Heaven on Earth - Part 2

Psalm 23 (TNIV)

1 The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.

    2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,

       he leads me beside quiet waters,

    3 he refreshes my soul.

       He guides me along the right paths

       for his name's sake.

    4 Even though I walk

       through the darkest valley, [a]

       I will fear no evil,

       for you are with me;

       your rod and your staff,

       they comfort me.

    5 You prepare a table before me

       in the presence of my enemies.

       You anoint my head with oil;

       my cup overflows.

    6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me

       all the days of my life,

       and I will dwell in the house

       of the LORD forever.

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 23:4  Or the valley of the shadow of death

    In the relentless busyness of modern life, we have lost the rhythm between work and rest.

    All life requires a rhythm of rest.  There is a rhythm in our waking activity and the body's need for sleep. There is a rhythm in the way day dissolves into night, and night into morning.  There is a rhythm as the active growth of spring and summer is quieted by the necessary dormancy of fall and winter.  There is a tidal rhythm, a deep, eternal conversation between the land and the great sea.  In our bodies, the heart perceptibly rests after each life-giving beat; the lungs rest between the exhale and the inhale.

    We have lost this essential rhythm.  Our culture invariably supposes that action and accomplishment are better than rest, that doing something--anything--is better than doing nothing.  Because of our desire to succeed, to meet these ever growing expectations, we do not rest.  Because we do not rest, we lose our way.  We miss the compass points that would show us were to go, we bypass the nourishment that would give us succor.  We miss the quiet that would give us wisdom.  We miss the joy and love born of effortless delight.  Poisoned by this hypnotic belief that good things come only through unceasing determination and tireless effort, we can never truly rest.  And for want of rest, our lives are in danger.

- Wayne Muller, Sabbath:  Finding Rest, Renewal, and Delight in Our Busy Lives, page 1.

Questions for Reflection:

Where are the places of quiet and refreshment in my life right now?

What do I rely upon most, my sense of dependence or my sense of independence?

How will I create space in my life this week . . . make room for lying down, being still, finding refreshment - not just when I am already spent, but before I begin?  (even if it's only 15 minutes or so to start?)

Who can I invite to join me in this - so we can encourage each other to make the time and space in our lives for this to happen?

Lying down.  Something we do when exhausted?  When we just can't go on anymore?  When there is nothing left?

Or is it just laziness?  An unwillingness to make good use of every moment?  A lack of ambition?  A lost desire to get things done and establish my value and make my contribution?

Maybe I will miss something if I do?  Children resist it.  As some grow older we may try to find ways to prevent it.  To hold it off.  To keep it at bay.  To not give in to it.  Because, if we do, then we're not making it happen anymore.  We're not taking the bull by the horns and getting things done.  We're not in control.  We might admit that we are limited . . . or need something bigger than ourselves . . . that we are dependent, not fiercely independent after all . . .

But what if lying down were not the end of things, but the beginning?  What if lying down was not an admission of being spent, but a place from which we draw our strength?  What if time by quiet waters and times of refreshment were places that we started from, not places that we collapse into when we have nothing left?

What if God's desire is to make us lie down first, quiet ourselves, be refreshed, and then walk with us into wherever our paths may lead? 

This week Pastor Jon explores with us verses 2 & 3 of the 23rd Psalm and invites us consider the significance of dependence or independence.  If you would like to listen again, or perhaps for the first time, you can click here to access our sermon library..