Happy to be a Sheep

11/3/2026

A Reflection on the Psalm for Sunday, March 15th, 2026:
Fourth Sunday of Lent

Psalm 23

R.  The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.

R.  The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff — they comfort me.

R.  The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

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

R.  The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long.

R.  The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

I am most used to hearing this beautiful psalm at funerals and have associated it with grief and comfort for those who mourn. It is fitting that it is the psalm for this fourth Sunday of Lent, which is known in our Church as Laetare Sunday and which encourages us to pause and focus on the joy that is coming through the resurrection of Jesus. This helped me to pray with this psalm in a new way. Instead of considering it only as balm for the grieving, what if I also looked at it as a promise for the living?

The response to this psalm is key to that approach. “The Lord is my shepherd, there is nothing I shall want”. A shepherd is fully responsible for his sheep. He guides them, making sure they are fed and have access to all the necessities for life. He knows them by name and gathers them in a group, a community. When a sheep wanders off, he goes after it, guiding it back to the others and welcoming it home. He protects them from predators in the darkest of nights; when morning comes, he brings them to green pastures so they can have their fill and gain energy to continue the journey. Sheep don’t even have to physically see their shepherd. They know and trust his voice without needing to see him.

Today’s society would have us believe that being a sheep is not a good thing. Some would say that allowing ourselves to be shepherded is to be willfully ignorant, following something just because we are part of a group and without seeing whether it is true. It is more popular in today’s world to stand out from the crowd – to be the sheep who wanders away and refuses to return to the herd.

During the week that I was preparing for this reflection by praying with this psalm, my granddaughter casually dropped a question over breakfast. She asked, “Nanny, how do we know God is real? Some people don’t think He’s real”.

How grateful I was to have been praying with this psalm in a new way when that question arose. We were able to talk about the meaning of faith, and her 7-year-old mind understood that faith is believing without seeing. We discussed how God allows each of us to be ourselves amidst the herd and has given us special gifts; how He welcomes questions like hers because it means she is thirsty or hungry, andHe will always give her what she needs. Then we talked about waffles because she was satisfied and wanted to move on!

As we wait in joyful anticipation for the resurrection of our Lord, let us remember that the Lord is indeed our shepherd. We don’t have to see Him to believe – we just have to listen to His voice.

Sandy Graves

7 Comments

Steve

11/3/2026 07:20:53 am

Sandy,

Thank you for your reflection on Psalm 23.

I hope it's okay for me to ask a question...
When you are having a tough week (I am) how do you maintain your faith when terrible things happen?

Sincerely,

Steve

Alana

11/3/2026 07:46:14 am

Thank you Sandy for this beautiful reflection.

And Steve what a hard and authentic question. It’s not easy. I’ll be grateful for what wisdom others have on this. For me personally, in challenging times I try to remind myself of the ways God has worked in my life in the past and the truth that I know He is present with me in the midst of the hard - even if I don’t see Him, even when I don’t feel Him or understand Him, even when the noise of the storm makes it difficult to hear His voice or it feels like He’s sleeping in the boat - I remind myself of who He is - faithful, persevering, present - and so often - continually really - when I don’t have the capacity or the strength to remind myself - I rely on my brothers and sisters in Christ to remind me - because one of the beautiful things about living this life of faith in communion with others as God intends - is they willdrag my mat to Jesus when I’m paralyzed and blind and deaf and forgetful in so many ways - they drag me to Him and they rip off the roof - and THEIR faith brings me to the place where Jesus can heal me - and I’m so grateful - they hold onto hope for me - until I can see the glimmer - the slightest start of that hope - remembering for myself that it won’t always be this hard - that Jesus is always in the boat - and He is always working for my good. Lord, help us carry each other to You and hold onto faith and hope for each other as needed. Amen. Love and hugs and prayers for all of you. Please pray for me too. 😊🙏🏻💕xo

11/3/2026 08:05:23 am

Alana,

Wow, I am amazed your comments to my question.

Especially reminding me that I can't journey to God solo, I have and need help. This ministry has been so supportive.

Appreciate the group, even more lately.

Steve

12/3/2026 07:19:07 am

Thanks Steve! I’m very grateful for your questions and comments - they’ve helped me go deeper with the reflections. And your encouragement and support for Ora and the writers is such a beautiful gift and so appreciated!
Love and hugs and prayers to all! 😊🙏🏻💕

Sandy

11/3/2026 08:11:57 am

I love Alanna’s beautiful comment and can’t help but reflect on John 16:33 here. Jesus tells us that we will have trouble but to take heart because He has overcome the world. I have also journaled, sometimes writing out my hurt, anger and questions helps me and not that I hang onto the past, but I have found that I have gone back to reread things that at the time seemed so overwhelming, only to realize that He was right there. I also have a practice of gratitude that helps. I challenge myself to find three things daily for which I am grateful. Some days they are as simple as a good cup of coffee, but this practice has helped me to realize I can find beauty even in the midst of pain and sorrow. I was in the middle of a public gratitude journey when my mother died in 2011, and rereading those days now I can see the Lord’s steady presence in every minute. I don’t know that I was conscious of it when it was happening which is the mystery of faith that Alanna so beautifully described. Like the sheep, we don’t have to see Him if we know Hos voice. Praying that you will continue to hear His voice amidst this time Steve.

Lori

11/3/2026 08:16:54 am

Ack! Sand

11/3/2026 08:18:25 am

Let’s try that again:

Ack! Sandy! I was just reflecting on John 16:33! Emmanuel! God is with us, and He is moving between us. 💜