We Need Rest

We need rest (Psalm 23)

One thing I have learned is that we are all broken

We all have hurt, we all have problems

These are really great scriptures to go to when life happens and we get overwhelmed

1) The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want

God is our shepherd, he is a great shepherd

John 10: 11, Jesus refers to him as the good shepherd, the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep

So much knowledge in this passage

David wrote this Psalm

He is highly qualified to have written this

He has been at the top of the ladder and led sheep when he was king

He was at the low when he was a shepherd himself

He has did some great things and has done some wrong things

I believe that we all can relate to David at some point in our lives

We have all done good and we have all done bad

He was not perfect and neither are we

So check out the part when it says the good shepherd giveth his life for his sheep,

First and foremost, God sent his son to this earth to die for us so that we can one day live with him and not go to Hell which we truly deserve

God says, check - I did that

Not only did God talk the talk but he walked the walk

We sure do struggle with that concept here on earth do we not

We are good at talking the talk, but when it comes walking the walk - my ole my

It’s easy to tell someone how to live but are we leading by example - I stand before you today and I basically fail every day

But I am so thankful that I serve a shepherd who not only talks the talk but he walks the walk

He leads by example

He is solid, He is consistent and he is reliable

He has never left me, he has never forsaken me and he never will

James 4:8 says draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you

You want to talk about truth right there

Don’t believe me set still long enough and draw nigh to him and you will feel it back

I am talking about sending a chill from your toes to your head

Listen to me my friend, we serve a living God

He is not on vacation and he is not napping

He is right here with us every waking moment and he is dying for us to get closer to him

He is a jealous God. He has that right, he created you and he is allowed to be jealous and it is not a sin for him

It is a sin if we get jealous and covet something because he is enough and he is all we need

A shepherd’s job is to lead the sheep, notice I didn’t say drive them like cattle

A cowboy drives and a shepherd leads

He walks in front of them to protect the sheep from danger such as lions, bears, hyenas etc etc

We have no clue of what all God has protected you from in the past

He is always leading us and clearing the path so that we can get to where he needs us

Last part of the verse says I shall not want

We need absolutely nothing

God provides everything that we need

He meets every need for us

Now we have selfish wants, selfish desires that we demand from God

You heard that correctly, we get mad at God when we don’t get what we ask for - we act like toddlers

Take your halo off for just a few minutes

We have all prayed for something and got upset when we didn’t get it

We didn’t get it because we didn’t need it

Our problem is we feel entitled

We feel as if we are something special

Pastor Rick Warren said it best, “If God wouldn’t spare his only son, why do we feel we will be spared”

2) He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

Here is the thing, God doesn’t sleep, he doesn’t take a day off

Just to be honest with you, he doesn’t need to - He is God, he is perfect, he is love

We are not God, we have to rest

We have to rest physically and spiritually

Luke 12:7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

If God knows every hair on your head, he know when you need rest

He knows when you are physically tired and he knows when you are spiritually tired

Notice it says He taketh me lied down in green pastures