The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures. Psalm 23: 1-2

Devotion:

How does God show up for you? Have you taken the time to think about that recently? If you’re like me, you probably spend more time thinking about the reasons why God shouldn’t show up.

I was driving home from church on a Wednesday night thinking about that night’s lesson when I started thinking about some of the times God has shown up for me. One way God continually shows up for me is through a sense of calm in the face of overwhelming anxiety. 

I’ve struggled with anxiety all of my life, and it is relentless. It spends my energy in useless ways and can run me ragged. A passage I always come back to is Psalm 23–“The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures…” Those lines still take my breath away. 

Despite my constant anxieties about whether I have enough or will be enough, this verse always feels like God is talking directly to me. “You have always had and will have what you need, now rest.” I don’t believe life is meant to be lived worrying, exhausted, and at dizzying speeds. I think God wants us to slow down. “He makes us lie down in green pastures.” 

He doesn’t want us to find “rest” here and there in the small pockets of the day that don’t happen to be booked. He wants to pull us out of the busyness and chaos of this life and give us true rest. 

No matter how many times I recite this passage to myself, I am always in awe of the word “makes.” He makes us lie down; he saves us from ourselves; and even though we are the ones avoiding rest, he still makes us rest in the green pastures. He wants the best for us, and we’ve done nothing to deserve it.

This is only one of the many ways God has shown up for me throughout my life, and I am so grateful for all the ways he has already shown up. I am looking forward to the ways he will continue to show up. 

This holiday season, I encourage you to reflect on the ways God has shown up for you. Maybe it doesn’t feel like he has, or maybe you’ve seen him move in big ways in the lives of others, and you’re wondering when he will show up in big ways for you. 

I believe when you take the time to slow down and consider what God has done for you, you will find that he knows you and he sees you. He shows up differently for each of us because he created us all differently. This Thanksgiving season, I am grateful for a God who knows me in my uniqueness and continues to meet me there.

As you reflect on how God has shown up for you, consider how you might allow God to use you to bless others this holiday season. Maybe you can volunteer at one of our Candlelight services or sponsor a family who needs a little extra help through the Christmas Blessings program. Our own gratitude for how God has shown up for us compels us to allow him to use us as he shows up for others.

PRAYER

Lord Jesus, thank you for showing up for us at the Cross and thank you for continuing to show up for us even when we don’t realize it’s you. Please open our eyes so we may see the times you’ve shown up for us and use us to show up for others. We thank you for your love that never tires of us. Amen.

Kyra Byrns

Web Content Specialist

Resources: 

• "There was Jesus," sung by Josh Edington
• Volunteer at a Candlelight Service 
• Provide Christmas Blessings to a Family this Holiday Season

Read More Devotions

Explore other devotions like this one any time at crossings.church/devotions.