God is My Guide!

October 26, 2010

Psalm 23
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.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.

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.

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever. (NIV)

Probably the most well known, widely read Psalm of the Bible. Just six simple verses, but they hold so much truth and comfort.

I am sure you have read this Psalm yourself many times. God may have even used this verse to comfort you or remind you of His presence in times of trouble.

After reading this verse afresh this morning, I realize that God is named in many different ways just in this one Psalm. In previous Psalms we have read, the names of God are numerous and sometimes it is hard to just narrow it down to one name of God to focus on. In this case, God is so many things. He is shepherd, protector, provider, rescuer, restorer, glorious, fearless, and comforter just to name a few.

There is one name that stands out to me in this Psalm the most.

God is My Guide!

The first line of the Psalm compares the Lord to a shepherd. A shepherd’s job was to guide the sheep to new places to eat and drink. He acted as a guide in order to lead the sheep where they were supposed to go. God is a guide to each of us in our own lives.

When I think of a guide, I think of someone who knows the path we are going to take. In fact, they have even been down that path before, several times. As the guide, they are in charge of leading me down the path, pointing out obstacles along the way, as well as turning my attention to the beautiful things during the journey.

God is my Guide! God knows the entire path of my life. In fact, He already has it all mapped out, each and every step. God knew where I would live and how many times I would move before I graduated high school. He picked out each of my best friends specifically for me. He saw the hurt and rejection I experienced in middle school and high school. He helped me choose which college to attend and what I would study. He led me to each relationship I had, until I finally met my future husband. He planned out the timing for us to get married and to begin our Air Force life together. He saw all the ups and downs I experienced along he way. Everything about my journey, God has planned and knows ahead of time.

As my guide, He promises to always be with me. Yet, He doesn’t promise to leave out all the trials and sorrow and hurt. He will definitely give me the strength to make it through and come out on the other side with an even deeper faith. God guides because He loves me.

And the best part is I know the ending will be marvelous! Psalm 23 promises the most wonderful ending to any story, “I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Because I have chosen to accept God as my guide and believe in where He is leading, I will live in eternity with God!