Take some time to meditate once more on the first half of Psalm 23. Work on committing these words to memory. Share them with someone you know. Allow the Word of God to speak to you right where you’re at, in your current personal circumstances.
Reflect
Read these verses slowly, meditating on each word. Ask the Spirit to speak to you through this Psalm.
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
Psalm 23:1–4
How do these verses from Psalm 23 resonate with you today?
Connect
Last week I mentioned that the first Bible verses that I ever learned were from Psalm 23. My Father and I recited this Psalm every night before bed because he wanted me to know that the Lord is my shepherd. I’ve thought a lot about why my dad chose that passage of Scripture.
Maybe he chose Psalm 23 because it’s fairly well-known, but I think it was something else. My dad spent the first 37 years of his life as a lost sheep. Although he was raised by Christian parents, he wandered far from God. But Jesus, the Good Shepherd went after him, found him, and brought him home. From that moment on, he wanted to share the saving love of Jesus with everyone, and he started with his only child. He never wanted her to wander away and experience all the pain he had endured, so he introduced her to the Good Shepherd and taught her that God would always love, guide, and protect her no matter what.
Like a lot of Christians, my walk with Jesus began with my parents, but then became my own. Familiar verses like those in Psalm 23 have taken on greater meaning as I’ve experienced what this Psalm describes. I’ve wandered from right paths and had my patient Shepherd lead me back. I’ve struggled with fear in the darkest valleys. Yet I’ve come through these times more assured than ever that the Lord is my ever-present Shepherd, and it’s only in him that I find true rest and restoration.
Respond
What about you? What does Psalm 23 mean to you? Or what is it coming to mean to you as you walk through this uncertain time?
What lost sheep do you know? Pray that they would respond to the Shepherd’s voice calling them home. Pray about how you can encourage them to respond.
Then, just spend some time with your Shepherd today in prayer. He loves to spend time with you. Ask him to lead you down right paths, and reveal his presence in dark valleys. Thank him for the comfort his rod and staff bring to you. Rest in your Father’s love and care, knowing he is always with you.