You lead me in right paths
for your name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil,
for you are with me.
—Psalm 23.3-4
Ever notice how the paths of righteousness
lead straight to the valley of death?
Between the green pastures and the table in a safe place
are dangerous passages.
The shepherd never leads us
into a dead end box canyon,
but often through nasty gulches
of threat, of loneliness, of loss,
and the shadows—my, the shadows,
the unknown, the fear.
But, to follow the shepherd of justice
on the path of healing, we go there.
We trust the pastures, the table, even the path,
because we trust the shepherd.
Strangely, so lovingly accompanied, we find
even the path itself is home enough.
So we go boldly.
__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net
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