Psalms 23

 

Hello this is Multiply a podcast to encourage village church planters and leaders I am Brad Snowden. We are looking at a very powerful Psalm today and one probably every one of us have read many times. Psalms 23 says, "The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3  he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. 4 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. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."

We all have times in our lives where the challenges are too great for us and we need hope and this Psalm is just what we need. There is another Psalm I would like to look at Psalm 100:3 says, "Know and fully recognize with gratitude that the Lord Himself is God;  It is He who has made us, not we ourselves. We are His people and the sheep of His pasture."

 I believe that Psalms 23 shows that the sheep are dependent upon the shepherd for provision, guidance, and rest, for calm places to nourish and strengthen our hearts. His words and actions restores us for a witness of who the shepherd truly is. Jesus is our shepherd written in John 10:11. We can trust in Him even in the hard times because He will not leave us. He is our comfort and strength. He anoints us with His word and it flows out of our lives and can touch others around us for we are not alone for there are many. We can be encouraged that if we are following the shepherd He will cause us to desire to be with him and be in His presence. We cannot be guided by our own desires or even wisdom because that will soon fail when the challenges of this life push back against us. Church planter and leaders we must recognize our need for the shepherd of our souls to be in full control. It will only be at that place we find our hope and strength to follow His word completely. This has been a word of encouragement for village church planters. Who will you share this with today?