A dog in sheep's clothing

Luna follows me around all day. From one room to another, no place is off limits. Where I go, she follows. She knows my voice, obeys my commands, and rests (in the most vulnerable positions) when I am near. She wants for nothing. This dog even has matching outfits with me… and we look very cute together!

Today, her behavior reminded me of Psalm 23.

I feel like the shepherd, and Luna is my sheep.

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
Psalm 23:1-3

This is one of the most well-known psalms and draws on David’s experience herding sheep as a boy. I love the image of the sheep following the shepherd because the sheep know his voice and they know that the shepherd will feed them and take care of them.

This psalm is a beautiful example of how God cares for us in our everyday, ordinary lives. It is also an example of how we can see God in our everyday lives. Just by paying attention to something as mundane as taking care of animals, God invited David into an interactive knowledge of His heart. What David saw in his love for his sheep, he saw in God’s love for us too. And when we know the heart of God as our shepherd, we can find peace in the presence of fear, security in the midst of our enemies, and our burned-out souls can be restored.

But as much as we may highlight the invitation to rest in Psalm 23, being able to say, like David, "I have all that I need" does not come naturally to us. Learning to trust God and be content is hard. The success of others, nonstop advertising, our social media feeds, and the inclinations of our own hearts have shaped us to be naturally jealous and discontent. Even rest, as good as it sounds, can be hard to embrace. When God leads us to green meadows or peaceful streams, like in verse 2, we still have to allow ourselves to rest and let our strength be renewed. If your rhythm of life is oriented around achievement, success at all costs, and consumption, even entertainment, you will need to be intentional about rest and practice it as a spiritual habit that realigns our hearts with God’s desire for us.

Don't overcomplicate it

Have you ever wondered, "What is God’s will for my life?"

In the Old Testament book of Micah, the people of Israel accused God of being unfair and demanding too much of them. God's reply is found in Micah 6:8:

"He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

God essentially told Israel, "You act as if what I require of you is a mystery, but it is no mystery at all. I have shown you clearly what is good and what I require of you."

And what did God require? To act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

It was as if God said, "What I require of you isn’t complicated—simply do three things."

1. Act justly: Treat others fairly and as you would want to be treated.

2. Love mercy: Not only show mercy but love to show mercy. Give others the same measure of mercy you want to receive from God.

3. Walk humbly with your God: Remember who the Lord is—your God. If you keep that in mind, you will walk humbly before Him.

We need to learn what God wanted Israel to learn from Micah. None of us can keep God’s law perfectly; only Jesus did that. But today, by the power of the Spirit, God’s people can do what God requires of us in a general sense. So let’s not overcomplicate it.

As far as God is concerned, the way you relate to the people around you is simple: act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly. Trust in Jesus and look for practical ways to live that out today.

Drinking from the saucer

It is funny things that come to mind.  I was recently putting some dishes away in our china cabinet and my eyes fell upon a teacup and saucer tucked away at the back of the top shelf.  As I looked at the drinking vessel it made me think of my maternal grandfather.

When I was a kid we would spend my summer holidays visiting my family in India.  And the teacup sparked a memory of my grandfather drinking hot tea out of a fancy tea cup but rather than sipping out of the cup, he would pour the tea into the saucer and drink from the there.

I had watched him do this for years and then one time I asked him why he didn’t drink from the cup. He explained to me that once his teacup had overflowed and spilled into the saucer,  he didn’t want to waste the tea so drank it from the saucer and discovered that in the saucer it was the perfect temperature.

This is what stuck with me: he drank from the saucer because his cup overflowed.

And as I think about it today, isn’t that a perfect analogy for God’s goodness to us.

In Psalm 23:5 David writes, “You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows”… David is so aware of the blessings of God in his turbulent life - he describes it as his cup overflowing with God’s goodness and blessings in his life.

If we stop and think about it - we are each so very blessed. With a heart full of gratitude, we too could drink from the saucer!