Grains of Sand

Pixabay, Public Domain “ …your rod and your staff, they comfort me ” (Psalm 23:4) The wooden spoon, the belt, the ruler, the “board of education applied to the seat of learning;” whatever it was that was once a symbol of a just reward for bad behaviour, never seems comforting at the time. I didn’t get spanked often, but I had a healthy respect for that piece of belt that my father used on us when all else failed. Today it is not “politically correct” to use these kinds of methods. It’s a shame. While abuse is never acceptable, there is a world of truth behind Solomon’s statement: “spare the rod, spoil the child.” In fact, he goes so far as to say that lack of discipline is a sign of lack of love (Proverbs 13:24, 22:15, 23:13, 14). We often liken the rod and staff mentioned in Psalm 23 to instruments of punishment. Sometimes they are instruments of discipline, but more often than not, they are weapons of protection and means of guidance. That is why they are described as being of “c...

Pixabay, Public Domain In 1921, the Women’s Missionary Society of his church presented my father with a devotional book. In his later years he read from it every day. The reading for September 26, the day in 1991 when my dad died, the Scripture verse on which the devotional was based was Psalm 23:4: “ Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me .” My father was alone in a hospital bed when he died—at least that was the regret I felt when I first learned the details of his passing. But later, after being divinely directed to check the devotional book dad always read, I was reminded again that, though no human being might have been with him, the Great Shepherd had been there to personally escort him through the valley. It was a huge comfort to me to remember that Truth. Whether the valleys of our lives be those of hardship, sorrow, illness, danger, or even death itself, what a wonderful blessing it is to know that our Shepher...

Pixabay, Public Domain It’s all about the Shepherd. He guides us. The direction He takes us leads to transforming us into people who look like Him. He has a mission in mind that becomes a goal in this transformation. When Jesus was about to return to His Father after His resurrection, He commissioned His followers with these words: “ …go and make disciples of all nations... ” (Matthew 28:19). The scope of the task was somewhat new to the disciples, but the message and the mission were not. Followers of Jesus had been engaged in spreading the Gospel from the beginning of His ministry (i.e. Matthew 10). In fact, people of God having an impact for God on the unbelievers around them had been God’s mission as far back as Abraham. God formed a nation of witnesses, of believers, whose words and actions were designed to showcase Him before the nations. “ He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake ” (Psalm 23:3) The paths of righteousness that He leads us on are meant to bri...

Pixabay, Public Domain If it were left up to the sheep, they’d stick to the same paths, the same pastures, the same watering holes. And eventually, the pastures would be eaten away to nothingness and the waters polluted to the point of contamination. The shepherd needs to guide them to fresh pastures and new streams. " The Lord is my shepherd…he guides me… ” Psalm 23:3. When was the last time you found something fresh and new in the Scriptures? It’s an old book that is always new. I’ve been attached to church since I was born, and a follower of Jesus for fifty-five years. I’ve been a student of the Word of God for a long time, more so in recent years. And I can say without a word of a lie that I discover new things constantly as I explore the Book. The truth isn’t new—it’s always been there. It’s just that I didn’t see it before. My fault. I either wasn’t ready for it, or not paying attention. But the Spirit of God guides us to, I guess you’d call it, “old truth made new.” Wha...

Pixabay, Public Domain “ The Lord is my shepherd…he restores my soul ” A “cast” sheep is one that has fallen over onto its back and can’t get back up onto its feet. Without intervention it will die. The psalmist describes what a “cast” soul is like in Psalm 42:5, 6: “ Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?…My soul is downcast within me. ” Did you think that depression, despair, sadness, emptiness, hopelessness, loneliness, fear, and worthlessness were modern day phenomena? They aren’t. Sleepless nights, lack of appetite, uncontrolled anger followed by guilt, a sense that God has walked away—if He was ever there at all, and the very real sense that life is over, are nothing new. Watching my mother suffer from chronic depression for many years always reminds me of just how real being “cast” is. Don Baker sums it up much better than I ever could. He writes: “OUR LORD IS THE SOUL DOCTOR. He is the only one trained and experienced in the healing of the soul—the onl...

Pixabay, Public Domain “ The Lord is my shepherd…he leads me beside quiet waters… ” (Psalm 23:2  About a year ago, some friends and I were touring Alberta. We visited Athabasca Falls. The sound of the water is so loud you have to shout to make yourself heard. The speed of the water racing through the rocks down into the gorge is terrifying. At the top of the falls, just near the edge of those rushing, roaring waters, is a bench. On the bench is a small plaque. The plaque says that the bench is dedicated to the memory of a young man who got too near the edge. He fell and was swept over the falls and carried onto the rocks and down the gorge. The current was far too swift, the fall much too far, the rocks much too sharp for him to have a chance of survival. This is not the place a shepherd would take his sheep. The sound and the fury would scatter them in all directions. They won’t drink if the water is flowing too quickly. Sheep need quiet water. So a good shepherd loo...

Pixabay, Public Domain The Lord is my SHEPHERD . In Spanish this phrase is translated: “ El Señor es mi pastor .” As in all things, we are to model our Lord (1 Peter 2:21). So, as He is the Great Shepherd, the quintessential Shepherd, those who claim the title of shepherd or pastor are to model Him. There are many who use the title of shepherd or pastor who are not pastors. They may be CEOs, or supervisors, or coordinators, or bosses, or leaders, but they are not pastors. They may meet the criteria mentioned in Paul’s epistles and be the husbands of one wife, manage their families, not be given to hungering after money, be well-behaved, and be able to teach (1 Timothy 3:2). But those things alone don't make them pastors. A person who exercises his duties through manipulation, intimidation, or isolation is not a pastor. A person who will not disturb his lunch to come and offer a prayer or a shred of comfort to a parishioner at the point of death, is not a pastor. The...