Still Reflection

I have undertaken the effort to be very intentional about my time spent in the word these past three weeks. Now, I readily acknowledge the inerrant power of the Word and its ability to help us hear the voice of God. But recently I heard a testimony from a friend about when he first decided to believe in Christ. He didn’t know much about God, but he had access to a Bible and he dove in, head first. He took it for face value. He took God at his Word—literally. Though he didn’t understand it, he knew the very act of reading and trying to retain even the smallest bit of these scriptures would be a life altering act. Thinking this way is what lead to my friend’s believing the Bible when it says “…In Christ you are new creation.” He decided it could only mean that he was an innocent man behind bars. His testimony now includes the miraculous way that God restored his life after time in prison. Taking the Word for what it says, like the fact that it doesn’t return to God without accomplishing its purpose, can take a lot of determination. This is a task that at times can be hard for a kid like me to do, seeming I grew up seeing the white haired Daniel who pet the kittens in the den and the ginormous Goliath mocking the scrawny Jr. higher David all against the backdrop of a green felt board. Some Biblical texts can become monotonous if you’re not careful. In light of my friend’s testimony and the focused prayer season that the I had the opportunity to take part in, I decided to go at my time in the Word with fresh eyes.

What better scripture to dive into then the all familiar Psalm 23. Here the felt board would’ve displayed a nice winding blue stream that trickled out of a nearby rock, a few white cotton ball lambs dreamily gazing up at the ruddy young David (somehow looking just like the one that threw a pebble at the giant—though this song of his was very likely written years apart from that). I found it so easy to just skim over the words, mentally completing the familiar phrases. I caught myself and read the passage again, trying to see how I could apply the specific verses in a personal way. That’s when verse 2 stuck out in a new way. Humor me will you? Take a deep breath before you read the familiar words…no presupposed ideas floating around without supervision please. ..

+Psalm 23:1-3 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.

He leads me besides still waters…we often take this as refreshment, which is a fine interpretation. God does refresh us. But as I closed my eyes and let myself envision this strong, protective and loving Shepherd as we took a walk in my meadow I saw a wide river. The water was still, motionless; not to the point of stagnation, but to the point of reflection. Here, at this place where He makes me take time to rest, breathe and think, here we pause at the side of the river. And here I can see my reflection in the light of the glory that comes from the one with whom I walk.

With a still river residing in this meadow one would be able to hear the voice of the one who was with you. Is it possible that God leads us to the quiet places of rest so that we can reflect on the state of our lives? Maybe we are brought to such a place so that we are able to examine our relationship with God? As we look down at a reflection of ourselves, and we can clearly hear the voice that wants to guide us, maybe this is how our soul is restored. This is the place where we can be honest, stop hiding our faults as if God doesn’t already know, and let him lead us in the paths of righteousness that he has for us. After all, the Word says that he leads us there, not that we desperately search for the righteous paths. After reflection at the still waters, he simply leads as we submit.

Sounds like a nice concept, right? I think it is. But here is the catch (I never claimed there wasn’t one so stop rolling your eyes), we need to stop seeing the truths of the Word as pretty concepts. The messages that we hear from on the weekends or through the ear buds of an Ipod need to be more than a check on our To Do List. It’s time to take the Word for what it says. Take the time to listen to God. We can spend all our prayers crying out to him about how much we need direction, or how we need to hear from him, but if we don’t pause to listen and reflect, well we could be missing it. Take the decisive time to step away from the raging waters of your daily life and let this God who leads you in paths of righteousness take you to the still waters to reflect.