Psalm 23

I find it helpful, both in my personal life and in our family's life, as well as in my

role as a pastor of this church, to step back and to take stock of where we've been in

the past and where we're going in the future.

And for me, the new year is often a time when I do that.

Over the last two weeks, I've had some time to reflect, and I wanted to begin this morning

by sharing some reflections on where I think we are as a church.

Just in the last six months, the Lord has done some wonderful and exciting things in

this church.

Let me just highlight three areas.

First of all, the church plant in New London that we are praying and working towards.

It's been a particular encouragement for me, working with this group of believers from New

London.

Every time I go out there, there are new people who I haven't met before who are joining their

Bible studies and coming to our church plant prayer meetings and discussion meetings.

Friends and co-workers that people have been praying for for months or years have come to

faith in Jesus and are beginning to walk with Him.

In December, they had 40 people come to their monthly co-ed Bible study.

God is doing some wonderful things, and it's exciting for us to be a part of helping a new

movement and laying the foundation for what we pray will ultimately be a new church.

Second, our church's mission to New Haven.

I believe that God is shaping us into a church that is increasingly international.

If you just look around the room on almost any Sunday morning, even today, you can see people

from all over the world, literally.

And this is who we are as a church.

And God has been putting it on people's hearts to be welcoming people from all over the world

and finding ways to introduce them to Jesus, whom we love, whom we love so dearly.

At the same time, I believe that God is also shaping us into a church with a heart for our city,

including the many in our city who are broken and hurting and needy.

And we, too, recognize our own brokenness and our hurt and our neediness as well.

But some of us have been thinking and praying about starting a Christian addiction recovery group.

And that's something that we've been praying and discussing about.

There's a small group of people who have started meeting and praying about starting a Christian

health clinic to provide holistic Christian-based care to people who need it.

God is bringing people to this church.

Some of you here aren't just people from all other parts of the world who have come to New Haven,

but people who have been born and raised here.

Or maybe even more miraculously, people who have come here from other places and don't have

any plans to leave.

And we praise God that God is giving us a heart for the city that he's put us in.

Third, within our church family, we have had an explosion of new life.

We have had 11 new babies in the last six months.

Six in December alone.

Now, that's a record.

And so for that reason and others, we're considering our building space needs.

How we can best use and adapt the space that we do have.

Whether we need to build more space somehow for children's ministry and for multi-purpose

meeting spaces and things like that.

We've also celebrated several baptisms during the past year.

Testimonies to the work of God's Spirit and bringing people to new life in Jesus.

And those are always awesome opportunities.

And there are other people who are interested in baptism and we're talking with them and

preparing them so we can look forward to more.

So it is an exciting time to be part of this church.

At the same time, the last six months, for me at least, have been one of the most difficult

and stressful times in our church.

Many of you have been facing and are facing personal trials.

Whether it's grieving the death of a loved one who's passed away or caring for a child who's

not doing well or struggling in a difficult marriage or trying to survive financially or

simply being wearied by the constant fast pace and the onslaught of life.

Every week at our staff meeting, we pray for a list of people who are sick or recovering

from illness.

And as the list continues to grow, the list continues to grow.

But you know, we're not just a list of individuals who are facing our own struggles.

We're a body of believers knit together in Jesus Christ.

And so when we're a body, when one person is sorrowful, when one part is hurting, we all

share in that hurt and that sorrow.

For many of us, our hearts have been particularly burdened for Pastor Matt and Brandy.

As Brandy's cancer continues to spread throughout her body and recently causing her much pain.

We weep with them.

We pray that God would do a miracle even as we face the reality that we are not in control

of our life or our death.

We face not only trials, physical and emotional, but also spiritual temptation.

And the devil in our trial seeks to exaggerate our sinful tendencies, to drive us to anger

and anxiety and despair, or to sow discord among brothers and sisters in Christ, or to distract

and confuse us in a bunch of different ways.

And over the last six months, I've been more acutely aware of the reality that every day

we are in a spiritual battle, that we do have an enemy who wants to steal and kill and destroy,

who wants to divide, frustrate and discourage us.

And as I look ahead into this new year, I don't see an easy solution.

I don't see a quick fix to our trials and temptations.

There's a long road ahead.

None of us can see exactly where it will lead.

And so at the same time, I believe this is a very exciting time to be part of this church

that God's brought us together for this purpose.

And yet, it's a hard and difficult time at the same time.

And I don't know how you're feeling individually and in your own families.

You may be feeling one or both of those as well.

But what I want to look at this morning is what we need to know in order to face whatever

may come in this new year.

For our text this morning, I've chosen Psalm 23.

You can turn there in the Bible.

It's page 458 in the Pew Bibles if you're looking at one of those.

It's probably one of the most famous passages in the Bible.

But it's a wonderful passage.

It's well known for good reason.

Now, since it's a psalm, psalms are designed for corporate worship and prayer.

I'd like us to read it responsibly.

We don't usually do this, but I'm going to read verse 1.

Then you can respond with verse 2.

Then I'll read verse 3 and so on.

So Psalm 23.

Let's read together.

The Lord is my shepherd.

I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.

For you are with me.

Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil.

My cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.

And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Amen.

Now this is a very rich psalm.

We could approach it from several angles.

We could do a biographical study of the life of David and how God called him to be a shepherd of Israel.

We could do a cultural background study of shepherds in the ancient Near East and what light that sheds on this passage.

We could do a literary study of the grammar and the rhythm and the parallelism of the psalm.

And all of those approaches could be fruitful in their own way.

But today I want to focus on one thing.

I want to focus on how Jesus lived out this psalm.

And what it looks like for us to know and follow Jesus as our good shepherd today.

And in particular I want to look at three pictures of how Jesus is this kind of shepherd.

This shepherd that is described in this psalm.

From three parts, three incidents in Jesus' life on earth.

So the first thing I want to look at is how Jesus feeds us through his word.

And we see this particularly in the New Testament in the feeding of the 5,000.

But verses 1 and 2, it says,

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures.

Now in the New Testament, there's this story of Jesus feeding this group of 5,000 people.

Actually it's more than that.

5,000 men plus women and children in the wilderness.

And in that passage, before he feeds them with bread and fish, it says that Jesus saw,

Mark 6, 34 says,

Jesus saw that the people were like sheep without a shepherd.

And so he began teaching them many things.

In other words, Jesus recognized that their greatest need was a spiritual need

that could be met by his word, by his teaching.

They were people who were confused.

They were insecure.

They were prone to latch on to anyone who would come their way promising a better life.

And so Jesus taught them with his word all day until the evening.

Now, of course, by the evening time, they were hungry.

And so that's where the food comes in.

Jesus not only feeds them with his word, he also feeds them dinner.

It says he made them sit down on the green grass.

There's actually not many places in the New Testament where the grass is described as green

or where colors are used in the Gospels.

But it's one of the few places that points it out.

You see, Jesus is living out this good shepherd who makes his sheep lie down in green pastures.

And then at the end it says he fed them until they ate and were satisfied.

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

In other words, I'm satisfied.

I have everything I need.

You know, I'm told that usually sheep don't lie down if they're hungry or if they're afraid.

They lie down only when they're satisfied and secure.

And that's what Jesus does for us.

He makes us satisfied and secure.

He feeds and provides for us through his word.

Now we think of that story in terms of the food that he fed them, but he spent all day teaching them.

He fed them with his word.

And Jesus feeds us today in the same way.

He sees us.

And like the crowds back then, he sees that we too, apart from him, are like sheep without a shepherd.

And so he comes to teach us many things.

To generously give us his wisdom so that we can feed on him and lay down and rest.

So as we seek to move forward in planting a church in New London,

in coming alongside those who are needy in our city,

in sharing the gospel with people from all over the world,

Jesus' word will sustain us, equip us, and direct us.

As we raise children and seek to live as godly families,

Jesus' word is what we need to be fed and sustained and satisfied.

And it's the same as we face trials and temptations.

As we face uncertainties and spiritual battles,

Jesus' word will comfort us, uphold us,

and keep our eyes fixed on our captain in the fight.

As we walk through the wilderness,

his word is a lamp unto our feet and a light to our path.

So brothers and sisters, may we sit at Jesus' feet this year and listen to him.

May we come together every Sunday

and every time we gather for small groups or Sunday school classes,

hungry for his word,

anticipating that God will meet with us and speak to us through his word.

May we fight to carve out the time to listen to Jesus' word personally and in our families.

Now, I know it's not easy.

I find it's a constant battle for me to carve out time alone with God

in reading the word and prayer.

It's a battle that I feel like I've never been able to say I've won it.

But it's always something that I'm in the middle of.

Because there are a thousand things in this world that call for our attention.

Think of all the things that call for your attention.

Text message alerts.

Crying toddlers.

Demanding bosses.

Unanswered emails.

Dirty dishes in the sink.

People asking you for help.

All kinds of things.

Good things.

Bad things and different things.

But hard as it may be, we must fight to carve out time to listen to God's word.

So that we can respond to all these other voices

and all these other requests and all these other invitations.

Not just frantically flying from one thing to another

and lurching in all different directions and getting nowhere,

but keeping our eyes on our shepherd

and following him as we respond to everything else that comes into our life.

And what does this look like?

Well, the challenge may look different for each one of you.

A year or two ago, I was talking to a medical resident.

And at that time, he was working literally 90 hours a week in the hospital.

Now, I know there's a law that says 80 hours a week,

but all the medical residents know that that law is not really followed.

And he was in a program that was actually exempt from that law.

So they could require him to work more than 80 hours a week.

He said, the only time I have during my day consistently to sit and think

is when I go to the bathroom.

And so he says, I make it a habit.

I have the Bible on my phone.

And I make it a habit to read the Bible on my phone in the hospital bathroom.

And so that while I'm in the middle of my work,

I can be filling my mind with God's word

and seeking to display the fruits of the spirit in my workplace

instead of falling into some of the negative patterns in my workplace.

Or historical example.

This is a little extreme as well.

But Susanna Wesley gave birth to 19 children in 19 years.

Nine of them died as infants.

But she had to raise 10 of them to adulthood.

She had a rocking chair where she would sit down

and pull her apron over her face

and she would tell her children not to bother her for a few minutes.

And she did this consistently so her children knew.

They knew the drill.

Mommy sits in her chair and puts her apron over her face.

It means she's praying.

And you don't bother her for a few minutes.

So even in the middle of being constantly pregnant

and raising that many children,

she fought to carve out time

to listen to the Lord and to be with Him.

Now, I don't know what it looks like for you.

Most of our life circumstances are not quite that extreme.

Most of us are not working 90 hours a week.

Most of us are not raising 10 children

or being caught pregnant for most of 19 years.

But it's worth the effort

to fight to carve out the time

to read and meditate on God's word,

whether that means getting up early in the morning,

spending time at night,

or setting a routine with your spouse

so that one of you can watch the kids

and the other one can have some time alone with the Lord.

If you need some structure,

there's Bible reading plans on the back table.

It's called More Precious Than Gold.

They're free.

You can pick up one of those

if that would help you to have some structure

in how you read through the Bible this year.

It gives some different tracks that you can follow.

If you've never had the habit of reading the Bible,

ask somebody else who you think might have

and say, how do you do it?

Could I join you maybe once a week

for your time reading the Bible and praying

just to do it with you?

That's how you learn these things

is by seeing other people doing them

and by trial and error yourself as well.

But, brothers and sisters,

let's spend time in the Word of God,

both individually and corporately.

Jesus feeds us and He meets us

and He satisfies us with the wisdom in His Word.

So that's the first way that Jesus is our Good Shepherd.

He feeds us through His Word.

But the second way that Jesus is our Good Shepherd

is that Jesus comes near to us with His presence

when we're overwhelmed and distressed.

And in the New Testament where we see this,

one place where we see this,

is in the story that comes right after

the feeding of the 5,000

in Matthew, Mark, and John.

Luke doesn't include it.

But in three of the four Gospels,

they finish this long day

where Jesus had been teaching them all day

and then He makes the disciples feed dinner

to all these guys,

5,000 guys.

Goodness, that's a big catering job.

And then He sends the disciples in a boat

across the lake

and He goes up the mountain to pray.

And so they were already tired before this.

They had a long day out in the hot desert sun.

Then they were feeding,

then they were the catering crew

for a 5,000 person dinner.

And now they're rowing across the lake

and they have a stiff headwind coming the wrong way.

And so they're rowing

for almost the whole night.

And then around 4 or 5 a.m.,

Jesus comes out to them

walking on the lake.

And they did exactly what you and I would do

if we were in that situation.

They totally freaked out.

And they think He's a ghost.

And He says,

Take heart.

It's me.

I am.

Don't be afraid.

And He gets into the boat

and immediately the wind dies down

and the waters become still.

Now, if you notice,

the 23rd Psalm

begins by talking about the Lord feeding us

and making us lie down in green pastures.

And the next verse says,

He leads me beside still waters.

In other words,

He brings peace

in the midst of chaos

and confusion

and overwhelming circumstances.

And verse 4 says,

Even though I walk through the valley

of the shadow of death

or row through the middle of the night

on a dark lake

with the wind coming against me,

even there you are with me

and I will fear no evil.

So in this account,

and you can find it

at the end of Mark chapter 6

Mark 6 · chapter mention

if you want to read it,

Jesus sends His disciples

across the lake

into the storm.

And we have to say

that Jesus knew

what they were facing.

Jesus wasn't surprised

by the storm

that they encountered.

He saw how it affected them

on the lake

as He was praying for them

on the hillside.

And you know,

sometimes Jesus calls us

to do hard things

and make sacrifices

for the sake of His mission

to seek and save

more lost sheep.

The disciples had spent

the whole day

in the hot sun.

And then Jesus had asked them

to feed dinner

to 5,000 men.

And then He had sent them

rowing all night in a boat

on a stormy lake.

They were exhausted.

Now we have some exciting

opportunities before us

as a church.

The opportunity to support

a new church plant.

The opportunity to introduce

people to Jesus

from all over the world.

To reach people in our city

who are broken and hurting.

To raise children.

To be godly men and women

in the family of the church.

But none of these things

are easy.

They all have a cost.

They all have a cost.

Of time and energy and money.

They call for humility and patience.

The word patience can be translated

long suffering.

Now sacrifice and humility

and patient endurance

may sound like noble

and lofty virtues.

But they don't always feel good.

When you're in the middle

of a stormy night

trying to row across a lake.

When you've been awakened

for the fourth time

in the night

with a sick child.

When you're trying to reach out

to a friend

who is in some trouble.

But the promise of Jesus

is this.

That when we walk with him.

That when we walk

in obedience to him

that he is never

far away from us.

He is always

interceding for us.

As Jesus was on the hillside

all night

while the disciples

were facing the storm

he was praying.

And he was praying for them.

You see even when

God seems most far away.

Even when we feel

exhausted.

overwhelmed by life

and far away from God.

When we've made sacrifices

to follow Jesus

and we don't

and we feel burned out.

Jesus comes near

to meet us.

And strengthen us.

And encourage us.

And give rest

to our weary souls

and bodies.

And to let us know

as he said to his disciples

it's me.

I'm here.

You're not alone.

This is how Jesus

is our good shepherd.

He comes near to us

with his presence.

And you know

sometimes Jesus

mercy

to weary disciples

comes in very concrete

tangible

material packages.

Like a good night's sleep.

Or a satisfying meal

cooked and delivered

by a friend.

or a solitary walk

through snow

covered woods.

Or an unexpected gift

when finances

are shorn.

Jesus feeds us

with his word.

We need to see that.

And in some way

that's a primary

and important

and essential.

But Jesus also

knows and cares

for our very

concrete

bodily

weaknesses.

when we're just

exhausted

and can't

and feel like

we can't

make it any longer.

He reassures us

sometimes in very

concrete ways

of his love

and his shepherding care.

There's a story

in the Old Testament

of the prophet Elijah.

And the prophet Elijah

had endured

an intense conflict

with the wicked

king Ahab

of Israel

and all his

prophets

of the false

god Baal.

And Queen Jezebel

hated him.

So she

vowed to kill him

and so Elijah

ran away

into the desert

and he just

crashed.

He had been

standing for God

and proclaiming

his word

amidst

intense opposition

and he finally

it just

got too much

for him.

He was exhausted.

He was burned out.

He was depressed.

He said,

Lord,

I don't want

to be a prophet

anymore.

I don't even

want to be alive

anymore.

It's enough.

Just

take my life.

And you know

what God said

to him?

God said,

you need some sleep.

Go to sleep.

So he slept

for a long time.

And then you know

what he did

when he was sleeping?

God sent an angel.

But the angel

didn't come with

a message.

The angel came

to cook him dinner.

And he said,

Elijah,

wake up.

Your dinner's ready.

Here you go.

Hot off the fire

with a glass

of cool water.

Then go to sleep

again.

Then the angel

came back

and cooked him

breakfast.

And then Elijah

took a long walk

for 40 days

and 40 nights

through the desert.

And after that

long walk,

he was finally

ready to hear

God's word.

Do you know

that sometimes

that's how broken

down we can get?

I don't know

if you've been there.

But sometimes

that's how broken

down we can get.

We're so exhausted.

We're so burned out

that we can hardly

hear the word of God

and find comfort

in it.

And Jesus

is very merciful.

He sends

his messengers

to cook us meals

and let us sleep.

You know,

sometimes the best way

to come alongside

someone who is

really suffering,

who's totally

overwhelmed,

who's fighting

a hard battle,

is not to go to them

and preach a sermon

or quote a long list

of Bible verses

or give them

lots of advice,

but to bring them

a meal

or bring them

a plate of cookies

or shovel their walk

without asking

or offer to babysit

their kids

for two hours

just so they can sleep

or so they can go

for a walk

in the woods

on a beautiful

snowy day.

If somebody offers

you a gift like that,

don't refuse it

out of pride.

You know,

sometimes we refuse

help from others

because we're proud

of being self-sufficient

and never needing

anything from anyone.

But you know,

as Christians,

in Jesus Christ,

we've all received

salvation,

which is a gift

that we can never deserve

and that we can never repay.

So don't be ashamed

to receive

much smaller gifts

from another person.

It's all part of Jesus,

your Good Shepherd's,

provision for you.

He's sending

someone your way

to let you know

that he sees you

and that he loves you

and that he's with you

and he hasn't abandoned you.

If you really don't need

what somebody else gives you,

pay it forward.

Right?

Find a way to give it

to somebody else.

Offer the same thing

to them.

Pass on the blessing.

Jesus feeds us with his word.

He comes to meet us

with his presence

in very tangible

and concrete ways.

And he says,

take heart.

I'm here.

Don't be afraid.

Finally,

the last thing we see

is that Jesus

pursues us

to shield us from danger

and bring us safely home.

Verse 3 says,

he restores my soul.

That word restores

means repairs

or it could mean

brings back.

In other words,

Jesus comes to bring us back

when we've wandered away,

to renew us

when we've,

when we're,

the flame is flickering low.

He leads us

in passive righteousness.

He prepares a table for us

in the midst of our enemies.

And verse 6 says,

surely goodness

and steadfast love

will follow me.

In other words,

that means

God's goodness

and steadfast love

in Jesus Christ

will chase us down

for the rest of our lives.

You see,

God doesn't merely respond

to our requests.

But he initiates with us

and he follows through

all the way to the end.

We see this in Jesus' life

most particularly

at the end of his life

and the events leading up

to his death on the cross.

Mark chapter 14,

Mark 14:27

verse 27 and 28,

Jesus said to his disciples,

he said,

you will all fall away

for it is written,

I will strike the shepherd

and the sheep

will be scattered.

But after I am raised up,

I will go before you

to Galilee.

In other words,

Jesus goes before us

in his death on the cross.

And he also goes before us

in his resurrection

from the dead.

In his death on the cross,

Jesus is the good shepherd

laying down his life

for the sheep.

And he goes before us

in his resurrection

when he takes up

his life again

as the triumphant victor

over death

and the grave.

Jesus has overcome

our greatest enemies

in his death

and resurrection.

He has overcome

the world

that seeks to allure us

with false hopes

and false promises.

He has rendered powerless

the devil,

the accuser

who seeks to condemn us.

He has defeated death

like no one else

ever has.

But Jesus has not only

defeated the world

and the devil

and death,

the enemies

outside of us,

he's also

conquered our sin.

Because you see,

sometimes we

are our own

worst enemy.

Sometimes our own worst,

sometimes our circumstances

are not our greatest enemy.

Other people

are not our greatest enemy.

Even Satan

may not be

our greatest enemy.

Sometimes it's

our own sinful nature.

Our self-destructive habits

that we get into.

Our pride

that we refuse

to let go of.

But you know what?

On the cross,

Jesus has conquered

even that.

He died

to free us

from the penalty

that we deserve

for our sin.

And he has placed

his Holy Spirit

within all

who believe in him

so that we can be free

from the power,

the enslaving power

of sin.

And he perseveres

with us to the end

until a day

when we will one day

be free

from any sin at all.

When we see him

face to face.

You see,

Jesus is our good shepherd

from beginning to end.

Who protects us

from our enemies

outside us

and our enemies

within us.

From our own

worst tendencies.

It says,

your rod and your staff,

they comfort me.

You know,

as a shepherd,

part of the purpose

of a rod

is to beat off

predators,

bears,

and wolves

that want to come

and eat the sheep.

But part of the purpose

of a rod and the staff

is to keep the sheep

in line.

to discipline

the sheep.

To bring them out

of thorny bushes

that they've got

themselves in

and pull them out.

Apparently,

I've heard

that sometimes

a shepherd

will even

injure a sheep

temporarily

if that sheep

is prone

to wander away

into fatal danger

so that the injured

sheep would stay

with the flock

and stay with the shepherd

and therefore

be protected

even though

the sheep

is limping.

You see,

Jesus knows

the tendencies

that we have

to sabotage

ourselves

to...

Jesus knows

our own

worst tendencies

and he will

even shield us

by his grace

from those

as our good shepherd.

He has come

to shield us

from danger

and bring us

safely home.

So whether we're

going forth

boldly

in mission

for Jesus' sake

or whether we're

struggling through

trials and temptations

for Jesus' sake,

we can be confident

that Jesus,

our good shepherd,

has gone

before us

and that he

pursues us.

to shield us

from danger

and bring us

safely home.

And that is good news

that we can count on.

We can count on that

in life

and we can count on

that in death

that Jesus has gone

before us.

I want to close

with a verse

from the Apostle Paul.

The Apostle Paul

went forth boldly

proclaiming Jesus

throughout the world

and the Apostle Paul

faced more trials

and temptations

than probably

almost any of us

will face

in our lifetime.

Fightings within,

fears without,

he says.

And when he was

sitting in a cold

Roman prison

facing the prospect

of almost certain death,

he wrote the book

of 2 Timothy,

which is probably

the last letter

that he wrote.

And in the book

of 2 Timothy,

he speaks confidently

about the promise

of life

in Christ Jesus,

the grace

given us

in Jesus

before the beginning

of time

and revealed

through the appearing

of Jesus

who destroyed death

and brought life

and immortality

to light.

And he says,

God has given us

a spirit

not of fear

but of power,

of love,

and of self-control.

So don't be ashamed

of the good news

of Jesus.

Go forth

and proclaim it

in season

and out of season

with great patience

and careful instruction.

He speaks confidently

but he also speaks

honestly

about the hardships

of living

as a follower

of Jesus.

He says,

Timothy,

the Christian life

is like being

a loyal soldier.

It's like being

a disciplined athlete.

It's like being

a hard-working farmer.

Not easy jobs.

Not stress-free life.

He says,

God has called us

to share in suffering

for the gospel

of Jesus.

He says,

some people

have abandoned

the faith.

They've swerved

from the truth.

They get caught

in quarrels

about words.

He says,

there will be

terrible times

in the latter days.

But he ends

this letter

with these words.

2 Timothy 4.18

The Lord

will rescue me

from every evil deed

and bring me safely

into his heavenly kingdom.

To him be the glory

forever and ever.

That was Paul's,

one of Paul's last words.

words.

Jesus,

my faithful shepherd,

will rescue me

from every evil attack,

every evil deed,

and he will bring me

safely home.

That's what we need to know

in this new year.

Let us pray.

A prayer for the new year.

O love beyond compare,

you are good

when you give

and when you take away.

When the sun shines upon me,

when the night

gathers over me.

You have loved me

before the foundation

of the world

and in love

you redeemed my soul.

You love me still

in spite of my hard heart,

my ingratitude,

my distrust.

Your goodness

has been with me

through another year,

leading me through

a twisting wilderness

in retreat,

helping me to advance

when beaten back,

making sure headway.

Your goodness

will be with me

in the year ahead.

I hoist,

sail,

and draw up anchor

with you

as the blessed pilot

of my future

as of my past.

I bless you

that you have veiled

my eyes

to the waters ahead.

If you have appointed

storms of tribulation,

you will be with me

in them.

If I have to pass

through tempests

of persecution

and temptation,

I shall not drown.

If I am to die,

I will see your face

the sooner.

If a painful end

is to be my lot,

grant me grace

that my faith fail not.

If I am to be cast aside

from the service I love,

I can make no stipulation.

Only glorify yourself

in me.

Whether in comfort

or trial

as a chosen vessel

always fit

for your use.

Amen.

Well, this morning

we come to the Lord's table.

To the table

of the shepherd

who laid down

his life

for us.

And in the Lord's supper,

Jesus has fed us

with his word

and he comes near to us

in a very concrete,

tangible,

physical way

through broken bread

and poured out juice.

Paul says,

the cup of blessing

that we bless,

is it not a participation

in the blood of Christ?

The bread that we break,

is it not a participation

in the body of Christ?

In other words,

Jesus is present here

at this table,

in this fellowship,

by his Holy Spirit,

so that when we receive

the bread

and the cup,

we are assured

that Jesus' love for us

and Jesus' promise to us

in his death

and his resurrection

is just as real,

even more real,

than this piece of bread

and this cup of grape juice.

Jesus has prepared

his table for us.

So if you're here,

if you're a believer

in Jesus Christ,

if he is

your good shepherd

who laid down his life

for you on the cross

and rose again

three days later,

and if you are part

of his flock,

part of his church,

whether it's this church

or another local church,

take, eat, and drink

and be assured

of his love

for you today.

If you don't believe

in Jesus,

if you're still exploring

and working through things,

we're glad you're here today.

I hope that you'll see this

as an invitation

to consider

who Jesus is.

If you don't believe

in Jesus,

don't take the bread

and the cup,

just pass them by,

it's fine,

but just take this time

to consider

what it would mean

for you

to take Jesus

as your good shepherd.

You can even pray.

Say,

Jesus, take me.

I don't want to live

my life

for myself

anymore.

I want you

to be my shepherd.

I want to be yours

forever.

And he will hear

and answer that prayer.

For those who are

serving communion,

come to the front now.

John,

would you give thanks

for the bread?

Thank you.

Thank you.

Lord,

how precious

the words

of this psalm.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.