My Shepherd

At church, we're talking about the names of God. It has been an incredible study and has made my heart yearn for the Lord in new ways as I get to know Him more intimately. Yesterday we talked about "Yahweh-Raah", The Lord is my Shepherd. Yahweh- Raah means so much to me. As I find with each week, every name resonates within my heart and touches chords unknown to me. I am reminded of who God is and who I am not.

There is a place that I go to when I am scared or hurt or lonely. When the world is crashing around me, the Lord has given me a place to hide. Scripture speaks of it so beautifully and so clearly to me.

"The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul." Psalm 23:1-3

" Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. " Psalm 1:1-3

"But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." Jeremiah 17:7-8

These words lead me to the place where I find rest. A place with a huge willow tree dancing in the wind. A quiet stream resting at my right. It flows at such a slow pace that I can barely see ripples from the rocks. An open field to my left with daisies and tall grass. The hills flow freely through the land that meet me back under the tree. It's here that I am safe and it's here that I find myself longing to be.

After the sermon yesterday, I couldn't help but picture this place and my Shepherd leading me here. I realized that it wasn't so much this beautiful place that I longed for, this place of rest and peace...it was the Lord. It has been Him all along, my Shepherd...Yahweh-Raah! He gave me this place to meet me here. It is Him who makes the wind blow to wrap around my body and hold me ever so close. The branches dance because of Him, the daisies grow because of Him, the stream creeps because of Him. Oh, I am overwhelmed by His grace. I don't deserve this place, this love. So I find myself at His feet again. Knowing that I am unworthy and undeserving, but knowing that He is gracious and longs to have compassion on me. I remember that He does not treat me as my sins deserve and that He knows my heart...good and bad. I am so thankful for the sacrifice of Jesus. I couldn't be here if it weren't for Him. And I love it here in this green pasture.