Jehovah-Rohi: The Lord My Shepherd & Jehovah-Shammah: The Lord Who Is There
DAY 2 WRITTEN BY: TRE WIGGINS-
Psalm 23:1
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Ezekiel 48:35
…And the name of the city from that time on shall be, The Lord Is There.
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Have you ever felt distant from God? How about feeling like your soul was parched because it’s been some time since you’ve drank from the well of living water?
On one level, this feeling can be an encouragement: it means you feel an absence of some sort because you’ve really tasted and seen that the Lord is good at some point before. You know there’s something wrong with the distance you feel because you’ve felt what it feels like to be close to the Lord.
In Psalm 42, one of the sons of Korah felt similarly. His soul was parched, and he longed for God. His enemies are even quick to remind him that his God seems far (“where is your God?” vs.3). Yet, he reminds himself that God is his salvation and his God (vs. 5).
Sometimes, our feelings betray us. We *feel* far from God. But we need to remind ourselves often the truth of God’s word. And the truth is that He is our shepherd, and He is the Lord who “is There.” We know He is with us, because to shepherd means to guide. He’s promised to lead us. Further, we know Him to be (here) primarily because of Christ. Through Christ, God indwells us by His Spirit. He’s going nowhere, no matter how distant He might feel. Take comfort in that today.
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Father, I know that sometimes my feelings can betray me. But I know the counsel of Your word is there to remind me that You’ll never leave me or forsake me. Thank you for Your promises to bring me safely all the way home (Phil. 1:6)!
