THE ALL-POWERFUL GOOD SHEPHERD – Part 2 of 2

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”  (Psalm 23:5-6 NKJV)

King David, who wrote Psalm 23, had taken on a lion and a bear and pounded them into the ground (Samuel 17:34-36). David understood what God said when He promised to be with us through the valley of the shadow of death. Jesus is there in the midst of the pressure with us, and He’s not just standing around with His hands in His pockets. The Good Shepherd is there to rescue us when necessary, to protect us at all costs, and to fill our cups to overflowing. We don’t need to watch over our shoulders anymore. God prepares a table for us in the midst of our enemies. Jesus is watching them, guarding us, so we can keep our attention fully fixed on the face of the Good Shepherd – Jesus, our Savior. 

-- Louie Giglio in “Don’t Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table” 

#6425

WHAT REALLY MATTERS

“Jesus told [the sister of Lazarus], ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in Me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in Me and believes in Me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?’  ‘Yes, Lord,’ she told Him. ‘I have always believed You are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God.’”  (John 11:25-27 NLT)

Perhaps it is only when we realize and celebrate the intrinsic value of every human life that celebrity -- true celebrity -- shines most brightly. On our death beds, none of us will speak of the jobs we’ve held or the stuff we’ve acquired in our lifetimes; here Bull Markets and Nielsen ratings are irrelevant. A life-threatening illness jettisons pretention in no time flat. Death is the great equalizer. Death dares us to define what really matters. 

-- Nancy Cobb in “In Lieu of Flowers: A Conversation for the Living”

#6352

A DIVINE INTERSECTION

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved His appearing.”  (2 Timothy 4:7-8 ESV)

Preparing for a death by creating meaningful rituals encourages emotional catharsis and spiritual release. And acknowledging family dynamics, in spite of the helpless and painful feelings, helps us move toward a resolution, however imperfect it may be.

We are fortunate when we have the time – the luxury, really – to say goodbye, particularly if it’s under the guidance of hospice workers, chaplains and pastors. These are the people who teach us that the end of life requires an awareness that transcends the confines of traditional medicine… Palliative care is based on this principle, in the tending to the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of the dying, in the recognition of the mystery of life’s final cycle, and in the realization that there is a time to hold on and a time to let go. Coming to terms with these very basic tenets will better prepare us for the two roles that we must each adopt over the course of our lives – as the living with the dying and as the dying with the living. Though our scripts will differ, our need to understand them will not.

Death forces a grace period for us all. In a “divine intersection” the dying offer the living a final chance to be the best that they can be. We must take our cues from them, value the moments that lead up to and follow their departure, and work toward acceptance after they are gone. This is a vow as sacred as any we will make over the course of our lifetime. 

-- Adapted from “In Lieu of Flowers: A Conversation for the Living” by Nancy Cobb

#6149

AN “EVEN THOUGH” KIND OF FAITH

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”  (Psalm 23:4 ESV)

God Almighty is with us.

No matter the troubles you’re walking through right now, the good news is not simply that God will help you. That’s not the whole message. The message is that God is with you. He’s with you in the sickness. He’s with you at the grave. He’s with you when the job opportunity doesn’t come through. He’s with you when you receive hard news. He’s with you in the chemo ward. He’s with you in the storm, and in the wind, and in the trial, and in the valley. God Almighty -- your Good Shepherd -- is right there in the midst of the difficulty with you. This is a game-changing revelation, and it shifts your prayer life. Because you don’t need to pray anymore, “God, I’m in a storm -- help me.” Instead, you pray, “God, I’m in a storm. Thank You for being in this storm with me. You’ve got my back. How are we going to get through this together?”

Peace and victory and freedom don’t come from sitting around wishing we didn’t have any problems or pain. No, the reality is that we all will be led through the valley of the shadow of death in some way, shape, or form. God promises in Psalm 23 that peace, victory, and freedom will come in the midst of problems, pain, and loss. That’s how we develop an “even though” kind of faith. We live by knowing that, in the midst of a broken world, God Almighty is with us. 

-- Louie Giglio in “Don’t Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table”

#6127

THE MYSTERY OF LIFE AND DEATH

EDITOR’S NOTE: This prayerful reflection was first shared at a service that was held for people gathered to mourn the loss of five music students from Indiana University who died in a plane crash on April 20, 2006.

"Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me." (Psalm 23:4 NIV)

Oh Dear God, we come to You because we do not know where else to go. We come to You with more questions than affirmations. We want to ask, "Why?", "Why now?" "Why them?"

We can not accept the glib answer that You need them for some angelic choir more than we need them here. It is not so. We can not - we will not believe that it is some direct act of will on Your part that these young persons should die so soon. You would not tease us with promising futures, only to snuff out these lives before any fulfillment of their dreams. We want to quarrel, but must confess that the mystery of life and death is beyond our mortal minds.

But we still come, in spite of questions, in spite of anger, because our pain is such that we need Your love and need Your comfort and need to feel Your presence more than we need answers that will not satisfy. Hold us close to You, close to each other and close to those we have lost.

Even as our own grief seems too much to bear, we remember those for whom these deaths are far more personal. We pray for their families, for those for whom life will be forever changed, where empty chairs and empty rooms and silent instruments will be constant reminders of their loss.

But, we also come to be reminded that we live in the light of Easter. We have proclaimed that Christ is risen, that death has been conquered, that life continues beyond the event we call death and we claim the promises made that in life and in death we belong to You, brothers and sisters of our Lord Jesus Christ and therefore Your children always.  Amen 

-- Joe G. Emerson, Teaching Pastor, First United Methodist Church, Bloomington, IN

#6042

FACING PAIN

“Yes, even if I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will not be afraid of anything, because You are with me. You have a walking stick with which to guide and one with which to help. These comfort me.”  (Psalm 23:4 NLV)

Scott Peck began a best-selling book with a sentence only three words long: "Life is difficult." Life starts difficult, when we're forcibly pushed from the warm, soothing womb into the cold, glaring lights, then turned upside down and smacked. Life ends difficult, when we're struck down by cancer, emphysema, stroke, or old age. And every day in between has some degree of difficulty.

So very early on, we learn to soothe our pain [in a variety of inappropriate ways. We try all sorts of things.]…

But the bottom line is, we still have pain, because life is difficult. And that "Spirituality is all about what you do with your pain." You can choose to medicate it, or you can face it in God's presence. One path stifles growth, the other promotes it.

-- Kevin A. Miller, from PreachingToday.com

#5258

FACELESS FEARS

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”  (Psalm 23:4)

The dread of illness can be more damaging than the illness. The fear of failure can be more fatal than the failure. Go through the list of phobias which have multiplied in an age of anxiety and see how many of them are what Archibald MacLeish called "faceless fears." That is, they have no substance, no shape, no bodily image that you can face or fight. They're shadows. Fear of the dark -- fear of open places -- fear of closed places -- fear of criticism -- fear of the future -- fear of old age -- fear of death -- all the way to phobophobia, which is the fear of fear. There are seventy-two listed phobias, most of them shadows, ghosts. They have no power to hurt except through fear of them.

Obviously then, one of the great needs of life is to keep our fears manageable. And one of the great contributions that religious faith makes to wholesome life is right here. Nothing takes the fear out of life so much as an awareness deep within of God's nearness and His loving concern. "I will fear no evil for You are with me." The particular dread the psalmist speaks about is the common fear of death. He likens it to a shadow: "though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death…"  There's nothing much to fear in a shadow. The shadow of a dog can't bite. The shadow of a snake can't sting. And when life is undergirded by a consciousness of God's presence and concern, we're released from the fear of many shadows and get beyond the reach of many seeming evils. 

-- Wallace Hamilton in “Where Now Is Thy God?” 

#4948

GOD’S REAL PRESENCE

“The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want.

He makes me to lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside the still waters.

He restores my soul;

He leads me in the paths of righteousness

For His name’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil;

For You are with me;

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

You anoint my head with oil;

My cup runs over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days of my life;

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord

Forever.”  (Psalm 23 NKJV)

The task of… Christian leaders is not to make a little contribution to the solution of the pains and tribulations of their time, but to identify and announce the ways in which Jesus is leading God's people out of slavery, through the desert land to a new land of freedom. Christian leaders have the arduous task of responding to personal struggles, family conflicts, national calamities, and international tensions with an articulate faith in God's real presence.

-- Henri J. M. Nouwen

#4823  

GOD IS WITH US

“Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”  (Isaiah 41:10 NKJV)

When fear begins to overwhelm us, we can think of the living Christ, whose heart and voice are God’s heart and voice, speaking to us inwardly: “I am here. I will not leave you. Hold onto Me. You are safe with Me. Breathe slowly. Breathe deeply. My healing breath of life is flowing into you. Take My peace into your body. Take My peace into your heart.”

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”  (Psalm 23:4 NKJV)

-- Flora Slosson Wuellner in “Miracle: When Christ Touches Our Deepest Need” 


#4797

THE SHADOW OF DEATH

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”  (Psalm 23:4 NKJV)

Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse [long-time pastor of Philadelphia's Tenth Presbyterian Church] told of the occasion of his first wife’s death. He and his [young] children were driving from the burial, overcome with grief. He searched for a word of comfort to offer but could think of nothing. Just then, a large moving van drove by. As it passed, the shadow of the truck swept over the car. An inspiration came to Dr. Barnhouse. He turned to his family and asked, “Children, would you rather be run over by a truck or by its shadow?”

The children said, “Well, of course, Dad, we’d rather be run over by the shadow. That can’t hurt us at all.”

Dr. Barnhouse explained, “Did you know that two thousand years ago the truck of death ran over the Lord Jesus… in order that only its shadow might run over us?”

We face death, but thanks to Jesus, we only face its shadow.

-- Max Lucado in “Traveling Light”


#4604

OUR PERSONAL SHEPHERD

“The Lord is my shepherd…”  (Psalm 23:1a)

Years ago a chaplain in the French army used the Twenty-third Psalm to encourage soldiers before battle. He would urge them to repeat the opening clause of the Psalm, ticking it off, one finger at a time. The little finger represented the word THE; the ring finger represented the word LORD; the middle finger, IS; the index finger, MY; and the thumb, SHEPHERD. Then he asked every soldier to write the words on the palm of his hand and to repeat the verse whenever he needed strength.

The chaplain placed special emphasis on the message of the index finger -- MY. He reminded the soldiers that God is a personal shepherd with a personal mission -- to get them home safely.

Did the chaplain’s words find their mark? In the life of one man they did. After a battle one of the young soldiers was found dead, his right hand clutching the index finger of the left. “The Lord is MY shepherd…”

I pray that your final hours will find you clutching the same hope.

-- Max Lucado in “Traveling Light”

#4601

NO NEED TO FEAR

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”  (Psalm 23:4 NKJV)

Don’t face death without facing God. Don’t even speak of death without speaking to God. He and He alone can guide you through the valley. Others may speculate or aspire, but only God knows the way to get you home. And only God is committed to getting you there safely.

Years after David wrote these words, another Bethlehem Shepherd would say: “There are many rooms in My Father’s house; I would not tell you this if it were not true. I am going there to prepare a place for you. After I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me so that you may be where I am.” (John 14:2-3)

Note the promise of Jesus. “I will come back and take you to be with Me.” He pledges to take us home. He does not delegate the task. He may send missionaries to teach you, angels to protect you, teachers to guide you, singers to inspire you, and physicians to heal you, but He sends no one to take you. He reserves this job for Himself. “I will come back and take you home.” He is your personal Shepherd. And He is personally responsible to lead you home. And because He is present when any of His sheep dies, you can say what David said, “I will fear no evil.” 

-- Max Lucado in “Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Meant to Bear -- The Promise of Psalm 23”


#4514

NOTHING TO FEAR

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me;…”  (Psalm 23:4a ESV)

One of the greatest gifts we can give people is the hope that their death is nothing to fear - you know, not that it has no fear in it, but the promise of scripture is that God will lead us through the valley of the shadow of death.

-- Max Lucado

#4253

OVERCOMING THE FEAR OF DEATH

"Jesus became flesh and blood by being born in human form. For only as a human being could He die, and only by dying could He break the power of the Devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could Jesus deliver those who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying." (Hebrews 2:14b-15 NLT)

C. S. Lewis wrote that he was surprised how much grief felt like fear. We live constantly with the fear of death. When death does occur… the feelings of grief come to the surface and magnify the fear that has been there all along. But the Bible teaches us that we can be freed from the bondage of this fear.

-- Phyllis J. Le Peau in Caring for People in Grief

#3946

THE LIGHT OF FAITH

"By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."  (Luke 1:78-79)

In the light of faith I am strong, constant, and persevering. In the light of faith I hope. Do not allow me to faint by the way. This light, without which I should still walk in darkness, teaches me the road.

-- Catherine of Siena in A life of Total Prayer


#3559