“Even 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.”
~ Psalm 23:4
Hi James and Ellen,
Do you like sheep? Have you ever touched or petted a little lamb, ewe or buck? Your grandpaa’s Uncle Pat raised sheep on the farm that your dad’s great-grandpa Lengkeek about one hundred years ago homesteaded. A homestead is an acreage that has never been owned by another guy and that has never been tilled or farmed. Your grandpaa’s Uncle Pat and Aunt Nell lived on a farm across the road to the north of the farm where your grandpaa grew up as a kid. Your grandpaa’s grandpa’s farm was across the road to the west of the farm where your grandpaa grew up as a kid. Your grandpaa does not remember much about your great-great grandpa Lengkeek. Your grandpaa was a young kid when his grandpa Lengkeek died. Your grandpaa remembers his dad one day asking him to take two ropes to his grandpa. The farmhouse where your grandpaa’s dad’s dad and ma lived was within easy walking distance from where your grandpaa lived as a kid – like about the same distance from where you live to where your Uncle Chris and Aunt Lynn used to live there in Frenchtown Woods. Your grandpaa’s dad wanted his dad to make one longer rope out of the two shorter ropes by braiding the end of one rope into an end of the other rope. Your grandpaa still remembers watching his grandpa Lengkeek as your dad’s great-grandpa was braiding the two ropes together as he sat in a chair in the kitchen of his farmhouse. Your grandpaa remembers his grandpaa explaining to him what he was doing as he was braiding the two shorter ropes together to make one longer rope. Your grandpaa also remembers the hot, sultry Sunday afternoon when his grandpa Lengkeek died. Your grandpaa’s dad’s dad had been very sick for some time with lung cancer. Your grandpaa has only one time seen his dad having tears run down his face – and that was the afternoon when your grandpaa’s dad’s dad died. Because your dad’s grandpa Lengkeek is very tender hearted, your grandpaa is sure that his dad probably has had tears run down his face at other times.
When your grandpaa’s Uncle Pat farmed the homestead that his dad had settled, your grandpaa’s Uncle Pat kept his flock of sheep on a small acreage that is located on the homestead’s northeast corner. Your grandpaa can still remember watching a guy one day shearing the wool off the sheep in his Uncle Pat’s flock. Your grandpaa also remembers watching his Uncle Pat a few weeks after a lamb was born putting a small, thick black rubber band near the base of the lamb’s tail so that the rubber band would cut off the circulation of blood to the lamb’s tail – causing the lamb’s tail to fall off after a number of days. This does not hurt a lamb when this is done. Ask your dad if he knows why it is good for a lamb to not to have a tail. Do you know what animal is thought to be one of the dumbest animals on planet Earth – if not the dumbest, stupidest animal on planet Earth? A sheep is thought to be one of the dumbest, stupidest animals on planet Earth. Would you like to be a sheep? Guess who the Bible calls sheep? The Bible calls your grandpaa a sheep. The Bible calls your grandmaa a sheep. The Bible calls your dad and ma sheep. The Bible calls sheep every single guy, gal and kid who makes a decision of faith to believe in Jesus Christ and what Jesus did on a cross for them when He suffered and died for their sins.
If there is one chapter in the Bible that a guy or gal has read or heard read which he or she will remember something about, it will probably be Psalm 23. This Psalm song is often read at funerals. David wrote this Psalm. David in this Psalm calls God his shepherd. David in a joyful way is putting his trust into God as his Shepherd-King. When David was living on planet Earth, a metaphor for king was shepherd. A metaphor is a word that is symbolic of another word – like king for shepherd. Kings when David lived on planet Earth were thought of as being shepherds. When there is a reference of sheep in the Bible, sheep would be a metaphor for guys, gals and kids who have made decisions of faith to believe in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. This metaphor for Christ-followers being sheep still applies today for your grandmaa, grandpaa, dad, ma, Aunt Lynn, Uncle Chris and every other guy, gal and kid who has made or who will make a decision of faith to believe in Jesus Christ as his or her Lord and Savior. Your grandpaa thinks that not long before David began singing this short song of joyous praise and thanks to God, David may have been almost killed. David recounts in verse 4 “Even 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.” God – as the Shepherd, is guiding and leading His sheep – who are the guys, gals and kids who have made a decision of faith to believe in Him as His only Son – Jesus Christ. God uses a rod and a staff to lead the guys, gals and kids who He had specially chose to be His specially elected guys, gals and kids before He created planet Earth. Shepherds use a rod and a staff when they are caring for sheep. Sheep will walk off a cliff if the shepherd is not there to stop the sheep from doing it. Wild animals will kill sheep if there is not a shepherd around to protect the sheep. A rod can be used for counting sheep, guiding sheep and protecting sheep. A staff – which has a hook on the end, can be used for rescuing sheep. When David was a kid, David’s dad Jesse had David shepherd his flock of sheep. David grew up spending night after night under the stars marveling at and singing about his Father God’s awesome creation. God on the other hand is caring for His sheep – the guys, gals and kids who have made a decision of faith by accepting Him as being God the Son, by leading them to green pastures of a life of hope and to the water of a life of peace. Only God can lead the guys, gals and kids who He chose as His specially elected guys, gals and kids through death’s valley into eternal life.
Psalm 23 (194)