The Lord IS Your Shepherd!
The Lord is my Shepherd. We are digging into this famous verse. Everyone knows it, but what does it mean to you?
Sometimes we forget this is a statement of absolute trust. If He truly is our Shepherd, then we should entirely depend on Him to lead us.
In the literal sense, a shepherd is responsible for food sources and the safety of their sheep. Do we think about God in this literal sense? Or do we believe He is only there in times of trouble? That’s a fallacy. He provides for us daily, and the more we open up to that, recognize it, rely on Him, and thank Him, the more He feeds us. This can be food for our table and our souls. He provides it all.
A shepherd also owns His sheep. Does this mean God owns us? As Christians, we open our hearts and surrender to Him. Yes, he owns us – our hearts and our daily actions. As humans, we shy away from that statement of ownership; we think of it as slavery. But this is different. God bought this relationship with His body and blood. He owns us because He created us, but we also have free will. The apostle Paul explains this as being bond-servants, willingly yielding our lives as servants to the Lord.
In real life, shepherds also love their sheep. It’s a love that they show in their daily care. Our relationship with Christ as a shepherd is a relationship of unconditional love. God created us in His likeness because He wanted to love us. He wanted a loving and personal relationship. That means daily interaction and exchanges. Is that the relationship you have with Christ? Do you have a day-to-day, loving, caring relationship?
Or do you only look for Him to shepherd you in times of need?
We will dig deeper into Psalm 23 in 2023. There is so much more to this relationship with our Shepherd, but I encourage you to start with these simple thoughts and questions.
Do you rely on Him to feed you?
Are you surrendered to Him?
Are you in a daily, loving relationship with Him?
We are living in difficult times. Let Him be your shepherd.