Enjoy The Trip!

Yesterday afternoon my wife and I pointed the car toward the southeast and embarked upon a trip to our oldest son’s home about an hour away.  We had an excellent time with our son Josh, his lovely wife Trinity and their two wonderful daughters Rhian and Lily.  It was the best treatment that we ever could have taken for my wife’s health.  She was pretty quiet during the trip, but lit up like a roman candle at the sight of our granddaughters and their folks!  In fact, after greeting the grandkids she went right up to Trinity said “Hi!” and gave her a big hug!  For a moment there, she was like her old self!

Eating away from home is always a bit of a question with my wife’s current needs.  Her weight had fluctuated quite dramatically over the last few years and has been a major concern for me.  I have determined to keep her on a regular eating schedule, with minimal distractions and with meals that I know that she will eat.  My son and daughter-in-law are aware of this and hit the bulls eye with a fabulous dinner that Trinity prepared consisting of Italian gnocchi with a white gorgonzola sauce.  My wife enjoyed herself!  (I must admit that I had a few servings myself!!!)  So to put it mildly, the evening was a great success, the company was stupendous, and the healing effect went beyond measure!   It was a vivid picture of God’s love toward us!

This morning when I turned on my e-Sword Bible study program, it opened up to where I had left off yesterday in the 23^rd Psalm.  As I read through this poetic piece from David, I was reminded about how part of the countryside that we drove through on the way to Josh’s is similar to the picture that is painted in this psalm.  There is one portion of travel on California Highway 116 East that traverses through gently rolling hills and fields of flowing green grass.  Along the way the pastures are dotted with sheep, horses, cows and a couple herds of miniature horses!  (That’s a fun sight that never grows old!)

As I read this morning I could clearly picture myself standing in one of those fields along side of the lazy sheep as they chewed contentedly on the lush green growth.  David’s descriptions of rest in the fields, streams of peaceful water (as the Petaluma river also flows along this stretch of the countryside on its way to San Pablo bay) and the refreshment He brings to my life were vivid in my minds eye and warming to my heart.  What came to my understanding as I experienced this event was the idea that David was describing a process that was constantly changing. 

As a former Shepherd he knew the importance of moving his flock from pasture to pasture.  I have heard that sheep are not necessarily the smartest animals in the world and if kept in one field for too long will chew the grass all the way down to the root.  That is why the cattlemen in the past were not too happy when sheep herders would graze their sheep on their open range. They were concerned that the source of food for their cattle would be destroyed.

In Psalm 23:3 David compares the Shepherd’s leading of the sheep to God’s leading of His children along the right paths, even those that may go through valleys as dark as death.  As Adam Clarke’s Commentary says “I should fear no evil under the guidance and protection of such a Shepherd.  He knows all the passes, dangerous defiles, hidden pits and abrupt precipices in the way; and he will guide me around, about and through them.”  It’s all about His loving plan and direction for each of our lives.  He knows that we need to keep moving on in life in order to grow and not become as a pool of stagnate water.  He also understands that most of us like to get comfortable in our places in life and are not always open to change!

But as the Good Shepherd, He gently nudges us into movement for He knows what is best for us.  The more we can become like the gentle sheep and place all of our trust in Him, the easier and more enjoyable will be the daily adventures that we travel through in this life.  You know, it’s just like the many hikes that we have taken in the Plumas National Forest near California’s border with the state of Nevada.  The view along the way is just as gorgeous as the end destination!  So… throw caution to the wind, put your trust in our loving Good Shepherd and enjoy the scenery!  Stay tuned and keep asking yourself… “What (part of the trip) am I expecting (to enjoy) today?”