Today's scripture reading is psalms 23 Assalma David The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not one He making me lie down in green pastures. He lead us me beside the still waters He restored my soul He leaded me in the path of righteousness for his name safe and yay though I walked through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for thou art with me Thay rod and thy staff they comfort me Thou prepare us a table before me in the presence of my enemies thou anointed my head with oil my cup runeth over Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and the hearing of his words The my earliest memories With my friends playing Baseball and basketball and and football almost every day growing up In high school, I pray I played all three sports. I played basketball. I played baseball and I played a football In case you didn't know it I was pretty good I was pretty good because I was pretty fast and no I could run pretty fast I didn't like to run but when I had to run I could And because I was relatively fast every year The track coach would approach me and ask me to come and Join the track team now. I like baseball And I like football and I like basketball But I didn't like track Because I didn't like running And track never made sense to me you see in football practice We ran so that we could get in shape to play football In basketball practice we ran so that we could get in shape to play basketball But in track practice You ran so that you can get in shape to run And I'm sorry, but that never appealed to me. I'd never like running. I don't like running now
I prefer to walk I didn't win a race one time though I want to race one time in school and it was actually a speed walking race
Even to the day my wife will tell you that I walk too fast Amen We need to get to where we're going I don't mind walking. I don't even mind walking fast. I love it running Or even speed walking may serve us well When we're running In track meets But I want to suggest to you this morning that running And speed walking are not helpful In the Christian life When the Bible speaks of the Christian life Over and over again It speaks of the Christian walk And when it says walk It means Walk You don't jog your way through the Christian life
You don't race your way through it You don't even speed walk You walk Or as Eugene Peterson refers to it as A long obedience in the same direction One of my favorite books by the way and highly recommended In fact, our teens just recently went through a study On the Christian life and discipleship And the book that they studied was called The walk Because the Christian life is a walk As Paul says in Colossians chapter one And in verse 10 that we are to have a walk That is in a manner worthy of the Lord A walk a life that is worthy of the Lord With this in mind, beloved I think it is important for us to understand That you don't run with God Okay, you don't run with God You walk You walk with him This is the testimony of the scriptures From the very beginning And Genesis chapter three And verse eight The Bible Reminds us that God walked In the garden of Eden That of many And Genesis chapter five and verse 22 We are reminded that Enoch walked with God And Genesis six And the verse nine We are told that Noah walked with God
In Galatians chapter five In verse 16 The Bible reminds us, doesn't it That we are to walk By the spirit Why is this important to remember This is important to remember in this life you see In this life of the flesh In this life of space and time That we don't get To run through trials We don't get to run through trouble We don't get to run through darkness and pain
When I grew up Where I grew up There's just dirt roads Hey, there's just dirt roads and trees Isn't that right, Francis Field dirt roads and trees There's no traffic And there are no street lights And at night it gets dark I mean Really dark
And at night because it gets dark It also gets creepy
And Way I grew up at one part of the block And my aunt's house was at the other end of the block And often times at night my aunt needed something Or my mother needed something from her And therefore we would have to go Down to my aunt's house and either Deliver something to her Or pick something up and bring it back And I recall Beloved And every time that I had to do that at night I did not walk to my aunt's house
I ran through that darkness Unfortunately When it comes to living this life You and I don't get to run through the darkness of life
We have to walk We have to walk You don't get to run through cancer treatments
You have to walk
You don't get to run through the effects of Alzheimer's and dementia on a family You have to walk
You don't get to run through divorce and abandonment You have to walk But thankfully this morning We are reminded that in the darkness You don't have to walk alone Thankfully this morning We are reminded That we have a shepherd who walks With us through the storm Through the rain Through the darkness And through the pains of this life
And Mark chapter 5 Jesus tells us the disciples To get on the boat And we are going to the other side And he goes into the boat And he begins to take a nap Beloved he knew the storms were coming He knew the winds were going to blow He knew the waves were going to beat that ship He knew that in the darkness
His disciples would be afraid
And yet He got on the boat with them And in the midst of the darkness He didn't jump ship When it gets dark The good shepherd doesn't abandon the ship He leads you He leads me through the darkness He leads us through the storm
And that's what we're reminded of this morning Some 24 This morning we have The blessing of being reminded That when we walk In this Christian life The good shepherd walks with us Last week Last week we saw That he is with us to guide us And to protect us And last week he guided us And therefore we have our past But this week he guides and direct us And therefore because the Lord is my shepherd I have my protection
Last week we had our past This week where I reminded That we have our protection Verse 4 of Psalm 23 Even though I walk Then say run Beloved Even though I walk Through the darkest valley I will fear no evil For you are with me Your rod and your staff They comfort me
As we come to this passage of scripture As we come to this verse Verse 4 here in Psalm 23 We come to the midway point of Psalm 23 And like It often does in life When you meet When you reach that midway point Things change Things begin to change In life things have changed In the tenor of this psalm The talk before was of green pastures The talk before was of luscious feel There was a boasting of a shepherd Who leads to quiet stream And guides us along righteous past But now beloved As you come to verse 4 The green pastures And the righteous path gives way to valleys Darknesses And death Before David speaks to the shepherd
And now beloved he speaks Before he spoke of the shepherd And now he speaks to the shepherd Before the shepherd was he But now the shepherd is you You see the difference in the tone That now the psalm takes Because there's a difference in the tone Reminds us that there is a difference In the tenor of life When the difficulty comes There is a difference in the understanding There is a difference in the way that we pray
There is a difference between those who know about God And those who know God Reminded here this morning That sheep don't always graze on the hilltops But every year The shepherd has to cause them to migrate down And through the valleys And these migrations that they need going on Are often dangerous and continuance There's danger from the elements The weather can suddenly change And quickly the sheep are exposed to the elements And become under threat of exposure There's also the danger predators lurking In the shadows More places for wolves And wild dogs to hide down in the valleys The snakes are not readily seen Down in the valley where they have to migrate Along these tenuous and treacherous roads There is less food The vegetation is less plentiful And yet Through the valley they need go And yet it is necessary To take them through these valleys So that he can get them to the place Where the sheep can flourish But if they're going to flourish And they need go through the valley And David understood this He understood what sheep had to go through He understood himself to be a sheep And therefore he could say in verse 4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley Even though you lead me through the darkest of valleys I will fear no evil for you are with me You're rod and your staff, they comfort me In other words When I am going through this world Of sorrow and sin Of danger and disasters I have a shepherd And because I have a shepherd I have protection I have protection There's something to understand about this protection Beloved, this protection is personal There's a personal protection There is an intimacy And an understanding of God That only comes When you have to walk through the trials And the darkness of the valleys Of this life God becomes most personal in the valley There are troubles And there are trials For each of us Beloved and those trials And those troubles are personal And any Christian, any Christian Who has walked with the Lord For any length of time knows What it is to have to walk through valleys Of personal trials And unique struggles
And it is in those moments That you realize Rather you didn't realize it before It is in those moments that you realize That you actually have a personal God Now when I say personal God I don't mean, I don't mean That he is just my God Or that he is just your God But what I'm talking about is And in the midst of trouble When God walks with me It seems like at that moment That he's only walking with me God has a way of communicating In the midst of trouble That when he's talking to me It seems like that he's only talking with me As he has a way That shepherd Has been the midst of trouble Becoming Intimately Personal I remind it often times Of how many of us talk about How we want A closer walk with Jesus And yet, beloved, I must tell you That the testimony of scripture Is that those who know Jesus best And walk with him most closely Those who testify To walk in with Jesus through heartache and pain Through heartache and trial This is what Paul says in Philippians chapter three Right? He was willing He was willing to surrender All that this world held dear And all that this world thought important For this one thing That he might know Jesus He says, Lord, I want to know you But he knew That if you're going to know the Lord Then you're going to know Him in the midst of his suffering In the midst of his trial When Jesus calls his disciples to come And to follow him He calls them to follow him Through the valley
Through the valley Most of us, most of us Only want to know God on the mountaintops And I get it, beloved We only want to know God Who gives us wings like eagles To soar above The mountains and above everything in life But I want to suggest to you this morning That there is an aspect of God There is an understanding of an intimacy With the Almighty That gets personal only When you have broken wings When you've been grounded and can't fly When you're down In the valley In the darkness And that personal God Becomes tangible He becomes tangible in the valleys And you know why God becomes tangible in the valley It is because It is there where we look for him the hardest It is in the valleys That our hearts long for him the most Could it be that's the reason why The Lord needs his sheep into the valley So that they might thirst for him
So that we might long for him How many times? So when was the last time You cried out and long for the world Soaring like an eagle But let him clip you wings And the Psalmist says Over and over and over again Beloved is too many For me to rehearse for you I could rehearse them all But I'll just rehearse a couple In Psalm 18 and verse 6 In my distress I called upon the Lord To my God I cried for help Psalm 118 and 5 Psalm 120 and verse 1 In my distress I called to the Lord And he answered me Beloved it wasn't until Jonah was swallowed up by the fish In Jonah 2 and 1 At the Bible says he cried out to the Lord
When it is dark
And you can't see your way That you no longer take the Lord's protection for granted
The shepherd the shepherd beloved is always with you He is always with you But it is only in the valleys That we really come to appreciate it
Dr. King once said Only when it is dark enough Can you see the stars I like to add to that for love it That only when it is dark enough Do you really see the shepherd Only when it is dark enough Do you really appreciate the Savior This week I had a friend Called me and pastor friend Called me
Almost to the point of tears Because His daughter was being rebellious And he didn't know what to do
Beloved there are many there are many there are many valleys that we go through That are dark There are not many more dark than rebellious children There are not many More dark than children Who borced right And I felt his pain And I listened to his anguish And I could sense his tears And yet I reminded him That no matter how dark he thinks it is Or how long he thinks he has to walk through this valley Brother you do not walk through this valley alone The good shepherd didn't drive you into that valley He lent you there And he is with you And I know it's dark And I know you can't see But I want to remind you that even though you can't see it There are other sheep in that valley too
You are not alone
The shepherd is with you and there are other sheep Crying out in that darkness too You are not alone brother Whatever you are going through Others have gone through it too So I told him I told him like her frankness said brother I've gone Through the fire And I've been Through the flood I've been broken into pieces Seeing lightning flashing from above But through it all I remember That he loves me And he cares And he'll never Put more on you Than he with you Will bear No, never Put more on you Than he with you Will bear is Your shepherd And that protection that he offers Is a personal one And that personal protection then Should encourage you Because that beloved is your preservation You know when he takes you into the valley to protect you He is preserving you through the valley But love at the grace of God is a preserving grace The good shepherd doesn't lead the sheep Into the valley only to let the sheep go when they get there
But he leads them And in the midst of the darkness he keeps them The Lord is a keeper So it is said right in Psalm 121 and verse 5 The Lord is your keeper the Lord is your keeper The Lord is your shade on your right hand
Understand that the valleys are but part of the process And as Paul said in Philippians chapter 1 and verse 6 Trust the process Trust the process that you thought Nick Saban said that but no That was Paul Philippians chapter 1 and verse 6 And I am sure this that he who began a good work in you Will bring it to completion at the day of Christ The valleys are just part of the process Trust the process
You're going to preserve you through it For the protection that the Lord gives to the sheep In the midst of the valley is not protection from the elements of love it The wind is going to blow
It is not protection from the difficult roads Hard times are going to rise It is not protection from the assaults of the enemy That devil knows your weaknesses And he's going to try to exploit them Especially in the darkness
However the protection is that the difficulty And the disasters and even the devil himself will not destroy you The Lord is with you He is with you. He is with you. That's what that's what Paul said in St. Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 8 Says we've been we've been through the fires we've been through the stones We were afflicted in every way but we weren't crushed We were perplexed but we weren't driven to despair We were persecuted but not forsaken We were struck down but we were not destroyed
We've been through the fires The Lord has taken us to the darkest valleys But he has preserved us every step of the way Beloved the problem with the valleys And please don't miss this The problem with the valleys is that when we are in the valley Our first and natural instinct is to get out of the valley As quickly as possible and by any means necessary As soon as it gets tough As soon as it turns dark We want to cut bait and run
If we have to compromise our faith If it means getting out of the darkness Then unfortunately too many of us Compromise our faith Stop believing We'll stop witnessing We'll join with the crowd If it means that the hardship and the trouble will stop Where does it get tough? We run We run from our marriages We run We run from our jobs We run We run from our churches We run And Jesus says, I beg your pardon I never promised you a rose garden Told you that Did you get that? Did you think that you would follow Jesus And not run in the difficulty and trial? Who told you that? Surely it wasn't Daniel Daniel didn't say that No one, no one was more righteous than Daniel And did everything good And yet the Lord still led him into the lion's den Who told you that? Surely one me, Shack, Shadrach and Abindigo
They stood up for God They refused the worship of the idols And still the Lord led them into the fiery furnace I know it wasn't Peter One James One Paul James preached the gospel and they cut off his head Peter said in 1 Peter chapter 1 and verse 5 That we are those Who by God's power are being guarded Preserved beloved Through faith for salvation ready to be revealed In the last time In this we are reminded And therefore we rejoice Though now for a little time If necessary We have to be greed With various trials
Understand, understand, beloved That the protection is not from cancer
Cancer can come The protection is not from hurricanes Hurricanes blow The protection is not from depression and loneliness The protection is that he keeps you And I threw it all And therefore you don't have to be afraid When the darkness comes That's what Isaiah says So the Lord says in Isaiah Chapter 43 and verse 2 Write it down Unaligned it Memorize it When you pass through the waters And you're going to pass through them beloved I will be with you When you pass through the rivers And you're going to pass through them They will not sweep over you When you walk through the fire And guess what You're going to walk through the fire And when you do You will not be burned The flames will not set you Blames And therefore You do not need fear The Lord is with you His rod and his staff Are your comfort and your consolation
He hasn't promised that there will be no pain But he has promised Protection and preservation Through the pain Through the loss Through the hurt Through the disappointment He has promised to be our comfort He has promised to be our consolation
Being afraid of the dark is not an unusual thing
Most children are naturally afraid of the dark And they have to grow out of it Unfortunately many people don't And many of us as adults are still afraid of the dark That's why you can't sleep without a light on Tell the truth You have to have a night light in the hallway A night light in the bathroom And the reason that is Is because we need the comfort of being able To avoid any dangers that we think I lurking in the dark
And there are dangers in the dark beloved There are dangers in the dark Don't get me wrong And the good shepherd knows this And that's why the good shepherd says Don't be afraid of the darkness I know there are dangers lurking in the darkness Don't be afraid of the darkness I am with you My rod and my staff are your comfort and confidence It is not a night light that the shepherd has He has a rod and a staff
And his rod and his staff provide protection Provide comfort, provide consolation for the sheep When the shepherd went out into the field He didn't take many tools with him In fact All he really took was his rod or staff And the rod Warned off the wolves The staff kept the snakes away The shepherd standing With his rod or staff allowed the sheep Confidence and the comfort That it was well That it is well
With their souls
With his rod And with his staff The shepherd stood Between the sheep And the danger that was lurking in the darkness David stood between the bear And the sheep when the bear came to devour the sheep David stood Between the lion And the sheep when the lion came to devour The sheep The idea here Is that with his rod and staff in hand The good shepherd stands guard over the sheep Standing between the sheep And whatever danger is lurking in the darkness And when the dangers of the darkness come Beloved And that will come When the dangers in the darkness comes The good shepherd stands between you And the danger And he says Hammer time Can't touch this Can't touch this These are my sheep Kate touch this When the enemy comes To condemn us for sin Jesus says No Kate touch this When sickness and disease comes And it touches our body Jesus says No The soul is mine Kate touch this
When the ravages of the mintier come And ravage the mine Jesus says No The soul is mine Kate touch this
Beloved Even When death itself comes And seeks To ravage the sheep Jesus is there With his rod and staff And he says Death You have no victory here Death You have no staying here You can't touch this Even In the darkest Of valleys And in the deepest Of nights Our good shepherd Stands Guard And says No Danger's in the darkness You can't touch Beloved I hope we understand And we don't get it twisted The Lord our shepherd Leave us oftentimes Into dark valleys Through which We can't run We have to walk
But he walks with us He walks before us He is our protection He preserves us
And therefore We need not fear Even in the darkness We need not Be
Let's pray