My Shepherd

These services are bits of my own journey. As I awoke and sat in my bed this morning and I began the process of collecting my roaming thoughts. Where does a creative person begin? So many possibilities of where this day might take me. I prayed for a tiny moment in the Spirit in my prayer language and I realize that for me the center the ground zero of my life is worship and prayer. In my large house full of sleeping people that worship must of necessity be a quiet activity.  So I get my laptop and my head phones and I track down the bit of words from the song that is running like a little red thread through my thoughts. "Oh How I love you, How I love you, with You is where I want to be"

" Good Shepherd of my soul take my hand and lead me on." This song that directs my thoughts to think about my Lord as Good Shepherd who loves me, who protects and cares for me. I say often that it is His kindness that leads us to repentance. Yes, You Lord, is where I want to be. Which leads my heart to Audrey Assad's song Good to Me.

The next song is a wild card from along the side of my youtube screen where there are several songs I've not heard before. Which one Lord is the the path for today. I choose this one called Hymn of Love by someone called Yakuro. In it I find all this beautiful photographic imagery and instrumental music. I am reminded that my soul is stirred to worship and to be thankful as I engage more of my senses. I am struck by the wonder of God's creation and the artistry of this particular photographer.

I have been happily discovering the music of Hildigard of Bingin I am captivated by the the beautiful vocal sounds of this group of men. What are they singing? She was a 12th century German Mystic who wrote her visions, music and thoughts in Latin. "O frondens virga, in tua nobilitate stans, sicut aurora procedit. Nunc gaude et laetare et nos debiles dignare a mala consuetudine liberare, atque manum tuam porrige ad erigendum nos."  Someone was kind enough to translate it in the video comments.
"O blooming branch, you stand upright in your nobility, as breaks the dawn on high: Rejoice now and be glad, and deign to free us, frail and weakened, from the wicked habits of our age; stretch forth your hand to lift us up aright."

I think of these words about "O blooming branch" and I am reminded of the story in the Bible in Genesis 30:25-40 about Jacob who took care of sheep. He used branches in the water of the sheep to influence their breeding so as to get all spotted or all streaked or all solid babies. God prospered him even though his father in law changed his wage agreement many times. I look back on my notes from a recent Bible study on that passage. In the notes I had written about Jacobs use of herbs and selective breading. "What the mother eats affects the offspring." That day I had gotten off on a big rabbit trail into what the benefits were of the Poplar branches that Jacob used. It turns out they are purifying and pain reducing. I think how calm and un stressed his sheep must have been and how that must have played into their health and wellness and their breeding ability. I am reminded that to walk in total wellness we must take care of body, soul and spirit. I think about Jacob and how God gave him wisdom to as he tended sheep and how I can trust Him to lead me through my day.  I can trust that God will lead me.  So I was back to the idea of shepherds and searched that particular word and found this lovely David Ruis song.

Then I found this spontaneous worship led by Misty Edwards around Psalm 23rd. In you, Lord, is everything I need. I shall not want. I don't know what the Lord will do with these posts but part of my journey is to create and post them. I know that soon I will need to leave this quiet place and move on with this day.  As I leave here my prayer is that we will be aware of the Good Shepherd as we each walk through this day knowing that we have a Good Shepherd who leads and restores us.