Never Lost
The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
Yea, 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.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs 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. Psalm 23:1-6 (NKJV)
Years ago when GPS was in its infancy, I was travelling for business. When I rented a vehicle from the rental care company called Hertz, there was their GPS in their vehicles called ‘NeverLost.’ I used to joke to my colleagues that they should call that thing ‘EverLost!’ It would constantly have me missing turns and exits until I was plain lost. One of the most difficult things to have happen in life is to feel you’ve lost your way. I remember a sermon series from my previous pastor talking about being lost because of the many distractions that can occur in one’s life. Recently, I’ve felt a bit that way, and I’m uncertain as to why. Yes, the obvious answer is to look up to Heaven and follow Jesus Christ, but what if you look up and you see nothing but dark clouds? Perhaps you lose your place like a bookmark in a long book. You’re unsure where you stopped, and you read a bit before you get to the point where you think you left off. Then you can continue. So, I’m seeing these clouds of sadness and despair, and they are blocking me from this view of Jesus. Does it mean I’m spiritually lost? Not exactly. In Isaiah 25:7, it says, “There he will remove the cloud of gloom, the shadow of death that hangs over the earth.” Yes, I might be struggling to see God as needed, but I know He is there beyond my inner fears and troubles.
It is good to remind ourselves that God is with us no matter the situation. The sermon from my church this weekend discussed dealing with anxiety. This brought me to Matthew 6 where Jesus said:
That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Matthew 6:25-27
Jesus was reminding the people that if the birds are always provided for, how much more will He provide for them. If the followers understood this, why would they even have to worry? This is all great and dandy, but how do we reassure ourselves of this particularly when those dark clouds come upon us? That brings me to today’s verses. I love how David speaks with such clarity. Look at the provisions of God he listed: green pastures, still waters, restoration, righteousness, comfort, prepare, anoint, and goodness and mercy. Forget Mike! I wanna be like David 😊 David spoke comfortably about God in this way because He always delivered him, and thus, he spoke without fear. As in my recent situation, getting to a point devoid of anxiousness is not easy, but if we focus on how God has always delivered for us in the past, we too can have this heightened level of confidence that builds on Christ’s foundation. Then we can speak with certainty of those provisions even when we cannot visualize it. Why? Because as David so aptly points out, “For You (God) are with me.”
God’s presence is the greatest degree of assurance we could have. It is the same assurance Paul had when speaking of the New Covenant saying, “Since this new way gives us such confidence, we can be very bold.” So, it does not matter if it is all sunny skies or a dark gloomy day. God is going to do what He does, and we need not worry about anything. It is why Martin Luther King, Jr.’s last speech before he was assassinated ended this way:
I'm not worried about anything. I'm not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord. “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop,” April 3, 1968
Let us not worry any further, and rest assured that God is with us even when we are unsure. What worries can you cast on God today? How can David, Jesus, and Paul’s stories give you assurance of God’s provisions? My prayer is that even when we are unsure where God is, we are ‘Never Lost.’ Amen.