The word of God has really blessed me this week, (to coin a super duper spiritual phrase).
When a certain scripture keeps popping up on a regular basis, you know you have to take notice, and the last week or two, Psalm 23 has been popping up. Alot. Probably because when it first popped up at our bible study, I thought to myself... "I hate that psalm... it's so irrelevant in this violent world and I can't relate to it". Basically I didn't believe it. But as Joice Meyer says, as a beleiver, you're sposed to "believe"... and the silly thing kept popping up so I started to think about it. Here's it is anyway...
" 1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
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 your staff,they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
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 your staff,they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
There's alot I could say, but let me just say... when I first sat down to read it, I was sitting in the green grass (pastures), and it's beautiful and sunny here in ol NZ... and I realised, I could either think about all the bad stuff that goes on, or I could leave it all in God's hands, and just enjoy my immediate surroundings. I was also at the bach during the long weekend. And I read the psalm again, in a little patch of grass, with onion flowers and sunshine... and I heard a snuffling in the grass.... and it was a little hedge hog. You know what my immediate thought was? I thought of the all the hedgehogs I'd just seen squashed on the road on the way there.... was this one any safer? but then the more I read the psalm, I realised that it was having an effect on me. And I realised , you either believe the bible is whole truth, and nothing but, or you don't. It must have it's place in life, somewhere. I can definitely relate to the other psalms... "why do the wicked prosper?"..."you have torn me to pieces!"..."my eyes are dry from weeping!"... but this one... well, summer is just coming on here, and peace is having it's way in me since I've been going through the psalm and just meditating on each line.
I remember asking in a previous post if the world really turned into a violent place in the short 12 years since my dad died? I think this psalm is moving towards rectifying that.
PS> I'm still doing the Daniel - pray 3 times a day - thing, and this is insight no. 2 !
IMAGE SOURCE www.mycovenantoflife.net
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3 comments:
Very thoughtful and thought inspiring post.
. . . forgot to add that I loved the photo. Did you take it?
no... I didn't take this photo... I did a google search. I wondered if I should, but since there's only a handful of ppl who read my blog I decided it was ok... but I did think of adding the source underneath, but never got around to it. I think I will add it now though...!
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