Psalm 23:3 says, “[The Lord is my shepherd] he restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.” As we embrace the Lord as our Shepherd, we can feel the restoration of our soul taking place. Much of life can feel so draining. Work demands, family demands, social demands, personal demands; each of these things pull us in various directions trying to take our time and attention. And no one would say any of those pulls are inherently bad, sure they can grow to unhealthy places, but for the most part meeting those needs is a good thing.
However, just as we recognize the things that pull us in multiple directions, we must also recognize our need for restoration. Have you ever been really thirsty, and that first cup of water just isn’t enough? What do you do? You fill it up again, and again, and again until your thirst is quenched. We need to take the time and allow God to replenish us at the soul level.
How? Maybe you read your Bible, maybe listen to some music, maybe you spend time with your community receiving encouragement. Whatever restores you the best, go out and do it. Most of the demands of life aren’t going away anytime soon.
When we keep our eyes on the good Shepherd, we can follow him onto the path of righteousness. When we are on this path, we can trust that the waters of restoration are planned to be ahead, and we can trust that we are going in the right direction. Even if we stray, we can see that the Shepherd is there to lead us back to where we need to be.
None of this needs to be earned. The Shepherd is not impressed by you being the best sheep you can be. The Shepherd loves you because you are one of his.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.