[1] It’s hard to believe that another week has come and gone especially the last one in January! Bobby and Tyler continue to feel better. Bobby’s cough is almost cleared up. Tyler is better form his cold/flu, but is cutting in some top teeth, so is still not feeling the best. I think the pain in his gums and jaw affect his desire to eat because he doesn’t want the pressure of chewing harder to chew foods or even drinking out of his sippy cup. That’s been a challenge for me because I know he needs to eat and drink and it hasn’t been easy the last few days to get him to do that. One thing he has come to love is our daily walk to the park to go on the swings. Our condo community has their own park and I’ve been taking him there almost every day. Despite the teething and not [2] being very excited about eating, he somehow continues to be such a happy little guy. Last night I was looking at some pictures of him I had uploaded to my computer and I just thanked the Lord for him. He is such a joy in my life!After church today we arranged a casual housewarming open-house for my friends and two of our high school ministry leaders, Missy(right) and Meisha(left). They moved into a great little apartment earlier this month. The girl in the middle is Meisha’s friend from college who will move in at the end of the summer. I sure enjoyed just sitting in their new and fellowship with friends.[3]

As most of you know, Bobby has been teaching through the Psalms and this weekend we got to learn from Psalm 23. I thought it was really good how he talked about the many other times the illustration of Shepherd is used throughout the Bible. We are like sheep–not a very flattering picture!–but Scripture has some beautiful passages about Christ’s tender care for His sheep and that is encouraging, especially John 10:14,

“I am the good shepherd;
I know my sheep and my sheep know me”

This illustration is used also in Matthew 25:32-33 but in a pretty scary light, where it says that someday Jesus will separate the sheep from the goats. Meaning He will separate the His true children from those who don’t believe in Him.

I loved how he described our interaction with Jesus, the good Shepherd, as “the best thing in life.” With God as my Shepherd I have no wants because He provides all that I need both physically and spiritually.

Bobby motivated the us to realize that the reason my relationship with God is the best thing in all of life is because with Him I can be content instead of living in want. Bobby described the “goats”–the unbelievers in this analogy–as “always wanting but never having.” We see that so often, don’t we? Friends and family who keep searching and striving because they don’t want to be lonely, they want to be happy, respected, right. But we can’t find anything of meaning or value apart from Christ because to the believer He is life . He has made us alive in Him. God gives every good thing to those who are his children. Just like a shepherd is looking out for and providing always for his sheep.

One of the other reasons why my relationship with God is the best thing in all of life is because in Him, I don’t have to be afraid, even of death. Christ achieved victory over sin and death, and in Him, so can I! I thought that both of these points were really motivating in light of the whole Matthew 25 separating the sheep from the goats passage. Contentment and victory over sin, fear and death are bright lights in this dark and sinful world. I was reminded that I should never let the cares of life weigh me down from hearing and heeding my good Shepherd.

Bobby and Ty once wrote a wonderful song about Psalm 23. If you click [4] here you can listen to “O Father.” The last line is my prayer to the Lord today:

O Father, I can’t do without your love
That’s better than all of life to me.
For without You, I’m nothing.