It’s a new week! A bright, sunny, soon-to-be-warm Monday. Will this week bring trouble or peace? 

We don’t know. But we do know this: 

The LORD is our shepherd, we lack nothing.
He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.

And though trouble may come, we can say this:

Even though we walk through the darkest valley, 
    we will fear no evil, for you are with us….

Same God, same guidance, same care. All week.
​

Today is the third Sunday in Lent, a time to gather and celebrate the security we experience in the care of God our shepherd. 

An important part of following Jesus is that he gives us to each other as companions along the way. Sheep follow the shepherd not "single file" nor somehow all alone, but as sheep in a flock. 

Come along! We’ll make room. And our Shepherd is always worth following.
​

Today let’s look at the beginning of Psalm 23 verse 4 in the New International Version and compare it with the older King James Version that many are familiar with:

Even though I walk through the darkest valley, (NIV)

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, (KJV)

Rather than look at the differences between the two, notice what is the same: 1.) walking, and 2.) a threat of some kind, maybe even death.

Our natural inclination points us toward either fighting the threat or fleeing it, and either can be the right response depending on the situation. The author, David, however, doesn’t write here either of fighting or fleeing. He made a career out of being good at both, by the way.

The verb he uses here is simply “to walk”. Here’s the thing about walking: it’s slow! It takes a long time to get anywhere while walking. What is David thinking?

It is always dangerous to think we know what is going on in the mind of an ancient author without taking care to look at the context. The immediate context of this walk is everything else in Psalm 23. David is able to take a slow walk through the valley of the shadow of death because his Shepherd leads him. 

It is clear that David has confidence in his Shepherd. He can easily bring to mind God’s care for him to this point in his life. He has trained his mind to focus on that truth, and his emotions follow. He remembers, and is confident that God will continue to give him what he needs, even if the threats that face him are ongoing.

The LORD is my shepherd. I lack nothing.

There was just a bit of upheaval here at the church building. 

There was a break-in Thursday about 1am, but nothing was taken. Plenty of shattered glass and a rock on the floor of the youth room, but nothing missing. Our alarm system alerted the Portland Police, but when they arrived and scoured the building whoever it was had already gone — probably startled by the alarm. 

What do we do when someone throws a rock into our day? When something we count on is shattered, like our health, an important relationship, or even just our expectations for the day? Our circumstances threaten to overwhelm us.

Psalm 23 continues:
    I will fear no evil,
        for you are with me; (Psalms 23:4)

What does it mean for us not to fear because God is with us? At least in part it means we reach out to God, and God is there in the midst of it all with us.

When we reach out to God, we are lifting our souls up to be nurtured and healed. A soul centered in God always knows it has a heavenly Father who will hold its pain, its fear, its anxiety. This is spiritual life: to place the soul each moment in the presence and care of God. -- John Ortberg, Soul Keeping: Caring For the Most Important Part of You (p. 104). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. 

God’s part is to be there. Our part is to offer our soul — our whole self, nothing held back — to God’s care. 

What circumstances threaten you today? Offer them and you to God. Sometimes his help is just his presence. And that becomes enough.

​Compare the two translations of Psalm 23:3 below. 

He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake. (NIV)

 He leads me in paths of righteousness
        for his name’s sake. (KJV)

What kind of paths? Right or Righteous? The answer is both.

"The ambiguity of language and context, however, allows a moral quality to creep in. If the shepherd and sheep are images of a life fully dependent and trusting on Yahweh, then 'paths of righteousness' take on the meaning of a way of life that fulfills God’s expectation for his follower. The sheep are not left to their own devices but are led by God himself to take the correct path—the one that gets the sheep where they need to go." — Gerald H. Wilson, Psalms Volume 1 (NIVAC; Accordance electronic ed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2002), 433.

The righteous path is the right path. 

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. (Matthew 7:13–14)

Following Jesus our shepherd is the most practical, healthful thing anyone can do. Look up and see where he is today!

​What do you have to do to find a quiet place? Is it worth the effort?

When we allow our Savior to lead us...

He makes me lie down in green pastures,
    he leads me beside quiet waters,
        he refreshes my soul. (Psalm 23)


Quiet is an important part of our restoration, our refreshment. 

The soul is not something you have direct access to very often. Occasionally, if you’re very quiet, it will show up. One of the main functions of Christian disciplines is to allow your soul to come out of its cover and to be recognized and restored. The restoration of the soul is fundamental to human redemption. “He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” (Psalm 23: 3 KJV). — Dallas Willard, Living in Christ's Presence: Final Words on Heaven and the Kingdom of God (pp. 121-122). InterVarsity Press. Kindle Edition. 

What do you need to turn off or walk away from or close so you can have a few moments of quiet today? Even a few moments can be restorative. God is that good!

​He makes me lie down in green pastures,
    he leads me beside quiet waters,
        he refreshes my soul. (Psalm 23:2)

Today let’s hear from John Ortberg:


In the beginning, God created the perfect home for your soul: a garden of perfection where he could be with you. That is all God has ever wanted. Because of our choices, we separated ourselves from God, but he relentlessly pursued us, offering us a way to return to him and be with him. Because we no longer live in that perfect garden, we sometimes forget that he is there, and we continue to live without him. 

Your soul will never find rest unless it finds its home. We find it in the simple daily discipline of asking ourselves, “Is God here in this moment?” If he is not, he can be. 

Acknowledge that you have tried once again to live life alone and then welcome him back. Go back to the last scene where you were so joyfully filled with his presence, and then continue the journey. 

God invites you to let your soul rest in him.

— Soul Keeping: Caring For the Most Important Part of You (p. 125). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. 

​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. (Psalms 23:2–3, NIV)


Dear Christchurch Friends, 

Once when I read the above verses I thought maybe something had been left out. A verse left out. Something like this:

"And I follow him wherever he leads me.” Ps 23:3 ½  

David assumes that we understand that the shepherd leads, and the sheep follow. He assumes it because he has experienced it, both as a shepherd and as a follower. The refreshment comes when the sheep follow the shepherd to the green pastures and the quiet waters. Simple enough!

You follow, don’t you? 

What are the regular ways you have of following Jesus? What habits are you forming to keep close to him?

​Today’s question is: What’s the question? What’s the question that drives us?

At our worst the question that drives us is: "What’s in it for me?" Or similarly, "How can I get what I want?"

There’s little hope or peace in the first question. It assumes that I will be all right if I there is something in the current situation for me, especially it I’m the one who decides what’s good for me. But “What’s in it for me?” leads me on an endless chase that spirals inward.

"How can I get what I want?" is a better question because not everything I want is harmful to me or others. At least some of what I want is good. 

The answer to "How can I get what I want?" is more complex than we would like it to be. We want dessert because it will make us happy, and that kind of happy is real, but short-lived. There is a better happiness available than any amount of desserts can provide. That’s why for centuries Christians have observed Lenten practices. Self denial does not diminish me in a damaging way but in a way that is liberating and ultimately joyful.

We are happiest and most joyful when we begin to realize that all our short term pleasures are meant to remind us of and point us toward God, in whom we live and move and have our being. Chocolate cake is sweet. Standing justified in the presence of God is sweeter. Being recognized for something we have done is sweet. Being able to use our gifts in service to God and neighbor is sweeter.

What do you want? Do you know? 

What will you have if you get what you want?

The LORD is my shepherd. I lack nothing. — Psalm 23:1

​Hurry! How many times a day do we hear or say that word? 

“Hurry! This sale ends soon.” 
“Hurry up and finish your breakfast!”
“Hurry — you’ll be late!”

Psalm 23 opens with images of green pastures, quiet waters, and refreshment. It’s David’s picture of God’s care that causes him to confidently say, “I lack nothing.” God’s care is so reliable and competent that we can echo David: We lack nothing we need.

“Hurry is the great enemy of spiritual life in our day. You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.” — Dallas Willard.* 

Hurry is the inner distress we feel when we scramble to make things fit into our day, or to meet the expectations put upon us. Being busy is an exterior condition, and by itself it is not damaging. Hurry, on the other hand, prevents us from connecting well with God and others. 

One can move quickly and not hurry. This is true because God leads us beside quiet waters. His quiet waters bring stillness our souls. 

Unless we run away, and sometimes we do. 

The LORD is my shepherd. I lack nothing.


*quoted in Soul Keeping: Caring For the Most Important Part of You, by John Ortberg, (p. 20) Zondervan.