“…he leads me beside the still waters., he restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.”
Psalm 23:2b
Glory be to you, my Good Shepherd, Lord Jesus, for leading me beside the still waters. Every day you call me to your Word to drink deeply from the waters of Truth, to be refreshed with the revelation of your character, to be washed with the water of the Word.
I don’t see a great deal of change on a daily basis, but you are definitely at work, altering my soul, bringing growth, deepening and transformation. You are moving imy soul in the direction of its original, pre-fall condition so your relationship to me can be more profound, more transparent, higher and deeper.
Praise be to you, my Great Shepherd, my Heavenly Father, my Heavenly Brother, my Heavenly Spirit, for this faithful, powerful and wonderful work in my life. As I spend time with you in worship each day, you have been giving me strength in my soul, you have been quietly transforming my being into the likeness of Christ, so that when the disappointments of life come, there will be strength in me to pass through them with your endurance.
As a result of your work, my soul is no longer weak and flabby, able to be pushed this way and that by circumstances, feelings, and discouragements that come in life. You are making my soul strong, firm, muscular, able to stand in the face of opposition.
You are removing my fear of man, empowering me to make tough decisions for the good of the people involved without letting fear of how they will react control me. You are teaching me to think like you, rather than being swayed by my feelings.
This is your doing, to your glory, in line with your greatness. I praise you for your faithful, deep work, your gracious goodness in bringing this change as I spend time gazing upon your marvelous Character. You truly are Glorious, Great and Gracious!
I praise you, Father, for you have set your Spirit in me to lead. I praise you for your great patience in working with me to help me to quit worrying, to reject complaining, to refuse to feel sorry for myself, to walk away from disappointment and discouragement, choosing instead to walk with praise in the demanding paths of righteousness that you have prepared and where you lead me.
I praise and thank you for your wonderful shepherding, for your faithful goodness, for your continued, gracious patience. You are marvelous, merciful and magnificent in your persistent, powerful, positive transforming work in the lives of your children.
As the Great Shepherd, you are leading, guiding, disciplining, protecting, providing, commanding—therefore you are worthy of all exaltation, worship, glory, honor and praise. It will require more than eternity to give you what you deserve, and I glorify you for that!
Prayer: “Today, may my drinking of the pure waters of your Word and my walking in the path of righteousness you have prepared, bring glory to you, Lord, and transformation to me so that I may give you more and more honor each day. Amen.”
