Psalm 23

Psalm 23

1The LORD is my ^(A)shepherd,
I shall ^(B)not want.
2He makes me lie down in ^(C)green pastures;
He ^(D)leads me beside ^(E)quiet waters.
3He ^(F)restores my soul;
He ^(G)guides me in the ^(H)paths of righteousness
For His name's sake.
4Even though I ^(I)walk through the ^[a]valley of the shadow of death,
I ^(J)fear no ^[b]evil, for ^(K)You are with me;
Your ^(L)rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
5You ^(M)prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You have ^(N)anointed my head with oil;
My ^(O)cup overflows.
6Surely ^(P)goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,
And I will ^[c](Q)dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

if you think of sheep, they don't ask they're shepherd for anything. (they can't talk for that matter, except in movies like babe and dr. dolittle but im getting off the subject.) they trust in their shepherd, follow him and know his voice. this first line is a tremendous statement of faith and trust in God. The Lord is my shepherd, i shall not want. its not.. oh i'll try not to want stuff, its no, yahway is my shepherd, i will trust in him and he provides. Verse 2 backs up his verse 1, giving examples of the Lord's faithfulness and why he trusts in him. same with verse 3. verse 2 tells of something any normal shepherd could possibly do, but builds on his examples with verse three, Restoring one's soul. guiding one on the paths of righteousness, for his name's sake, something only God can do, properly. Verse 4, is another unbelievable statement of faith. even though his circumstances, even though he walk through the shadow of death, he will fear no evil, for he knows the truth, and that is that the Lord is with him. (its so important to tell yourself truth, and not let yourself get carried away with feelings, especially if those feelings arent based in truth. and how do we know truth, oh yeah the bible. oh yeah we're reading it. good deal.) He is comforted by the truth. i dont know how literal verse 5 is as in if God literally prepares a table for him, im not really getting what that means, and the oil part either. verse 6 is another faith statement. surely! goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, and i will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. he is thinking eternally. For God's name sake he keeps his way blameless so he may dwell in God's throneroom. and they're were sacrifices too i guess back then? God forgave them of their sins...well, its a good thing we're living in the now. i dont understand alot of stuff.

hahaha. i wanted to try to analyze it like something we did in english AP lit alot last year. but seriously as i was reading this, i felt calm in my heart. its funny that i need to be remind EVERYDAY of God's majesty and faithfulness and his sovereignty. and everyday i am reminded, im in awe like its the first time i heard it. going through some things right now and i really wanna share with you guys, but honestly... i dont know how to say it. its not like some major crisis or anything gigantic like that so dont worry haha. all the things are things i've touched on at one point or another in smallgroup. its just life thats kinda happening. i can feeeeeeeel the sanctification happening, but im so callous and so resistant to change. pray for me that i have a humble heart, gentle and quiet spirit, and as an act of faith, submit my will to Him. He who restores my soul; He who guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name sake. He who makes my cup overflow.

my heart is full thinking of you guys.