{"id":23722,"title":"The Good Shepherd - the BELIEVE Blog","description":"\u201dThe Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. \u201d Psalm 23:1 Such infamous and beautiful words.  The imagery of the most well-loved Psalm begins with the first statement. God is our shepherd which makes us His sheep.","content":"<blockquote><p><img src=\"https:\/\/images.teemill.com\/zbccv2tvzr9cdvgfx2ah9o1oodhmo7owce4ka5mcz0ilch91.jpeg\" alt=\"zbccv2tvzr9cdvgfx2ah9o1oodhmo7owce4ka5mcz0ilch91.jpeg\" \/>\u201dThe Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.\u201d Psalm 23:1<\/p><\/blockquote><p>Such infamous and beautiful words. The imagery of the most well-loved Psalm begins with the first statement.<\/p><p><strong>God is our shepherd<\/strong> which makes us His sheep.<\/p><p>ALL the responsibility of our care is on God, the shepherd. Night and day. <strong>We have a guarantee of safety<\/strong> and sustenance. As God\u2019s sheep, we shouldn\u2019t even be acquainted with the idea of needing!<\/p><p>How can we obtain this guarantee? By choosing to live under the security of His staff.<\/p><p>As a young boy, I memorised the first fourteen verses of John 10 with my brothers and sisters. These words left a strong impression on me of the nature of God the Father and the deep care He has for us.<\/p><p>This chapter emphasises the principle we read in Hebrews 13:5, <em>\u201c\u2026I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee,\u201d<\/em> and also Psalm 121:4, <em>\u201cBehold, He that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.\u201d<\/em><\/p><p>There is no one else that God will ever entrust our care to. Yes, there are ministering spirits we know as angels (Hebrews 1:14) but <strong>He is also there personally<\/strong>, 24\/7 as our good shepherd. And it\u2019s a good job too because my personal experience of sheep is that they\u2019re actually quite stupid!<\/p><p>At five years old, I was helping my Dad heard some sheep that had escaped. It was a cold, damp morning in late autumn and, despite best efforts (including being dragged through mud, holding on for dear life in my zeal to be helpful), these creatures just seemed to have no idea what was good for them.<\/p><p>However, when they were safely contained and fed, there was no aggression, fear or attempt at escape.<\/p><p>The more I look on this event, shaking my head at these dumb sheep, the more I realise\u2026I am a dumb sheep!<\/p><p>Despite having \u201ctasted and seen\u201d that the Lord is good, the times that I have independently ventured out of the fold are countless. And nearly every time, I have lost my guarantee of safety and blessing. Praise the Lord for his patience though!<\/p><p><strong>He will come after His sheep<\/strong>, no matter how many times they wander just like Jesus taught in Luke 15:3-7. God\u2019s children may stray but they will always be His sheep, no matter the distance.<\/p><p>Oh, how I wish to have deeper revelation, that heart-knowledge, that <strong>the Lord is my shepherd<\/strong>. I would never need anything, of course, but I wouldn\u2019t even <em>want<\/em> anything!<\/p><p>Jacob Shepherd<\/p><p>CEO &amp; Co-Founder | Revival<\/p><p>:::::::::::::::::<\/p><p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/product\/the-lord-is-my-shepherd-long-sleeve\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong><u>Shop with us<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p><p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/revivalforeveryone.com\/about-us\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Learn more about us<\/strong><\/a><\/p><p>Follow us on instagram -\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/revivalforeveryone\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/revivalforeveryone\/<\/a><\/p>","urlTitle":"psalm-23","url":"\/blog\/psalm-23\/","editListUrl":"\/my-blogs","editUrl":"\/my-blogs\/edit\/psalm-23\/","fullUrl":"https:\/\/revivalforeveryone.com\/blog\/psalm-23\/","featured":false,"published":true,"showOnSitemap":true,"hidden":false,"visibility":null,"createdAt":1673294646,"updatedAt":1673544031,"publishedAt":1673544031,"lastReadAt":null,"division":{"id":233745,"name":"Revival"},"tags":[],"metaImage":{"original":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/qwvekco5zvjbuleolbi95l4sry8ahnlsyk12ebbnitsduz8h.jpeg","thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/qwvekco5zvjbuleolbi95l4sry8ahnlsyk12ebbnitsduz8h.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/qwvekco5zvjbuleolbi95l4sry8ahnlsyk12ebbnitsduz8h.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"metaTitle":"","metaDescription":"","keyPhraseCampaignId":null,"series":[],"similarReads":[{"id":22316,"title":"I Lift My Eyes - The BELIEVE Blog","url":"\/blog\/i-lift-my-eyes\/","urlTitle":"i-lift-my-eyes","division":233745,"description":"There was a time when my oldest son was very young, Jed worked long hours in the city and I was far from my own family. And, though I had support around me, I often felt alone. I was striving to be who I thought others wanted me to be and always feeling that I fell short of that mark.","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/k1gvcc4hiejdybzkjauuoc6aj003k1pfamkzkuvbv01ikk2l.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855&z=1.9&fx=0.5174039877714&fy=0.26315789473684","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/k1gvcc4hiejdybzkjauuoc6aj003k1pfamkzkuvbv01ikk2l.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440&z=1.9&fx=0.5174039877714&fy=0.26315789473684"},"hidden":0},{"id":30846,"title":"Life, Light & Love - the BELIEVE Blog","url":"\/blog\/we-need-light\/","urlTitle":"we-need-light","division":233745,"description":"You could put every colour of the rainbow into a stained glass object and then weave into it a tapestry depicting a whole chronicle of tales. Yet, without a significant light behind it, that work of art will never be realised at any where near its potential.\n\nDid you know that you are a work of art? It\u2019s true! You were made on purpose, for a purpose. Just like a stained glass, however, you need the light of Christ, not just within you, but shining through you, in order that you reach your intended brilliance.","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/jqx3w6psdsroibisubycidsawooqdgdh221c2wzuud59wytm.png.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/jqx3w6psdsroibisubycidsawooqdgdh221c2wzuud59wytm.png.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":37079,"title":"Stop, Look, Listen pt. 2 - The BELIEVE Blog","url":"\/blog\/stop-look-listen-pt-2-the-believe-blog\/","urlTitle":"stop-look-listen-pt-2-the-believe-blog","division":233745,"description":"It\u2019s important that we maintain a steady flow of Biblical truth in our life to feed our Spirit and encourage the sanctification and transformation of our souls. Without that regular input, our fallible minds all too easily forget the truths that supersede our experience.\n\nLet\u2019s look at some verses that tell us, \u201cLord, heal me!\u201d is a daft thing to say.","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/2vwqa8c2ta8cbtlwwumkhta2az8dvk2npncijsra8j964vrw.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/2vwqa8c2ta8cbtlwwumkhta2az8dvk2npncijsra8j964vrw.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0}],"labels":[]}