The Lord Our Provider - Dinner #2

     I was recently opening my Bible to Psalm 23, asking God to show me something special from His Word, and the very first verse immediately arrested my attention.  It is amazing to me how alive the Scripture truly is!  A familiar passage like this one, can somehow leap off the page at you, no matter how many times you’ve read it! 

    

Psalm 23:1 “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.”

     Wow!  I, Kristen Kelley, shall not want!  That word “want” literally means “lack”.  We shall not be in need!  Whether it be groceries, or a job, or money for a phone bill, we shall not lack.  Psalm 34:9-10 “. . . for there is no want to them that fear him . . . but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.”  We shall not lack any good thing, for God is our Provider!  We shall not lack the peace or the joy that we need!  We shall not lack the finances that we need!  We shall not be in need!  True to His special Name, Jehovah-Jirah, “The LORD will provide.”

Psalm 84:11-12 “ . . . no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.  O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.”

     In these difficult economic times, God will take care of our financial situation.  He does not promise to make us wealthy, but He does promise to bless and care for His children.  I cannot tell you how many times while in Bible college, I saw the Lord miraculously provide the funds for a school bill, or for an overseas missions trip!  God does take care of His own! 

     We also will not lack the wisdom and direction that we need!  James 1:5  says, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.”  In Psalm 32:8, the Lord tells us,  “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.”  There are times when we have no answers, but God always does!  When we do not know which path to take, He is always there to lead us and guide us.  We “shall not want”, neither shall we lack “any good thing”. 

     When we are in danger, we will not lack protection.  When we are weak, we will not lack strength.  Psalm 28:7 “The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.” On the road, in a store, or at a work place, God keeps His children safe. 

     There are so many times when we may doubt God’s loving hand to meet our need, or worry over the outcome of a particular situation – but He promises to provide if we will but trust Him!  In Psalm 27:13 David declares, “I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.”  We do not have to faint beneath a load of care!  We can believe to see the goodness of our God!  And our Lord promises that under the gentle leading of our Shepherd, we shall not be in want.