by Martha June

“The Lord is my Shepherd…”

Psalm 23:1

For the last two weeks, I have camped out in Psalm 23. It is a verse I had memorized years ago – but God has since knit it into the fabric of my heart. He has specifically used the Biblical analogy of God being a shepherd to encourage and challenge me.

David – the writer, was a Shepherd long before he was a King. He was intimately familiar with the job description. In the story of David and Goliath, we learn what shepherding required of David. (1 Samuel 17:34-35) It was no easy task. A shepherd’s life is on the line for his flock at all times. And a good shepherd? Has “blood in the game”. His sheep are his number one priority. The well-being of his sheep are directly related to his livelihood. The shepherd cares deeply because they are his.

Yet, even with David’s knowledge and proficiency in “shepherding” he acknowledges the authority of God in his own life by referring to God as “my shepherd“. David established that he does not trust his own strength and leadership, but God’s.

In John chapter 10, Jesus describes what it looks like to trust him as our personal shepherd.

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.”

John 10:11-13

The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep Jesus stresses. A good shepherd defends and protects the vulnerability of his flock. Do you see what Jesus is trying to say here?

No one can care for the people of God, for you and me, like the person with perfect blood in the game – our Lord and Savior Jesus. His followers and children are his flock. Something David knew intimately.

Jesus is not just a shepherd, He is the good shepherd with our best interests at heart. Even if his best interests are not our ideas of what is good. Having a personal shepherd means living a life of daily submission to his leadership and living in obedience to his voice. This is something I need to implement into my life. How about you? Like David can you say truly that the Lord is your Shepherd?

Sincerely,

Martha June