City Life Starter

The Word: Psalm 23:3 – 4

³  He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name’s sake.

⁴ 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.

By Blesson Selvanesan

This psalm makes one realize the reality of life on the earth. Contrary to the current ‘feel good’ theology, Psalm 23 drives home the point that difficulties of life such as want, waves, darkness, death, evil, fear, restlessness, suffering, uncertainty and enmity are inevitable. These facts of life are essential for our own growth and God uses these to make us understand who we are in Him. There is no hill without a valley and no goodness without evil. In this Psalm David voices the realities of life and then expresses hope and optimism that he has in God.

Often, we do not pause long enough to understand the truths behind God’s promises. When God said, ‘He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore…’ (Rev 21.4), it automatically means that we will face situations that will make us tearful and sad, there will be mourning and crying, pain and death. Despite all these, He promised that He will be with us.

In this Psalm, David transcends beyond his circumstances and articulated his hope in whom he trusts. He moves his attention away from the chaos of life and focuses his attention towards to the God of Hope and states his faith and hope against the hard realities. David sings about restoration to his soul. Restoration happens only when something goes wrong when something is not as should be when something is not functioning as it was intended to be. Restoration can only be done by someone who knows everything about the broken. David’s soul needed mending and he knew that only God can do this. It is interesting to note that David talks about the valley of the shadow of death. His real-life experiences shaped him, and he had several rounds of walk through this valley and lived to tell the tale. His experiences taught him that even in the deepest darkest place God was with him. The comfort of God was sufficient and able to sustain him.

Application:

This psalm is very special as this is the first psalm that my parent taught me and made me recite from memory. This is one of the most widely read, quoted and recited Psalm around the world. It is a source of strength for all of us. Life is not going to be easy for those who follow Christ. We also will be rocked by every problem that wrecks everyone else in this world. We are not in any way immune to the difficulties of this world. All of us live in the same fallen world. However, the difference is that we have a Savior to cling on to. God is with us, He will comfort us, He will lead us, He will teach us, He will make us strong, resilient and will give us the strength to overcome and be victorious. God will strengthen us to fight evil with good and will enable us to persevere forward in the race that God has given us.  God is our shepherd and security.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, my soul needs mending today. Help me to look towards you and not my difficulties. Help me to focus on you and be satisfied with the comfort that you bring. Give me hope as I walk through difficult times and help me navigate through this trusting in your goodness. Lead me to righteousness. In Jesus Name Amen.