Draw Near to God (Daniel Fast Day #20)

In Old Testament times the Psalms were the prayer book and hymn book of God’s people. Jews and Christians alike have drawn strength from them.

Psalm 23

Choose to read this Psalm.
Read it all the way through.
Ask God to comfort you through its words.
Read it again, verse by verse. Pause and reflect on each verse before moving on to the next one.

Psalm 23 has been called the Shepherd’s Psalm. But the Shepherd does not speak at all. So it has also been called the Sheep’s Psalm, for the sheep do all the speaking.

You prepare a table before me. This “table” was essential to wounded or sick sheep. Healthy sheep did not care for ill sheep. At best, they would go over to the sick sheep and eat all the grass around him, leaving him none. At worse, they would butt him and push him around. So the Shepherd prepared a “table” for the sick sheep. The shepherd marked out an area about 20ft (7meters) x 15 ft (5meters). He put a rod on one side and his staff on the other side. He lay down at the top of the protective rectangle, after he had placed his cloak at the bottom. No other sheep dared to cross over the rod, staff, cloak, or shepherd to eat any of the grass. In the presence of his enemies the ill sheep now had a “table” to protect him.

Count all the times that Jesus has made a place to comfort you!!

Don’t know how to pray. Here are the four things that we have been teaching our 2 and 3 old Sunday school children.

God, you are special.
God, your way is always best.
Please give me the things I need.
Please forgive me when I do wrong and help me to do what’s right.

(Devotional submitted by Leadership Team Member Don Lowrance and his wife Gloria)