We all face times of lethargy, dryness and confusion in the Christian life. During this time our minds can be filled with countless questions and thoughts: How did I get here? I didn’t run away like the prodigal son and yet I feel far away from home. What happened? I feel overwhelmed. I am tired. I cannot see a pathway forward. I ask God but He does not seem to answer me. My zeal for God’s Word has vanished and I don’t know how to get it back.
Maybe you know exactly why you feel the way you do. Perhaps you have made some sinful choices. Perhaps the hectic pace of life has pulled you away from Scripture and worship for too long, leaving both feeling empty and unsatisfying. We could go on and on. Spiritual dryness is something every believer encounters sooner or later. But Jesus is not only the Good Shepherd who saves lost sheep, He is also the Good Shepherd who restores them when they wander away or find themselves caught in a thicket, not of their own making.
This was the truth that brought much comfort to David, in his twenty-third Psalm. David said that the Shepherd of Israel was also his own personal Shepherd who restored his soul when it was exhausted, confused and weary. David realised that the soul is restored by the Shepherd and not us. It is He who makes us lie down in green pastures, who leads us beside still waters and in paths of righteousness (vv. 2-3).
However, this same Shepherd also leads us through the valley of the shadow of death (v. 4). Just as David experienced, our souls are restored when through the darkness we understand we do not walk alone. The Shepherd’s rod and staff continually work to protect and guide and keep us from evil. They comfort us in the knowledge that however long and arduous this road might be, we shall still have His guidance and protection.
If the valley is of your own sinful making, then heed our Shepherd’s words that tell you to humble yourself and “remember … from where you have fallen; repent!” (Rev 2:5). Turn from your sin and turn to the Lord who has purchased your pardon. Isaiah tells us that God not only dwells in “the high and holy place” but “also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite” (Isaiah 57:15).
Apart from this it is not our job to speculate how long this road might be or put limits for its end. Rather, our job is to realise and rest in the knowledge that the Shepherd who guides and protects also governs time and determines all our days. Our responsibility is to feed upon the green pastures of the Word that He has given us. It is to cease from our labour and rest near the stream of remembrance of all God’s benefits to us in Christ. It is to meet in God’s house, ready to receive from His banqueting table.
Weary, despondent saint, the Lord is by your side. Your deliverance is nearer today than it was yesterday, and the finish line is closer than you think. Take heart. Even if you see no signs of life in this barren season, God is dependable. As you persist, spiritual renewal is unfolding. If you can’t declare it yet, soon you will confidently say,
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (v. 6).
0 Comments