Isn’t it amazing how may times things come full circle in our lives?
When I was a young girl, my grandmother was ill with cancer and stayed with us for a short time. I remember crawling into bed with her each night, and we would snuggle under the covers in the quiet darkness. Each night, she would whisper Psalm 23. “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.” She would wait for me to repeat it severl times untill I learned it. Then she would say a few more lines.
“He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul,” she said, in a hushed voice so as not to disturb my parents in the next room.
Of course, I wanted to know why green grass and water were so special.
“A shepherd takes very good care of his sheep,” she explained. “He protects them, and he provides food and water for them. The Lord Jesus is the Great Shepherd, and He takes care of us the way a good shepherd takes care of his sheep.”
Satisfied she had answered my questions, she continued. “He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” I couldn’t pronounce ‘righteousness’, so I didn’t ask her what that word meant. Then I heard Grandma whisper, “It’s like a gift from God when we believe in Jesus. It means God sees us as good because Jesus is Good.” She squeezed my hand, and I squeezed it back.
“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me. Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”
I asked about the rod and staff, and she explained, “A shepherd’s staff was to keep the sheep close to him, and the rod was used to protect the sheep from wild animals.”
Then Grandma said something I thought to be very strange. “I am in the valley of the shadow of death right now, my granddaughter, but I am not afraid. I do not fear.”
By the end of two weeks, I had memorized the entire Psalm and understood what it meant. It was then, my grandmother, whom I loved dearly, died. I will always treasure the gift she gave me to remember her by. The 23rd Psalm.
Many, many years later, I received a call from the nursing home where my mother was a resident. When I arrived, my mother’s eyes were opened wide in what seemed to be utter fear and shear terror. Her breaths came in shallow spurts. I bent over her putting my cheek next to hers, and softly said, “The Lord is my Shepherd…” The same Psalm her mother had taught me when I was just a young girl.
It the few moments before she died ten years ago, I witnessed the peace of God that surpasses all understanding settle over her. Her breathing was relaxed. Her eyes had the look of total peace. I knew she was comforted by her Savior whom she had received several years prior to her death.
The words of the 23rd Psalm came full circle – from her mother to me and back to my mother. It took 60 years to complete but, nevertheless, it came full circle, because God is faithful.