Psalm 23

this psalm holds a special place in my heart because it was the second passage of Scripture that my dad had me memorize when I was little. since then, it has been a constant source of comfort: when I was scared of monsters, walking at home from babysitting in the dark, before making big decisions about my job, trying to decide where to go for law school, and now, even as I am walking through law school. meditating on Scripture is not one of my strong suits. in fact, I almost never really sit and reflect in a single passage of Scripture for long periods of time. last night, as I just finished my huge amount of reading for today, this Scripture came to mind, and I knew I needed to reflect on this more during my quiet time this morning.

I won't give you all the gory details of my meditation on this passage, BUT I do want to give you my big takeaways. throughout the psalm, David {author of the psalm} talks about God as his Shepherd; He leads us into green pastures and by quiet waters... there is this vivid imagery of peace, like deeply breathing fresh air. we go on to see that this peace is available even in the midst of craziness and trials. I'm not saying that law school is "the valley of the shadow of death", but it is hard. the things that make it even harder are the lies that I believe, and when I begin to compare myself to others. these things create unnecessary stressors. **can I get an amen?** one thing that really hit me is that I am not taking the time to stop & reflect. I haven't been taking those deep breaths or sitting still by those quiet waters. what I have been doing is allowing the noise of the lies in my head become overwhelming, and I have forgotten God is my Shepherd; I shall not want. He is everything I need: my Sustainer, my Provider, my Peace, & my Hiding-place. I can find rest in Him.