Thursday, January 1, 2009

Ps 23He Leads me Besides Still Waters

He Leads me Besides Still Waters. . .


A shepherd leads his flock to quiet streams so they can drink. Animals need water to help digestion and to refresh and cool their bodies. A sheep’s body is 70% water.

When we, as God’s children, have emotional upsets, He allows us to rest and remember good times of our past: a special anniversary, the birth of our children, or a good memory of dear friends.

When we watch fish in an aquarium we feel calmer, several years ago psychologists said watching fish allowed people to relax. Whatever our stressors, the Lord leads us to a quiet place --maybe a lake or a river--to bring us to a new understanding of who He is and who we are.

Sometimes when we approach God, we have to get quiet before Him. There are those tension filled moments in an emergency situations where we can’t always do this. In these stress heightened instances, we just blurt out our prayer and continue on. When we have the anxiety-ridden times, He still hears us.

The shepherd’s main concern is the welfare of his sheep. God is our shepherd and he cares for each and every one of us.

Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Psalm 23:He Restores my Soul. . .

When we find ourselves at our wit’s end and we seek God, He leads us to a quiet place and listens to us. We pour out our hearts. The Lord wraps us in his big arms and reminds us He for loves us. He brushes away each tear from our cheeks and tells us we are going to be all right. He kisses us.

We begin to feel better about our problem and smile and say, “Thank You.” We return to our normal routine, feeling like a new person. We might even tell people, “He restored my soul.”

We are grateful to God for helping us through these stressful times. We marvel how He answers our prayers and takes care of our concerns. Some times He does these deeds in ways we don’t expect. We think he might choose one way to remedy the concern but He chooses another, one we hadn’t even thought of.

Monday, December 29, 2008

Psalm 23: He Makes Me Lie Down In Green Pastures

He Makes me Lie Down In Green Pastures. . .

A shepherd allows his sheep to play and frolic in the pastures. He also lets his sheep rest on the thick verdant meadow grass. The sheep herders always watch out for their animals. They stay vigilant, looking for lush fields, trying to find the best resting place for their flock.

When we are tired or stressed out, God intervenes in our plans and orchestrates a way for us to slow down for a while. He allows us to rest and recuperate from our trials. God knows how much we can handle before we need to regenerate.

Our heavenly Father knows what we need and sees we get that which we require. Some people have to have a certain amount of sleep each night in order to function. Others seem to go on less than the recommended seven or eight hours. When we are ill we need more rest. Even those who get by on less have times when they actually need to get caught up on their sleep deficit.

God, who is our shepherd sees to it we receive the rest we need. He does this because He loves us.

God Alone

  Jesus and the children at our church's prayer walk.          I will both lie down in peace and sleep;  For You alone, O LORD make ...