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“The Lord is my shepherd.” – Ps 23:1

I’ve had a “bad” week. I’ve accomplished nothing. Things keep “coming up.” Ordinary tasks seem harder than usual. Hard tasks seem impossible. I’ve hit the snooze button 128 times in 2 days. We all have a week like this every now and again. I’ve been due for one I suppose.

And these weeks are really frustrating. They’re frustrating because life – as we plan it – doesn’t go as smoothly as we’d like – or not as we’d like at all. And yet, the reason they’re so frustrating is because we lack faith. We lack faith that God is our shepherd. We lack faith that God has invested everything in His sheep.

And so our challenge is to remember two things. First, we have a shepherd. Second, our shepherd is good.

First, we have a shepherd. He’s with us every step. He guides every step. He goes before us every step. A lot of “annoying interruptions” are really opportunities our shepherd has graciously pre-arranged. We’re just too tied to a narrow view of how our life should run. So we fail to see, appreciate, and embrace these “annoyances.”

Second, our shepherd is good. God knows what he’s doing. If you’re frustrated, it’s not because you’ve let God down. It’s because you’ve failed to meet whatever illusory game-plan you think God wants you to live into. God’s barometer for success is different that ours. God is more generous. God has different goals. God doesn’t need us to accomplish whatever goals we’ve set. Part of embracing the freedom of the Gospel is figuring that out. Personally, I’m not even close.

FOR TODAY: I’m sure you have things to do today – things you feel need to get done. Do them with passion. Do them for God. Do them with God. But, when you’re interrupted or when you find yourself stuck, ask the Good Shepherd what He’s up to, and then turn and embrace the moment. You’re being led to greener pastures. And only God knows the way. And so don’t get mad and go hide in a ditch when God asks you to make a u-turn.