November 27

“There came a critical moment in my life when I was sadly in need of comfort but could see none anywhere...Immediately there flashed into my mind the words, ‘The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want’ (Ps. 23:1)....I began to repeat [it] to myself over and over.....Suddenly, as I did so, the words were divinely illuminated, and there poured out on me such floods of comfort that I felt as if I could never have a trouble again.”  Hannah Whitall Smith, God is Enough, 11/5

In the fourth month of my pregnancy with my last child I came down with bronchitis.  I ended up in bed for a week unable to care for my five- and eight-year-old sons myself.  Because I was adamant about not taking any drugs during my pregnancies I could do nothing but lie there and pray for my unborn child’s safety and for my health.  It was during this time that I memorized the 23rd Psalm and discovered just how comforting God’s word was.  I found myself repeating it putting the emphasis on different words each time...The LORD is my shepherd....The LORD is my shepherd...The LORD is my shepherd....The LORD is my shepherd.  Since then, this Psalm will come to my mind when I feel afraid, and I continue to receive the comfort it offers.  But as He has made me “lie down in green pastures” and led me “beside still waters” I have also discovered He offers me more than just comforting words.  He offers me Himself. 

“He makes me lie down in green pastures.  He leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul....Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I  fear no evil;  for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me....and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.”  Psalm 23:2-4,6b