My Shepherd

I really like the way this page turned out, and it has a great deal of meaning for me. (For more details about HOW the page was done, check my papercrafting blog here.)  Psalms 23 is one of the better known passages in the Bible, and a promise to which many people have clung - especially in challenging times.  And it DOES contain some wonderful promises.  There's also some real food for thought here.  

Though I've memorized this passage and contemplated it many times, there are several things that jumped out at me this time that I haven't considered in the same way before. The Psalm starts, "The Lord is My Shepherd".  I've often thought of this in the context of Jesus' story in Matthew & Luke about the shepherd with 99 sheep who is missing one (Matthew 18:10-14, Luke 15:3-7).  This time, a couple of other verses came to mind.  First was a verse in Isaiah:

"All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way;"  Isaiah 53:6 (KJV).

Just in case I didn't get the message about who's got the power (see this post), this verse makes it pretty clear to me.  When sheep go astray, as in the parable of the 99, only the shepherd can find the missing sheep and bring them back.  It's very unlikely the sheep will find its own way back!  Father, thank you for searching for me and bringing me back when I've gone astray!  May I rely on the power of Your Spirit within me.

Then another verse comes to mind - 

"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." John 10:27 (KJV)

If sheep listen to the shepherd's voice and follow him instead of getting side-tracked by whatever they're doing in the moment, they won't go astray in the first place!  Father, may I always HEAR your voice and FOLLOW!

This brings me to the part of Psalm 23 that I have been pondering the most:

"Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me." Psalm 23:4 (KJV)

Comfort from the rod & staff?  When I hear the word "rod" I tend to think of the saying, "Spare the rod and spoil the child".  I don't like the idea of being hit by my Father.  I really can't say that idea is very "comforting".  Frankly, it's also not the way I've experienced God working with me, either.  My experience with Him is of much more gentle correction and guidance.  "Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me."  Really, Father?  How can that be?  The Amplified Bible puts it this way:

"Your rod [to protect] and your staff [to guide] they comfort and console me." Psalm 23:4 (AMP)

The rod is for protection?!  Oh, Father, of course you protect me.  How sad that my first thought is of being hit myself, when you use that rod to protect me!  When I look up the original words in Strong's concordance, I see that the word translated "rod" simply means a stick (used in many contexts), while the word "staff" comes from a word meaning "to support".   After reading about shepherds and sheep from a variety of sources, I feel I understand this better.  While the rod can indeed be used to administer discipline to a stubborn sheep, it also is used to protect them from danger - snakes, wolves, etc.  And clearly the amount of force used, and exactly how the rod is used, varies depending on the goal - discipline or protection.  The staff is used to give the shepherd something to lean on, but also to reach out and grasp a sheep to protect them from harm or to rescue them when they've gotten themselves into difficulty.  

I think of children.  Those who have studied child-rearing know that children need discipline.  They need to know that their parents care enough about them to protect them - even from themselves if need be.  Such discipline makes them feel safe!  Obviously that is different from abusive beatings that make a child afraid of a parent.  Most of the time gentle guidance, or a determined word is all that is needed to correct a child.  Occasionally more is needed.  I can trust my Heavenly Father to know EXACTLY what I need and to guide me in the best way possible.  I can also trust Him to ensure that I am protected - even from myself and my own stubbornness if necessary!  And if I get myself into difficulty, even if it was because of going my own way, He will seek me out and rescue me from my difficulty!  What an amazing God and Father.  So many people say things like "You've made your bed, now you have to lie in it".  But that's not the way my Father treats me. While He doesn't save me from all the consequences of poor choices, He assures me that NOTHING can take me out of His hand (John 10:28-30), and He is willing to rescue me even if I'm the one responsible for getting myself into difficulty in the first place!

Father, I am so grateful!  You are such a loving Father!  As I think about it more, I realize that your rod and your staff definitely comfort me!  I can trust you to protect me, even from myself - administering guidance and discipline as needed to keep me safe and close to you, My Shepherd.  Thank you, Father!  No wonder you tell me not to be anxious about anything.  You are in charge and taking care of me.  Some hired shepherds might be lazy, but You are not.  You don't slumber or sleep and nothing gets past you.  You know everything and work all things for my good.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!  Father I WANT your gentle guidance - and your discipline when I need it.  And I'm so grateful that you care enough to guide and protect me, even if I get stubborn.  Knowing you do so does indeed comfort me!  And thank you for guiding my hand as I drew the shepherd and sheep.  They came so easily that I KNOW it was the miracle of Your guiding my hand!  And thank you for bringing the transfer technique to mind.  It's been a LONG time since I used it!  This time spent with you is so wonderful!  I love you, Father!