Psalm 23:1

Scripture:

Psalm 23:1 (ESV) “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” 

Observation:

It was kind of a standing joke among the group of young men I hung out with. Living close to the border of another country, we would, from time to time, go across. When you entered the other country, the immigration officer would always ask, ‘Where were you born?’ We used to joke that someone needed to say, ‘In a hospital!’ But no one had the courage to say it. Today's verse is a declaration! Be sure to read it!! Looking back, I'm glad no one had the courage to say that because it was only funny to us, I'm sure it would not have been to the immigration officer. The next question they always asked was, ‘What do you have to declare?’After a recent trip across the border, I caught myself laughing. I wanted to say that I declare Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, but I wonder if that would have had the same response as ‘in a hospital.’ I got to thinking about what do we declare about our relationship with Jesus Christ and to whom do we declare it? Family, friends, co-workers, strangers? Maybe it's time we started declaring it to the world! 

Application:

• Personal Application: Continue spending time with the Lord daily. Sow righteousness and reap the fruit of God's unfailing love. 
• Family Devotional: Read this chapter to your family. Ask them if anything spoke to them as you read. Talk about their answers and show them that one important aspect of this chapter is that we must continue to spend time with the Lord and keep our hearts focused on His plans and purposes. Pray for them.

TOM SEMBER has been involved in ministering to men for over 20 years. He is an ordained minister with the AG in the NY Ministry Network. Tom lives with his wife, Carolyn, and children in New York. You can connect with Tom on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.