BBD 03.03.17 Dry Lands and Green Pastures (Classic)
Posted by: theburningbushdevotional <theburningbushdevotional@...>
Classic from 2009
Burning Bush Devotional
03 March 2017
Dry
Lands and Green Pastures
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall
not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures…. - Psalm 23:1-2a NKJV.
O God, You are my God; early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh
longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water. - Psalm 63:1
NKJV.
The thrill seekers riding the Invertigo rollercoaster in Santa Clara,
California found their thrill lasting a little longer than the planned 70
seconds yesterday (In 2009). There reportedly was a problem with a lift chain
which brought everything to a sudden halt leaving 24 riders just hanging out
with their feet dangling. No one was upside down during the wait, but they were
either leaning over backward or leaning forward at a severe angle, and it was a
very warm day with the temperature in the nineties. Firefighters rescued the
riders using a cherry picker one at a time. It only took an hour to rescue the
first rider and close to five hours before they were all on the ground. None of
the riders indicated that they would want to repeat the rollercoaster ride of
their lives any time soon.
Living life as children of God can sometimes be like a rollercoaster ride that
comes to a sudden stop. However, it may take years before it starts to move
again. Some of the greatest servants of God experienced it. King David experienced
life stopping in a good place as in “green pastures” and also
in “a dry and thirsty land.” You may have experienced life in
both places too. David's experiences were both literal and spiritual. As with
David, in whatever place you may find yourself, God will use it to mold and
shape you so that you will be more and more conformed to the image of Christ.
The disciples of Jesus spent about three years with Him before His crucifixion
and resurrection. It is said of Paul that he had his three years with Jesus
too. From the time he was forced to leave Jerusalem and go to the isolation of
Tarsus, until Barnabus came to find him again, must have seemed like an
eternity. In the quietness of isolation, the apostle Paul received the
finishing touches upon his character that he would need to faithfully carry out
the missionary journeys, and persevere through the persecution he would face.
In the quietness of the isolation, the Lord's still, small voice must have been
amplified many times over.
I have only once thought that I heard the Lord speak to me audibly. It was
years ago, before I was a pastor, and I was working in the oilfield. I was
seeking God's will for my life, praying for Him to bring about His will. I
believed then, and know now that He had called me to preach His Word, but why
was I not being allowed to do so? It was a dry, hot summer, and I was on a
deserted oilfield location putting the finishing touches on an inspection job,
while the rest of the crew was at another location. There was no one else
there. I was thinking and praying all of these things on that day, which seemed
to stretch out forever, like every other day that summer. That was when I heard
someone call my name. I only heard one word, just my name. I stopped, and
turned in a circle looking for who it was…but there was no one there. One word,
but it was enough to sustain me through those times, and into the ministry.
In these days that I am living in now the Lord has made me to lie down in “green
pastures.” It is not a perfect place; however, it is a good place that my
life is in now. I believe that God may possibly have something more for me, and
if so, in His timing it will be revealed when I have been properly prepared for
it.
Whether you are in a “dry and thirsty land,” or the
Lord has made you to lie “down in green pastures,” it is
not a wasted time. He is molding and shaping you for greater service as you
come to be more and more like Jesus. Listen for His Voice...
Copyright © 2009 - 2017. Ed
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