Lessons from Psalm 23:

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The Lord is my Satisfaction:

The Lord is my Satisfaction:

• "I shall not want" because want is consumed by thankfulness of being provided for.

The Lord is my Satisfaction:

• "I shall not want" because want is consumed by thankfulness of being provided for.
• Jesus is not the Shepherd dog nipping at our heels with “oughts” but is the restoring shepherd.

The Lord is my foreman,
I shall not rest.
He makes me mow down the green pastures.
He leads me to generators beside rapid waters.
He wears out my soul.

He shoves me to conferences for my schedule's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of relaxation,
I fear no chance of rest;
For my feelings of guilt,
they haunt me.

Thou dost prepare a
work table before me
In the presence of
my comrades.
Thou hast filled my mind with worry:
My workload overflows.

Surely busyness and pressure will follow me,
All the days of my life,
And I will run to and fro In the house of the Lord forever.

I. I am able to Walk:

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Who here is afraid of their own shadow?

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“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”
1 John 4:18

“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
Philippians 1:21

II.There is Comfort in the Uncomfortable:

Counting

• If you are Jesus sheep He knows you by name and knows everything about you. You cannot hide anything from the Lord.

Counting

• The Lord cares for you so deeply and so intimately that He knows you by name. You are not lost in a sea of many but you have been found as a treasure, and rejoiced and sang over by a Father who cares.

Pace

• There are times where we would like to think that we have “arrived” and need no more growth in our lives. Some of us have believed the lie that we can chalk up our sin as nothing more than “vices” or “personality traits.”

Pace

• Each one of us is on our own journey with the Lord and yours is not going to look like mine.

Path

• To have God’s rod of discipline on you feels uncomfortable as it forces you to turn from things you are chasing but are not right for you, it forces you to change, it closes doors that are right in front of you.

Defense

• At times we would like to believe we have no enemies and the evil is all made up. Some would like to think they can provide their own defense but are tired from trying to defend themselves.

Defense

• God is a better fortress of refuge than I could ever build. God has given us real weapons for a real battle that surrounds us everyday.

My Job as Shepherd

• To know your name.
• To know your quirks.
• To keep you fed on rich doctrine and protected against false doctrine.
• I am not Jesus and there are many of you, God willing more and more will be added, so I cannot be the only Shepherd.

If I accept my God given limitations and if you accept this God given limitation we will be able to receive God’s gift of leaders He is empowering to do His work among us and in our community.

III.My End os a Table in His Presence:

The truth of the gospel is ““for it is written, "As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God."”
Romans 14:11

“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world."”
John 16:33

Exercise your faith that you have security in Christ by:

Not giving into the voice that tells you to give up when things and people aren’t going according to your plan.

When you find yourself not living under and in the security found in Christ recognize that you have been set free to return to the mighty fortress that is our God.

You may have received Jesus Christ as your Lord, but have you received Him as your security?