The Lord Is My Shepherd

“The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want.”-Psalms 23:1

        If the Lord is my shepherd I will want for nothing.  In some cases, the word want and lack can be used interchangeably; simply because if you have want for something then you obviously lack it.  If, (key word) the Lord is my shepherd I will want for nothing.
               
        No doubt Christ chose his examples and analogies very carefully.  When you consider the nature of a sheep, first and foremost you find they are skittish creatures.  At the first sign of danger they run the other way.  There is very little courage in a sheep.  Second, they are completely defenseless.  They have no claws, teeth, or venom; they are not very big, sheep are easy for a predator.  They are totally dependent on the shepherd; without him, they are as good as dead.  In your mind, imagine a sheepfold smack dab in the middle of a desert place.  If left to their own devices, will they find food?  No, they will starve.  Will they seek out still water?  No, they will die of dehydration, if not eaten first.  They cannot survive without the guiding, protecting hand of the shepherd.  Without the shepherd they want for everything, but with a good shepherd they want for nothing.  Are we not like sheep?  Without the Lord, what defense do we have against the onslaught of the enemy?  We are easy pickins for Satan.  Deceived, manipulated, led astray, and devoured.  This is our fate should we choose to live this life without Christ.  Without the power of the Holy Spirit.  We want for everything, however, with Christ as our Shepherd we "shall not want."

    As the sheep follow the good shepherd that will lead them to green pastures, so must we follow Jesus trusting that he will lead us to the nutrients that give us abiding life.  He will lead us, comfort, keep and protect; but sometimes we must wait for it and trust Him.  The devil will creep in, in these times of wait and try to make you want; or rather, try to convince you that you lack.  When you begin to believe this lie you begin to want, lust, covet, sin, and then, eventually….death.  However, we must remember that we are sheep of His pasture.