My Green Meadows
The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley,[a] I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever. Psalm 23:1-6 NLT
So, God moved my family and I to a land He predestined for us and now our life is perfect, right? Surely if I am following God and am where He wants me to go then everything will work out from there. I followed God to my promise land and now I am never going to have another trouble.
How does God “let me rest in green meadows” and
“lead me beside peaceful streams” but I still face trouble?
Can I follow God as my shepherd and have Him lead me to rest in green meadows but not experience bliss? I stumbled upon this video where Randy Vander Laan explains what the green pastures here looked like. We pictured an image of forever flowing green rolling hills stretched out as far as the eye can see. But the green pastures that is referred to in the Middle East were not like that. They had sprouts of grass along the dirt and rocks on the hillside. The fertile land was meant to farm on and the wilderness is where the sheep were tended. He explains that expecting God to plunk you down and never need to move an inch the rest of your life is not what was meant here. Instead you get what you need from what is right in front of you. The sheep get a mouth full take a few more steps and have another mouthful.
So how does the scripture work? How does God “let me rest in green meadows” and “lead me beside peaceful streams” but I still face trouble? How does God lead you to a new land with promise “to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask of think” (Ephesians 3:20) and I still face difficulties?
But He promises He will guide me. That guidance is everything.
The Creator of the Universe and the Lord My Shepherd
is going to guide me and carry me through.
If you stay with me in the picture image of this hillside with green sprouts of grass between rocks and dirt. My sprout of grass is infinitely more than I could have asked or thought. Where God lead me was more than I could have dreamed. But I still need to move and grow. I still will stumble upon rocks in my way and face difficulty. But He promises He will guide me. That guidance is everything. The Creator of the Universe and the Lord My Shepherd is going to guide me and carry me through. It might not be perfect bliss. It might not be an eternity of hills blanketed in green. But this hillside of mine is glorious because it is His plan. It leads me into His peaceful streams that I can draw from. This place renews my strength because He is there for me. This place guides me along in His right path that He has for my life. There is an assurance, even when the hard times come, that the place that I am is the place that God has taken me. It is the place that God wants me to be.
