Search Lifeword Media Library

Is the Lord your shepherd? If you’re tired of wandering and ready for complete peace and rest, follow Jehovah-Rohi. Rohi is the Hebrew word for shepherd. Jehovah-Rohi is one of the names of God. He is the Lord my shepherd. The Lord IS my shepherd. I gladly follow Him. Sometimes I try to go my own way, that never works great and I usually get stressed out. So back to His green pasture I go.

In a previous season of my life I was a radio promoter. This was in the days before smartphones. We had blackberries, mobile phones, fax machines and no GPS. As a radio promoter I would promote Christian artists to Christian radio. Part of that job was taking artists all over the country to meet radio programmers and convince them to play my artist’s latest single. To prepare for a promotional tour required lots of planning and back then, printing out directions. Before a trip I had a folder full of directions. It was all on me to get us everywhere we needed to be. It was so much fun. It was also exhausting.

Today you simply ask siri to tell you where to go and GPS tracks you the whole way there and tells you where the best restaurants are. I never think about directions like I did back then. I jump in the car, put in a destination and the GPS on my phone guides me. Life’s a breeze.

Tracking your own way in life is exhausting. If you didn’t know it, you don’t have to do it anymore. There is a good shepherd that knows the best place to eat, the best place to get a cool drink and the best place to find rest. You don’t have to worry about all the things. He will lead you, you only need to follow.

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.

He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,

he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

All the things in this life you used to worry about, you don’t have to anymore. The shepherd has it all laid out for you. The journey may get crazy, but He will guide you and comfort you. When you follow the shepherd, you’re never alone. And the cool thing is as you begin to follow Him here on earth, you dwell with Him here as you will in Heaven. How cool is that. The journey never ends, but you can rest because He’s got it all mapped out for you. And it’s full of goodness and love.

That’s the truth.

The Lord is my Shepherd. Jehovah-Rohi. I will follow Him and He will lead me wherever I need to go.

I’m Lori Cline.

Peter was being held up by the Lord. But then when things got scary and uncertain Peter forgot WHO was holding him up in the first place.

1. Shifting blame does not strengthen you in the LORD.

What do planks, pigs and pearls all have in common?

Jesus. Jesus referred to all three at a certain point in His sermon on the mount. In this section of His sermon He is doing two things. He is condemning judging others, while also speaking to the importance of discernment. They are two different things and both are very important. Jesus wants us to consider our own heart when it comes to both.

Let’s look closer at what Jesus says about planks, pigs and pearls.

Matthew 7:1-6 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

“Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Jesus is very clear. Do not judge. How you judge others is how you will be judged. Easy enough right? I wish. Friends, we start each day looking in the mirror, yet often we don’t see what is glaring back at us. We are blind to our own planks as we nitpick over the dust in our brother or sister’s eye. Let it begin with me. May we start each day with a posture of humility and openness to the spirit to reveal the planks we must FIRST remove. Only then, can we move toward our brother or sister to remove their speck. And before we remove a speck, how about we encourage what they’re doing right. Speak life and then that will open a door to receive correction in love.

This makes me think of my girls. In the morning if one of them has something that is not right with their hair or makeup, they are quick to help each other. Let me get that, there is something not right. Let’s get that back in place. This, I believe, is the spirit of what I call ‘speck removal’. There IS a time and a place, but it must be from a heart of love and care, not judgment. We ladies call it straightening each other’s crown. It does more to build UP than tear DOWN. We should invite that kind of ‘speck removal’ and crown straightening. It’s the sharpening and refining process we all need to clear out and fix what we can’t see. That’s a beautiful thing that moves us toward maturity in Christ.

So that’s the planks part, what about the pigs and pearls? That seems different than judging. Well, that’s where spiritual discernment comes in. We are called to tell the world about Jesus. We are not the judge, yet we are to go, tell and make disciples. How that message of truth is received is not up to us. If the truth and love of Jesus we have to give to the world, our pearls, are not welcome, we move on. We plant seeds and where they fall and if they root or not is beyond our control. We simply are called to love our neighbor, walk in obedience and be faithful to share the message.

There are many that will deny the truth of Jesus. There are many that will not receive it. Love them and move on. You will never win a heart to Jesus through a debate. Let the Holy Spirit do its work. Speak and live out the priceless truth and hope we hold dear. If it is not received as such, then shake the dust off and know the Lord will lead you to hearts that are ready to hear.

That’s the truth.

Planks, pigs and pearls, oh my. The words and ways of Jesus are what we live by. When our hearts are aligned with His, the planks are obvious, the pearls are precious and the pigs are well, pigs. Walk on my friends.

I’m Lori Cline.

1. Grieving, alone, does not strengthen you in the LORD.