Most people are familiar with the 23rd Psalm, even if they know nothing else about the Bible.  But have you really thought about what it means for God to be our Shepherd?   Have you ever spent any time around sheep?  They are really dumb animals, according to all who have raised them.  They follow the lead sheep and may even follow it into danger if the shepherd or keeper isn’t there to stop them.  They graze until the pastureland is desolate and won’t move until the shepherd moves them.  Wait!  Is that really dumb or is it obedient and cautious?  After pondering the scriptures about God being our shepherd, I have decided that I want to be more like a sheep.  I don’t want to go my own way or follow a wrong leader over a cliff that represents danger and bad times ahead for me.  I want to depend on the Good Shepherd to lead me and to feed me daily from His Word, not to continue to graze in the old pasture that has dried up.

Did you know that the Scripture says in the book of Ezekiel that God will take care of His sheep and give them a place to lie down in peace?  Awesome stuff, huh?  God declares that He is our Shepherd.  The sheep don’t have to do anything but accept that truth and allow Him to give us a place to rest in His peaceful presence.  So often, we get caught up in running here and there, looking for God and what He wants us to do.  But God is right there next to us, speaking in our ear to be still, to rest in Him and in His love.  

If God says it, it’s true and He says He is our God.  We are His people!  Have you ever walked into a crowd, looking for someone you know?  Then you see a group of your friends and you say, “There they are!  Those are my people!”  That’s what God says about us.  He looks down on the earth, sees His followers and proclaims that we are His.  Then, as our Shepherd, He keeps His eyes on us forever.  There is nowhere we can go where God is not there.  I thought for a while when I was living in the vast snowy land that is Maine that God had deserted me, but I found Him there each time I made a new friend, in my job that He gave me, in the crafts that I was able to do and bless others with.  God was there; He had not moved away from me at all!

In the New Testament, Jesus calls Himself the good Shepherd.  Furthermore, He tells us that His sheep hear His voice and follow Him.  I have been told that in some places, the shepherds let all of their sheep graze together.  Then, when they need to bring their own sheep together for shearing or whatever, they need only walk through the field calling out for them.  The sheep belonging to that farmer know his voice and follow him. Whether that is accurate or not, I know that the people who belong to the Lord will hear His voice clearly, recognize it and follow Him.  I heard the Lord calling to me when I was alone in an apartment in Smithfield, Virginia, reading my Bible and discovering that He was my Savior.  I heard Him comforting me when I had a stroke, encouraging me to live and to get stronger.  I hear Him daily now when I spend time in His Word and pray.  It is amazing to me that some do not think that they can hear the voice of the Lord in these times.  If God isn’t speaking to you and you know that you have a relationship with Him, then go back to the last time you heard Him and wait for Him to speak to you again.  I can assure you from experience that God didn’t go anywhere; He didn’t move away from you and He wants you to hear His voice.  

I hope that you are all as blessed by this lovely hymn as I am.  The scenery is beautiful and much to be admired.  As you gaze at it, know that the God who created all of that wonder also created and loves you, just as you are.  He is your Shepherd, and He wants to lead you to a place of rest and refreshing.  Be blessed today with His presence!