Most of us know some of it. Some of us know all of it. It has been translated into our modern English but most of us know the old King James version, it seems to flow and bring us comfort. It is the Shepherd’s Psalm, Psalm 23. It describes God’s love and guidance in our lives from a perspective and culture that is unfamiliar to us unless you are a shepherd or a sheep rancher. Yet, we can imagine the green pastures, the still waters, the quiet rest, a nomadic banquet, a cup filled to the brim and certainly the valley of the shadow of death, that most of us have or will walk through.
My family is walking that dark path now since the death of my brother-in-law from a brain tumor. He drew his last breath last Tuesday. We were reminded that, “God’s promise was never that life would be fair. God’s promise was that, when we had to confront the unfairness of life, we would not have to do it alone for He would be with us.” (Rabbi Kushner) We certainly experienced God’s presence in many ways during Daniel’s fight with this disease. It came in quiet and unexpected ways; a spirit-filled transport driver who sang amazing gospel songs, hospital rooms that became available when we were told that they were filled, surgical procedures that were life threatening which were successful and brought relief, a doctor whose wife had suffered from the same tumor at age 35, etc. When you are dealing with a long-term illness, you learn to look for miracles great and small along the way. As a life-long teacher, Daniel taught us his final lesson. That is, how to live by faith through the pain and remain gracious, loving and forgiving, and even find humor somehow through it all.
Psalm 23 is not just about grazing and sleeping. It has so many action words, these verbs that describe the journey of life. Here God, “makes”, “leads”, “restores”, “comforts”, “prepares” and “anoints” and guides us with his rod for protection and staff for rescue and to keep us on the path. This psalm is a journey through the pastures, mountains, valleys and plateaus that the landscape of Judea would require to keep the sheep alive and well. We are on that journey too. If we listen to our Good Shepherd and stay close to Him along the way, then our destination will be the celebration banquet. There we will find the blessing and healing of anointing oil and have our cups filled to overflowing with the wine of God’s grace and presence, forever!
(Steve Berger is pastor of First Methodist Church Minden, a Global Methodist Church. He is the husband of Dianne, his partner in ministry, they have two adult sons, a dachshund, and love living in Minden.)