. The battle is not yours, it's the Lords! He is there to defend you! It is His rod and staff that will keep you from the enemy. God will protect you and keep you, though ALL things. Look to the rod and the staff the next time you are under attack, or are unsure, I promise it will comfort you.

5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over: God is an awesome God! Picture this...you just came out of the valley of the shadow of death and are standing in a green pasture. When you look back at the valley, there stand your enemies. All the people, demons and accusers that you came across while walking in that valley. In the opposite direction is a beautiful table God has prepared for you. Your enemies stand in wonderment as God anoints your head. See they are mad because they are your accusers. They are yelling, "They sinned in the valley, they had doubt, they didn't believe, they lied, they transgressed." They are trying to accuse you of all your wrong doings, yet God has prepared a table for you and anoints your head with oil. You see the devil is jealous, because there is no table that will be prepared for him. There is no anointing for him. The devil wants us to be where he is and that is out of the sight of God. But we serve an awesome God, one that promised never to leave us or forsake us. You see God will deal with us but not according to what our accusers say. He deals with us based on His divine will. God anoints us but he also chastises us. He did it to David, Moses, Jonah, Samson and many others, yet at the end of all these stories, the Lord was still with them! That is something the devil will never have and that is why that table is so precious! Then there is more, your cup runneth over. It is never a dry season for us! Our cups will be filled forever more.

6 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: When it is all said and done, we have God's goodness and mercy with us all the days of our lives! What a blessed assurance! The Shepherd just doesn't leave us outside, He brings us into His house to dwell with him. Can you imagine, an animal that is meant to be on the outside, is now allowed to come inside and dwell with its Shepherd! That is truly amazing!

God is so amazing. These words are a relief to the spirit! I often say some of these verses individually. Wake up in the morning and say, "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want" I guarantee you, God has made all your provisions for that day! When you are in a place of turmoil say, "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures, He leadeth me beside the still waters" and you will find your peace. God is so good!

Let us pray: Dear Father who art in heaven, thank you for Your words. Let Your words bring meaning to my life. Give me the understanding of Your living words. Let them feed my spirit and strengthen me. Oh Lord, I ask that You make every word alive in my life so that I may lay claim to the promises that You have made to me. Amen

True Stormriders

I receive e-mails that are called "Voice of the Martyrs" which are articles that the crosswalk website makes available to readers. It gives us news about what people are doing in the name of Jesus and their persecutions. I would like to share a short article from the website about some young men in Eritrea standing up for the Word of God.

ERITREA - Students Imprisoned in Shipping Container, Bibles Burned
On August 5, Eritrean authorities locked eight high school students into a metal shipping container and burned hundreds of Bibles at Sawa Defense Training Center.
According to Compass Direct News, the students were imprisoned in the container after they objected to authorities confiscating and burning 1,500 Bibles taken from new students who arrived at the training center for the new 2008-2009 school year. “During the time that the Bibles were set on fire, the Chief Commander of Sawa, Col. Debesai Ghide, gave a warning to all the students by telling them that Sawa is a place of patriotism, not a place of Pentes [Pentecostals]. Eight male students, to whom God gave boldness to speak against the burning of the Bibles, have been taken into custody in one of the metal containers that the military uses as prison cells for Christians who have been found practicing in the center,” Compass reported.
The Voice of the Martyrs provides assistance and encouragement to persecuted believers in Eritrea. VOM supports the families of martyred believers through their Families of Martyrs fund. Pray these students will be released. Ask God to encourage other Christians suffering for Christ’s sake in Eritrean prisons.