A Life Full of Goodness and Mercy

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” Such beautiful and comforting words found in Psalm 23:6. A life full of goodness and mercy, followed by dwelling in the Lord’s house forever?! Yes! Please!!

It is a comfort to know that we can have these tremendous blessings, but yet it is substantially comforting to know why these blessings are available to us.
As David writes the twenty-third Psalm, it’s important to note that he first declares that the Lord is his Shepherd! If anyone was familiar with the role of a shepherd it was David! Therefore, David declaring that the Lord is his shepherd and that he shall never find himself in “want” for anything is pretty powerful. Why could he make this bold proclamation? Because David knew his Shepherd to only be good, faithful, always present, and always providing for every need he could possibly have.

Now here is where it gets really comforting! As we learn and come to understand that all of the Old Testament points to the coming of Jesus, we can then see how Jesus has fulfilled all that was written in the New Testament. In John 10, Jesus declares Himself to be our good Shepherd. How perfectly He has fulfilled this role and its’ attributes! This good Shepherd, Jesus, laid down His life for His sheep, He stays near His sheep in order to guide and protect them, and He constantly talks to them so that the sheep know Him and His voice.

When times of difficulty and loneliness arise, our Shepherd will not scatter and abandon us. Instead, He draws near to us, remaining to be our constant comforter and defender. His voice will be the one that we hear in the darkness of the night, speaking words of peace and comfort. When He speaks, the sound of His voice will be known to us because we know our Shepherd and we are known by Him! Knowing that Jesus is this good Shepherd means we can know that we are never left alone and we have His voice of truth.

On countless occasions, I have gone to God’s word and received timely truth. I have uttered prayers of “Oh, God please work! Please help me!” and I have seen Him lovingly intervene and answer my pleas in ways beyond what I could have imagined.
Walking and living out our lives with our good Shepherd means walking in His goodness and His mercy- even in difficult times. Having His goodness and mercy follow us all the days of our lives means abiding in Him, His word, and talking to Him constantly through prayer! When we seek Him through these means, His goodness and mercy is found!

Do you know this good Shepherd? Are you seeking to know Him and His truth daily? If not, I urge you to seek after Him! He openly invites us to do so, and when we do, He promises that we will find Him! This good Shepherd longs to make Himself known to you today!

*** A shepherd is not  merely seen by his sheep, but rather he makes himself available to be known by them.***

1. Take a moment and list the attributes of a shepherd.
2. Read John 10:1-18. How does Jesus describing Himself as our good Shepherd help you have confidence and hope that His goodness and mercy follow you all the days of your life?