He Restores My Soul

 The Lord is my Shepherd,

    I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures,

    He leads me beside still waters.

He restores my soul.

    He leads 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 mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,

    and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.

                        Psalm 23

    

    Verses 1-3 of the famous psalm of David, Psalm 23, paints for us a beautiful picture of how God chooses to restore and guide us as sheep are lead by a Good Shepherd. In the day to day journey of life, there are times when we just follow the Shepherd through well-worn, familiar paths to guide us to places of still waters and green pastures. Unfortunately, we still have free-will, which means when the fancies of life catch our eye, it is easy for us to get distracted and not stay on the right path. The "Fun things" of the world steal us away from the protected hand of the Father, and sometimes it leads us to unsafe places where we end up stuck in a crag or hole, stuck by our own sin. Then the father in all of his love and goodness, chooses to willingly leave the rest of the flock in the safety of the shepherds' crew and then he goes off in search of the sheep that is lost. 

    "He restores my soul. He leads me in the path of righteousness for His name's sake"

       After he searches far and wide listening for the bellow of help from his child, upon finding us, he risks his life to come down to where we are stuck and frees us from the vines or the thistles or the pits we have found ourselves in. He inspects us for any bruises or blemishes and watches over us as he takes care of our hurts and needs, staying by our side until we are restored to full health. Sometimes, He simply wraps our wounds and lets the healing be done naturally. Most of the time, the healing takes a little longer, but that is ok. God will never look down on us when our healing doesn't happen immediately. He won't be disappointed if the path to full restoration takes a more time then for other sheep in the herd. As a good shepherd, he is prepared to stay with every single one of his sheep until all have a chance to be the best that they have been designed to be. 

    Don't fret when it looks like the sheep who share a pasture with you are receiving their miracle before you do. God is in full control of the time-table, and he knows the path that every person needs to walk down. Just stay the course and trust that God, the good shepherd knows what you need and when you need to reach the fullness he desires for you to have.