Thought for the Day – Monday 4th May
Following on from our reading yesterday of ‘The Good Shepherd’, one of
our readings for this week take us to Psalm 23:
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall
not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.
He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the
darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff - they
comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in
the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall
follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the
Lord my whole life long.
Being a sheep in Biblical times was not always a great thing to be!
There were always thieves and robbers who wished to steal you and wild
animals wanting to eat you. You were stuck in a pen all night long on a tiny
patch of grass with other sheep pushing you around when all you really wanted
to do was roam free on the hills, explore new places, and graze on new grass.
After all, your very existence was all about finding new grass and chomping on
it to sustain you through each day!
So to have a good shepherd looking after you made you feel safe from
all the dangers, you did not need to worry about finding lovely new grass or
fresh water because they would always lead you to it when they let you out of
the pen in the morning and there you could munch all day long and sip cool
fresh water to your heart’s content. Nourishment for body and contentment for
the soul as you were freed from worry and fear because you knew your good
shepherd was near and taking good care of you.
So often we in the church are referred to as sheep and part of Jesus’
flock. When you look at what those real sheep need it seems to me we are no
different. We too need to feel safe from dangers, we don’t always like being
hemmed in with only our own flock, we do need to leave the pen and explore new
pastures, meet other sheep and interact with them, we need to roam free
trusting that our ‘Good Shepherd’ will lead us on the right path and we too
need nourishment each day to sustain us body, mind and soul.
Reading and re-reading this Psalm in times such as this reminds us that
as his sheep our ‘Good Shepherd’ is with us and as good sheep we need to look
to him each day for our protection, our nourishment, our sustenance of body,
mind and soul and listen to his voice and follow where he leads.
Prayer
Loving Shepherd,
We thank you that you have led us to green pastures and still water
this past week and shown us great beauty, such as the budding of the trees, the
morning sunshine, the caress of the sun on our skin, the fragrance of blossom
in the early evening all of which has fed our souls. Some of us are walking
dark valleys at this time – dark valleys of fear, of sickness, of uncertainty,
of grief – Lord meet us in these valleys and bring your protection and comfort.
You have provided for our daily basic needs, food and fresh water and we thank
you for these and we pray for those who have not experienced such blessing. We
give you thanks for our breath each day and for the life that brings and pray
that you would be with those whose breath is faltering.
Gracious Lord, providing new strength and
encouragement when we falter in our faith and trust be our ‘Good Shepherd’ and
lead us in your ways now and always. In your n
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