My Shepherd

I’m continually amazed at God’s faithfulness when we seek Him and let His Word change us. Happy Wisdom Wednesday!

As I told my friend today, “My day has been terrible with a capital T.” I’ll not dwell on the reasons today, maybe another day. From the moment I awoke, I “kept going backward.” ( Jeremiah 15:6) and I was walking after emptiness and became empty. ( Jeremiah 2:5) I wanted to do right, but I didn’t. Look at Jeremiah 7:23-24:

Obey my voice and I will be your God and you will be my people and you will walk in all the way which I commanded you, that it may be well with you. Yet, they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and in the stubbornness of their evil hearts and went backward, not forward.

So, I had to go forward and draw near to the Lord, knowing that He would draw near to me. ( James 4:8)

The girls and I have been reading Psalm 23. We’ve been talking a lot about sheep. I realized that my problem today was the simple fact that I have been a stray sheep all day. I have not stopped long enough to draw near to My Shepherd. And follow His leading. I’ve been too stubborn and my independence has taken priority. I just flat out fell right off the cliff! I wasn’t allowing myself to be led.

All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way ( Isaiah 53:6)
Before I was afflicted I went astray ( Psalm 119:67)
I’ve let disappointments and circumstances rule. I’ve even considered that my Shepherd has allowed me to cross the waters alone! But I know better. I know that My Lord is near to the broken hearted!( Psalm 34:18)
I continued moving forward and kept asking the Lord to give me His strength and focus. I knew I had done what was right by returning to Him. “For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls. ( 1 Peter 2:25)

I also realized that I did not spend time with the Lord this morning or pray with the girls for our day and have our morning devotionals because I had “wandered off” to my own pasture tending to myself and my needs. So I had the girls stop playing and we had a snack at the table and we read our devotional ( about disobedience.. very timely, I must say) and I read Psalm 130 to them. I cried as I read it! Yes, in front of the girls. It was just there, so plain, so perfect – His words to comfort my worn out soul. I told them I was crying happy tears because God is so good to show us how wonderful He is in His Word and that He teaches us to pray to Him and that He hears us when we do. I told them I was having a sad day and that God was the only One who would make me feel better—because I had to put my hope and trust in Him for the things making me sad. They understood.


1 Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD;
2 O Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive
to my cry for mercy.
3 If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins,
O Lord, who could stand?
4 But with you there is forgiveness;
therefore you are feared.
5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits,
and in his word I put my hope.
6 My soul waits for the Lord
more than watchmen wait for the morning,
more than watchmen wait for the morning.
7 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD,
for with the LORD is unfailing love
and with him is full redemption.
8 He himself will redeem Israel
from all their sins.
When we were finished, Ella Grace asked me, “Mom, what does that sign say?” She was pointing to a plaque behind our kitchen table etched in stone of Psalm 46:10 -BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.
So, I did what the Lord said. I was still and thanked Him for Who He is. My Shepherd.