Did you know one of the most common prayer requests I receive circles around fear?
Fear over job security. Fear over finances. Fear over broken marriages—or perpetual singleness. Fear over diagnosis. Fear over kiddos. We live in an anxiety-laden culture—fear lurks in our schools, our shopping malls, our movie theaters, our concert venues. The impact on this level of anxiety and fear in our nation has yet to be calculated.
How do we find shalom in an age of anxiety?
One of the most inspiring books on shepherding is Philip Keller’s A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23. He observes that when the psalmist pens this praise: “He makes me lie down…” (Psalm 23:2), it speaks to the power of the shepherd in the lives of the sheep.
To lie down is to rest, surrender, relax. To let worries and anxieties go. To stop running, striving, searching, seeking.
To trust that the one who hung the stars, holds you.
But here’s what’s fascinating! According to shepherd Philip Keller, there are four requirements that need to be met before sheep will lie down:
- Sheep won’t lie down unless they are free from fear.
- Sheep won’t lie down unless they are free from conflict.
- Sheep won’t lie down unless they are free from pests.
- Sheep won’t lie down unless they are free from hunger.
What keeps you up at night?
The bad test results. The looming to-do list. The past due notices. The nagging boss. The crippling loneliness. The frustrating neighbor. The broken marriage. The unmanageable pace of life. The what-if’s and could-have-been’s. The realization that life didn’t turn out like you thought it would.
The key to getting the sheep to lie down? The presence of the Shepherd.
As the shepherd enters the pasture, the sheep’s eyes are fixed on him. They forget their worries, anxieties, and fears. They are able to lie down and rest.
Now, the quality of a sheep’s life depends on the character of the shepherd. Skinny, sickly sheep reflect a bad shepherd. Well-fed, protected sheep reflect a Good Shepherd. A bad shepherd offers brown, arid desert and dirty streams. A Good Shepherd leads to the verdant, lush pastures surrounded by flowing water.
A bad shepherd ignores the needs of the sheep. A Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. This shepherd bandages wounds. Attends to needs. Keeps his eyes on them—day and night. Bears burdens. Protects the gate. Tracks down the one who strayed. Calls them by name.
The Good Shepherd’s presence puts his sheep at ease.
He makes us lie down.
When we’re afraid.
When we’re wrestling with relational conflict.
When we’re swarmed with pests.
When we’re hungry for more.
He makes us lie down.
He leads us.
He refreshes us.
He guides us.
He comforts us.
He prepares a feast for us.
He anoints us.
He accompanies us with goodness and love.
You are the object of the Good Shepherd’s attention and affection. His eyes haven’t left you. This hasn’t taken him by surprise.
Rest, sweet friend. Lie down and trust that the world rests firmly in the palm of God.
Steel away, even if it’s only for a few minutes, today or this week, to simply allow the Good Shepherd to wrap His arms around you. To speak life into your weary soul. To drench you in God’s perfect shalom.
Each week, we’re going to dive into a session of Scouting the Divine book and Bible Study. (It’s not too late to join us!)
This week:
- Watch. Session 2: Reaching Out to the Marginalized (10:35) on the DVD.
- Write. Respond to the introduction and first session of homework in the workbook (pages 32-49).
- Read. Chapter 1.9 – 1.16 (pages 34-71) in the book.
- Interact in the Private Facebook Group. Share what ideas or phrases that catch your attention. What God is challenging or showing you through the material. How we can pray for you. And of course, you’re welcome to send in quirky questions, too, since I’ll be interacting with them throughout our time together.
- Join me on Facebook Live this week.
Click here to gather for a deeper discussion in the Private Facebook Group.
Thank you. I needed this. I was awake last night, struggling with terror.
Memories of close friends who died tragic deaths. Just when I was starting to get close to my father, he committed suicide. Church leaders whom I trusted, and they abused and betrayed me.
This morning I was just asking God in my journal, “If I trust you, will you hurt me?”
This is timely for me. What I need to remember is that to “lie down” requires that I am in the presence of my shepherd.
So very timely for me also. My husband has had many health problems & surgeries over the past 15 years & just last week he added another one—Parkinson’s disease. Part of me wants to scream at God “When will enough be enough?” I need the peace of the Good Shepherd knowing that He knows, He sees & He cares. Thank you for this today.
Thank you Margaret. You are making a difference in people’s lives!
A few years ago I began experiencing severe anxiety. During that time Job became a close friend. There were 2 verses in particular that really ministered to me. The first is found in chapter 22 verse 21 and in one version it reads “Now acquaint yourself with Him and be at peace.” It spoke to me over and over. To me it meant that if I really got to know God, who He is, His heart, His character, then I would have peace.
The other verse is 42:5 Job is speaking and he says “I had only heard about You before, but now I have seen You with my own eyes.” Could this be the reason for the valley, the wilderness, the desert, the dark night of the soul? So I could really see God?
I came through that season KNOWING that God IS a good God and KNOWING that God absolutely totally and completely loves me. And if He is good, and if He loves me, then I CAN trust Him. And that brings me peace.
Love this. Thank you.
Thank you for sharing, Phillip. Praying the Lord reveals himself to you as the Good Shepherd that He is! Hugs!
Beautiful reflection, Gigi! Thank you for sharing.
Praying peace over your house, Cindy! May the Good Shepherd overwhelm you with His presence. Hugs!
Thank you for the sweet words of encouragement, Jackie!
Love this reflection, Shelley! Thank you so much for sharing. It is beautiful when He speaks to us. Hugs!
Thank you, sweet Judy. Hugs!
The struggle with anxiety never goes away for me. But it is true–when I take an hour or even a half hour to read the Scripture aloud, ponder it, talk to God about it, and then share my worries, I find much greater peace. Margaret, thank you for your insight. I love that picture of you with the sheep and read and enjoyed your book of experiences, “Scouting the Divine.”
Thank you for this powerful insight. It is just what I needed today as I so often lay awake at night and can’t shut my head up, but I do find when I pray and leave it to Father God I find that I am filled with peace. Our God is an awesome God. Take care and be blessed.
I saw you in Piegeon Forge at a retreat and have been following you since then. Life has changed extrememly since then, with my mom having a stroke, and me leaving my full time employment to care for her. To two new grandchildren which I now babysit along with my older grandchild and caring for my mom, to a new way to make an income with a new Direct Sales company. Through all this your words have inspire me now and left a huge impression on me at the retreat. I look forward to your posts and emails. I suffer from aniexty which sometimes sends me to my room when I can’t deal with the world, or when my disease that compromises my immune system, hits again, and I let it weigh me down, I look to the Great I AM to help me through. Reading your inspirational, sometimes funny, sometimes quirky insights to HIS word has helped me immensely. I have learned to break down what the Bible says and sometimes see the funny side of what is being tought. I continue to look for direction to better my relationship with God and to feel the peace and know that even though I am the single lost sheep, He will contine to search for me. Thank you for all that you do. <3
Thank you for your kind words, Marcia! Hugs!
Thank you for sharing, Betty Lou! Hugs!
That is a lot to manage, Melanie. Thank you for sharing! Huge hugs!
thank you for sharing, the reflections from Philip Keller are so helpful, reminds me how much like sheep we are. not very smart sometimes, easily scared, vulnerable, and prone to danger, Psalm 23 and John 10 comfort me.
789alo: 789alo – alo789hk
mexican pharmacy online: mexican pharmacy online store – mexican pharmacy online
online medicine shopping in india: india online pharmacy store – online pharmacy india
cheapest online pharmacy india: online pharmacy india – india pharmacy without prescription
maple leaf pharmacy in canada: online canadian pharmacy no prescription – ed drugs online from canada
mexican drug stores online: mexican drug stores online – Mexican Pharm Inter
canada online pharmacy: highest rated canadian online pharmacy – thecanadianpharmacy
https://generic100mgeasy.shop/# Generic 100mg Easy
kamagra gel kopen: kamagra pillen kopen – Officiele Kamagra van Nederland
buy cialis pill TadalafilEasyBuy.com cialis without a doctor prescription
Generic 100mg Easy: Cheap Viagra 100mg – buy generic 100mg viagra online
cialis without a doctor prescription: Buy Cialis online – cialis without a doctor prescription
Kamagra: kamagra pillen kopen – kamagra 100mg kopen
KamagraKopen.pro: Officiele Kamagra van Nederland – kamagra 100mg kopen
Generic Cialis without a doctor prescription: Buy Cialis online – TadalafilEasyBuy.com
https://generic100mgeasy.com/# Generic100mgEasy
KamagraKopen.pro: Officiele Kamagra van Nederland – kamagra kopen nederland
https://generic100mgeasy.shop/# buy Viagra online
kamagra 100mg kopen: kamagra gel kopen – kamagra kopen nederland