Daily Struggles
Psalms 23:1-3 1The LORD is my shepherd, and I will never be without.He leads me along peaceful waters and makes me lie down in green pastures. He heals my soul. For the sake of his name, he leads me in the right direction.
Without a doubt, this is the most well-known psalm. Jesus picked up the idea that the LORD is like a shepherd in John 10:11. If He said, “I am the shepherd of the sheep,” He meant that He was the LORD God. A lot of books have been written about this point of view. We can only talk about a few of the points in this short meditation.
Sheep are stupid and smell bad. Sorry if that makes you feel bad, but I can say that because I am one. Hunters would find them easy prey if they didn’t have a shepherd to watch over and lead them. It looks like they can’t find pasture on their own, and when they do, they often get into dangerous situations where they need immediate help.
The All-Powerful God is our guide. Is there anything better? Because we are like sheep, we need help all the time. Knowing that the Almighty God is our shepherd is very calming. He will always meet our needs. It will be good for our souls because he will lead us to places with lots of grass. He will show us where to rest and eat and drink a lot. It seems like everything is against us when we are down, but He makes our souls whole again. He helps us get out of the pit of despair and gives us hope with His loving smile.
Why does He do all this for these stupid, stinky sheep? It’s all for His name’s sake. His name is made up of all of His wonderful qualities. Would He be good, merciful, gracious, fair, loving, holy, and pure if He just let stupid people like us waste our lives? As proof of how good He was and how big His heart was, He chose to be our shepherd. You couldn’t find anything else that even comes close. When you know how bad things are and how great it is that the LORD wants to be our shepherd, why would you try to wander off or go your own way?
Think about this: If you pay close attention to the shepherd, the promises in this psalm will come true for you.
“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” — Psalm 46:1
When the day feels heavy, focus on the next small step rather than solving everything at once. Bring your worries to God, and reach out to someone you trust for support. You don’t have to carry every burden alone.
Prayer: God, give me strength for today, wisdom for the next step, and courage to ask for help when I need it. Amen.
