Day 292: This Beautiful Image

Psalms 23

1The Lord is my shepherd;

   I have all that I need.

2 He lets me rest in green meadows;

   he leads me beside peaceful streams.

3     He renews my strength.

He guides me along right paths,

   bringing honor to his name.

4 Even when I walk

   through the darkest valley,

I will not be afraid,

   for you are close beside me.

Your rod and your staff

   protect and comfort me.

5 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.

6 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.

I just want to talk about this beautiful image that David paints in the world renowned passage. We all know Psalms 23 or have heard it or read it somewhere. It is a very famous passage, but it was not until recently that I found myself taken by the beauty of this passage. We serve a God who does great things, and is always faithful. I think one of the things we can attribute to God is beautiful. Everything He is, everything He does, is beautiful. Beautiful beyond words. My favorite moments are the ones when I can just take in the beauty of God’s creation, take in the beauty that He is, and carry that with me. It feels so good, it’s a feeling that cannot be described.

I talk about this beauty because I think this passage has that. From the words that are beautifully written but most importantly the message. From the first verse to the sixth, the message here is awe inspiring. I’m going to do a verse by verse breakdown, because I want you to experience the beauty of this message as well.

We have everything we need because the Lord is our shepherd. Everything we could ever need is in our God. As long as we follow Him we will have it all.

God gives us rest. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen a meadow or been in one but they are so beautiful and so relaxing. It’s like this large open field of grass, that just makes you want to relax when you see a picture of it. Then the scripture goes on to say that God leads us beside peaceful streams. I think this a testament of what it is like to walk with God. It’s a beautiful life. Not everyone is resting in meadows and walking beside peaceful streams. But this is where God takes His people.

Verse three talks about His strength. God renews our strength. He is constantly pouring into us. The more God pours into the more glory is brought to His name. God give us strength in every moment of our lives. Our lives will always bring glory to His name.

Walking with God means that there is no place for fear. Even when we are in our darkest moments, God is right there with us leading us through. He comforts us when we need it. He is right there protecting us, going to battle for us and destroying anything that will try to harm us. I wonder how many times God has intercepted an attack from satan. An attack that never reached us because God goes before us to clear the path.

Verse five, God does a much better job at handling our enemies than we do. God honors us in the presence of everyone who was against us. He pour so much into us that our cup overflows. God will pour out blessings, on blessings, on blessing upon His people. That’s how much He loves us, He will give us more than we ask for. Walking with God brings some pretty hefty rewards.

We will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Yes, serving God brings some hefty blessing but none can compare to eternity with Him. Nothing can compare to the Joy and peace we have in Him. It says goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life. God is in constant pursuit of our hearts. He is good, and His love is unfailing. This is the type of love that pursues. God wants us to know of His goodness and for us to experience His unfailing love. It is so beautiful how great He is.

All this to say, God is beautiful. He paints these beautiful images with His word, but going beyond that, God is just so beautiful. I mean He did create beauty. Everything He touches is beautiful, all things from God are beauty. I just want us to dwell in that beauty. Live in it. Life is beautiful because God is beautiful.

Reflection/Prayer Time

Take the time to go over Psalms 23, reread it again, and take in the beauty of this message, and the beauty of the image that is being painted with these words. Take that with you as you pray today. Have a conversation with God about what we discussed today. Take the time to praise Him and thank Him that He makes all things beautiful.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 293!