Through the Valley...

The 23^rd Psalm has been part of my life for as long as I can remember.  I likely memorized the Golden Rule and John 3:16 first, when I was growing up in the church, but the 23^rd Psalm was the first whole Psalm that I memorized.  It’s also been a family favorite for as long as I can remember.  So it’s a Psalm that I’ve been familiar with for a long time.  It wasn’t until a few years ago that read an essay on this Psalm and had an epiphany about a specific part.  It’s verse 4.  

Here’s what it says:

Psalm 23:4 King James Version (KJV)

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

This is the King James Version.  Not one that I read very often but when it comes to the Psalms, I think it’s the single version that sounds most lyrical, and the Psalms are (after all) songs. 

As is often the case with me, when a specific verse in the Bible strikes me, I start taking it apart, phrase by phrase, or sometimes word by word.  This helps me to gather its full meaning once I “put it back together again”.  So let’s go through this particular verse.

Starting at the 4^th word:  “walk” --- When we’re walking somewhere, we have a purpose most of the time.  Walking from one room to another… walking on a path through the woods…. Walking from the car to the store.  There’s a purpose indicated here.  We’re not stopping and looking around… we’re walking – moving from one place to another. 

(Here’s what really struck me) The next word is “through”… we’re not stopping, we’re going through something.  We go through tunnels… we go through doors… we pass from one side to the other.  This indicates constant movement forward.  We’re not stopping, we’re not hesitating, we’re going through.

“the valley”… a place between two high mountains… often a place we will find streams and rivers, and towns that have sprung up around them over the years.  Metaphorically, mountains can indicate trials and tribulations, things that we have to conquer and summit.  Here we are, perhaps traveling among and between our many trials that we experience in life.  (But remember that we’re moving through them.)

“the shadow”…  Shadows can be fun (making shadow puppets, seeing our own shadow on a sunny day, sitting under the shadow of a large tree on a hot summer day)… but shadows can also be scary and foreboding (weird shadows on a dark night, shadows of something just around the corner that you don’t know what it is).  Shadows often represent the unknown, and “unknown” can be frightening. 

“death”… Sometimes referred to as “the great unknown”… and “shadow of death” would indicate that it’s something particularly dangerous to the point of causing possible death. 

Some scholars say that there was an actual valley in Biblical times that was called “The Valley of the Shadow of Death” because it was so dangerous to traverse it. 

So to recap just a bit…. We’re walking….. we’re going through something… that something is a valley of some sort, whether literal or metaphorical in nature… and it’s something particularly frightening and could be dangerous to the point of death.

Wow!  That’s pretty frightening to think about.  Kind of reminds you of what humanity is going through right now with this virus.  An unseen enemy, a danger so bad that it causes death to some.  That’s really scary!  If it were a real valley, it would be enough to make you turn around and run the other way, wouldn’t it?!

But wait… there’s more!!!!!

The very next words are “I will fear no evil”… Oh?  Why would I not fear the evil that is obviously all around me in this “valley”?  Evil is, after all, to be avoided at all costs, so we are taught.  Why would I not fear it?  Why would the sheep not fear the wolf?!

Well…. Because the Shepherd is there, right?! 

Our next worlds are “for thou art with me”. 

Here’s your “Ah-ha” moment (or it was for me)… Jesus is WITH us all the time….. He’s there when things are great.  He’s there when things are just “so so”, but He’s especially there during the rough times to comfort and protect us!  The shepherd makes sure that his sheep are safe from wolves and all predators… so too is Jesus there always to keep us safe… to comfort us, to guide us, to protect us. 

The final parts of this verse find us noticing the tools with which the shepherd will protect his flock… “thy rod and they staff, they comfort me”…  Shepherds often had two tools at their disposal to ward off wolves and other predators.  One was the famous shepherds crook, a long staff with a hook on the end, often seen in Christmas pageants.  The other was a club of some sort, here referred to as the “rod”.  So the trust we see in the shepherd is not unfounded.  There's a reason that the shepherd is trusted... because the shepherd has the tools to accomplish his job of protecting the flock.

So where do we find the reassurance and comfort in this verse?  In knowing that our Lord, Jesus Christ IS our Shepherd.  He walks with us wherever we go, in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in.  He’s there in the good times, the ho-hum times, and the frightening times.  It is also in knowing that we’re going THROUGH those times… there’s a beginning and an end (alpha and omega). 

Trying times surround us all these days.  But we are NOT alone!  Yes the “shadows” are scary, but don’t JUST notice the shadows…. Look around you…. THERE is CHRIST!

~ May the peace of Christ surround you and yours during this trying time ~

Submitted by: Jackie Garrison

Member:  Bethel UMC

Spring – Refreshing and Renewing

The season of Spring began on March 19. We’ve already been seeing signs of spring literally ‘pop up- everywhere. The redbud trees are blooming…. Daffodils have been popping open everywhere…hyacinths and tulips… The forsythia bushes are bursting with yellow blooms… and now some are putting on leaves… Spring is evident all around us… Spring…. Wonderful spring… A time of renewing and refreshing…

And with the onset of spring come thoughts of Easter… new life… and new beginnings… thoughts of trimming the lawn or perhaps tilling the soil… getting outside for long walks or a gathering of friends and family for an afternoon cook out… we wave good-bye, for now, to the cold bleak days of winter… to a time of desolation and barrenness…yet this spring… today… I sit here with the COVID cloud over my head… And just as on this day gloomy clouds hang overhead blocking the light and warmth of the sun… the darkness of this COVID cloud tries to block the light of My Son… God’s Son… but the Son of God shines through…

The other day… as I was looking into my yard… it was a cloudy day and I knew rain was on the way… suddenly I saw a group of birds gathering there… hopping from place to place… as they got closer to me I could see that they were robins… red breasted robins… for me a sure sign of spring… I stepped out on my deck and heard their chirps as they went about their business of finding the next morsel of food… it was just as if God Himself were leaning down and whispering into my ear… ‘it’s all going to be okay… I’ve got this… nothing goes on in the world that I don’t have control over’ … and the peacefulness beyond understanding settled in. Immediately I was reminded of the verse from Matthew 6:26-27 “26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” … which always leads me to Philippians 4:6-7  “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” And Psalm 94:19 “When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.”

Spring is a season of new life… new beginnings… new blessings… and it’s God’s way of reminding us of the hope we have in Him. His promises are filled with hope… love and grace for the day. He promises not that we will feel no pain and despair… only that He’s working all things together for our good. Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” We may not… will most likely not… know His purpose at the time of our trials… and we will always encounter trials… whether on a global level or on a personal level… but we can always be assured of the fact that He is there… working on our behalf… shaping our lives for the best results possible… That doesn’t mean a pain free life… or a life filled with the riches of this world…  but it does mean that once we are His… He will not abandon us. Deuteronomy 31:6 “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

So as you go about your week… at the proper ‘social distance’ … take time to smell the flowers… take time to listen to the birds sing… take time to sit quietly and listen to God speak to your heart…. He’s there … waiting with open arms…. Listening with attentive ears…. To give you a hope and a future.

Just like we are shedding the cold and bleakness of winter as we usher in the warm spring months ahead… purge all of those bleak feelings of doubt and fear and let “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Jesus Christ” (Philippians 4:7) For Jesus told us… tells us… in John 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

Submitted by Joan Paschal

Member: Bethel UMC

Impossible … Nope … Not With God

In the news, all we seem to be hearing about is the Coronavirus… or COVID-19 as some call it… so how does this make you feel? Are you asking yourself ‘should I be worried?’ I do… I have… and as a firm believer in God and His omnipotent power I’ve decided that worry is a waste of my time… it also pushes against the wall of faith that God has built between the world and me… but my awareness of it pushing against the other side of that wall let’s me know that I need to reinforce the wall in that area… So just how am I doing that?

The first thing I do is remind myself… through scripture… of several truths that speak to the power of God/Jesus and the fact that He has this… as everything… well in control… That doesn’t mean that there will not be pain and suffering… even death… but it does mean He has a plan… a mighty… mighty plan in all that has and is happening. Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” and Luke 1:37 – “For nothing is impossible with God”. We see Jesus declare in Mark 10:27 and Matthew 16:26 “"With people it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God."   

       

The second thing I try to do is sift through the information in a logical way… distinguish between at least three levels of information: (A) what we know is true; (B) what we think is true—fact-based assessments that also depend on deduction, conclusions or educated interpretation of facts that reflect an individual’s view of what is most likely to be going on; and (C) opinions and speculation.” … and it’s a hard task at best… our world today is a total bombardment of information.

In 2004… Sunday… December 26^th… over 200,000 people were killed by a tsunami in the Indian Ocean. This included whole churches that were gathered to worship that day… swept away in death… that’s a historical fact…. This sort of thing has happened to Christian down through the ages… countless times… and you put that together with the Biblical fact found in Mark 4:41b “Even the wind and the sea obey Him (Jesus).”… a fact as true today as it was when the disciples said it. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)  

So… you put these two truths together… the historical truth and the Biblical truth… you can deduce… Jesus could have stopped that natural disaster… but He didn’t. And because we know that Jesus always does what is just… wise… right and good… we can come to the conclusion that Jesus had a wise and good purpose for that deadly disaster… just as He does with the Covid-19 virus that we are now in the middle of… He knows exactly where the virus started, and where it’s going next. He has complete power to restrain it or not. And that’s what’s happening. Neither sin, nor Satan, nor sickness, nor sabotage is stronger than Jesus. He’s never backed into a corner; He is never forced to tolerate what He does not will. “The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations” (Psalm 33:11).

We die of disease like all people because of the fall from grace caused by Adam…. But for those who are in Christ, the sting of death is removed. God sometimes inflicts sickness on His people as a purifying and rescuing judgment, which is not a condemnation, but an act of mercy for His saving purposes. Sometimes we are disciplined (like a child) so that we will not be condemned along with the world. Jesus brings some to heaven because of the trajectory of their sin that He was cutting off and saving them from. Not to punish them, but to save them. In other words, some of us die of illnesses “so that we may not be condemned along with the world” (1 Corinthians 11:32) “Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be finally condemned with the world.” Scripture tells us that at times God does use illness as a punishment… In Acts 12 you find King Herod being struck down because he did not give God the glory… God can and does (at times) use illness to bring judgement… sometimes upon those who reject Him and His way.

God does… has… and will use natural disasters … floods … famine … infestations … tsunamis … hurricanes and tornadoes … and disease as a wake-up call of divine mercy in the midst of judgement… calling for repentance and realignment of lives with Himself and His ways. Jesus Himself said “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? ³ I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. ⁴ Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem?”

So… in conclusion… I’ll say that the message of Jesus to the world through this coronavirus could possibly be… a message to you and me… everyone on this planet… “Repent” and seek God’s mercy to follow in the footsteps of His Only Son… our Savior… Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:21 “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”… and if you don’t understand that verse… well… “Repent”

Submitted by Joan Paschal

Member: Bethel UMC