A Psalm of David: God is Our Leader and Our Shepherd.
Dear Friends,
In Psalm 23 God is explained by David as a Shepherd. The Shepherd is the leader. David also sees himself as a Shepherd, a leader. Let's go through Psalm 23 and discover how leadership is carried out as the Shepherd.
Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures;
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness
For His name's sake.
4 Yea, 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.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the
presence of mine enemies;
Thou anointest my head with oil;
My cup runneth over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.
In verse 1: The Lord, our Shepherd, our Leader provides everything we need.
(The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.)
In verse 2: The Lord, our Shepherd, our Leader gives us rest and peace.
(He maketh me to lie down in green pastures;
He leadeth me beside the still waters.)
In verse 3: The Lord, our Shepherd, our Leader leads confidently, restores, energizes and makes us new again. The Leader (Shepherd) guides us in the right direction.
(He restoreth my soul; He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness
For His name's sake.)
In verse 4: The Lord, our Shepherd, our Leader protects, comforts and corrects us.
(Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil; For thou art with me;
Thy rod and Thy staff; they comfort me.
In verse 5: The Lord, our Shepherd, our Leader feeds, honors us, anoints us, giving us more than we may need. He gives us abundance.
(Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies;
Thou anointest my head with oil;
My cup runneth over.)
In verse 6: The Lord, our Shepherd, our Leader gives us love that is guaranteed for life. Our Leader gives us a house to live in, with Him, forever.
(Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.)
God, the Supreme Leader, the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Mosses, David, Isaiah, and Father of Jesus is the Shepherd to all those believing in Him.
Are you a shepherd? Are you the leader in your family? Every family needs a strong leader. Every community, business, and organization needs a strong leader with integrity. You can begin the leadership journey by becoming the shepherd. Follow each of the examples of leadership from each verse in Psalm 23. If you are head of your household, become the shepherd of your flock. The shepherd takes responsibility for the complete well-being of his flock. If you do not have a flock, look to your business, place of employment, or school. Now go out into the world and lead as a shepherd. A Christian is a sheep to our Lord, Jesus, the true Good Shepherd; we are members in His flock. But through Jesus we are also shepherds to new lambs in Christ who may need encouragement, support and knowledge.
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Mihran Kulhanjian is President and Founder of Christian Revival Mission. He is an author and businessman.