Who's your shepherd? I have chosen Jesus Christ!

Hello from J’town, Kentucky, your friend, Mickey Burleson, and the Watterson Trail Church of Christ.  I’m glad you’re checking out “Proclaiming His Praises.”  I am so very happy to share my thoughts about life and living with you.  I pray that you will come to believe in Jesus Christ.  And you will when you decide to open the Bible and your mind and heart to God’s direction for you.  Regardless of your Bible knowledge, you probably can quote at least part of Psalm 23.  “The Lord is my Shepherd.  I shall not want.”  You may need to look into the Bible to be remind yourself of just what this psalm says.  Psalm 23 is written in beautiful literary language.  It is actually a song that we sing. 

Ever see cattle lying down in the field?  They are full, at peace, and secure.  Ever walked beside still waters?  Can you remember how peaceful you felt as you looked out over the water, maybe a lake or a place in the river?  Maybe you stopped, looked out over the water, and took a deep, deep breath, then sighed and smiled.  Ever felt down and out? Maybe disappointed or depressed?  When the Lord is my Shepherd, He promises to restore my soul.  Of course, I must follow Him to restoration. 

How about those “paths of righteousness”?  We all have walked in the paths of sin.  Know that God did not lead us down those paths.  We walked down those paths under the direction of one who only seeks to kill, steal, and destroy, the enemy, the thief (John 10:9-10).  Sin always takes us farther than we ever wanted to go.  Sin always costs us more than we ever wanted to spend.  Sin always keeps us longer than we ever wanted to stay.  When we are ready to let go of sin, sin is never ready to let go of us.  When we look at sin, we may see fun or pleasure or excitement or an attempt to prove to someone else that we are in control.  When God looks at sin, He sees His One and Only Son, dying on the cross.  When I decide to follow the Lord Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, He promises to lead me in the paths of righteousness.  He came to give us an abundant life, a good life, real life, a righteous life. 

When someone we know dies, maybe a member of our family or a friend, fear and confusion can invade our thinking, but when the Lord is the Shepherd of our lives, He is with us and so we have peace and comfort in the fact that the Lord knows, cares, and provides for us all. 

The Shepherd, the Lord has a rod and a staff.  A shepherd uses his rod and staff to correct and discipline his flock and as a weapon of protection to drive away any predator who would want to attack the flock.  We do not look at the Lord’s rod and staff in fear.  We actually find comfort in our Shepherd’s rod and staff.  There is nothing to fear as we follow our Shepherd, the Lord. 

Do you have enemies?  Everyone does, whether we know it or not.  When Jesus walked the earth He certainly had enemies.  As we follow the Lord, our Shepherd He promises provision even in the presence of any enemy. 

Back in Bible times, having your head anointed was a good thing.  Having your head anointed with oil meant that you were chosen, special, accepted.  The Lord our Shepherd anoints our head with oil.  He chooses us.  We are special.  We are accepted by the Shepherd.  

Ever felt like or said, “Life just can’t get any better than this”?  These moments in life are reminders of the cup of blessing or happiness that every Christian has been given.  It is true that sometimes we feel down and out, like our cup has been drained down even to emptiness.  Sin certainly does this to us.  Just living life sometimes drains us of our happiness.  Sometimes we feel like the cup is empty even when it isn’t.  When we follow the Shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ He promises that our cups will run over. 

What will like be like under the leadership and care of the Lord, our Shepherd?  Goodness and mercy is ours every day we live.  When we die, we have a home prepared for us in heaven, forever.  Amen.

Who is your shepherd?  Who are you following?  I have chosen Jesus Christ as my Lord, my Savior, my Friend, my Advocate, my Helper, my Shepherd.  You can too.  The Watterson Trail Church of Christ is entirely and completely focused on the Shepherd.