You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; (Psalm 23:5a NKJV)

After climbing Humpback Rock Mountain, I marked all unpaved trails off my bucket list.

“Can we turn around and go back?”

Timmy, my husband, reached his hand down for me to grab and pull myself over one more rock.” No.”

Snakes could be in these rocks and bees buzzed around. Maybe if I get stung bad enough, or if a rattlesnake bites me, we’ll have to stop. They’d have to fly me out. Desperate thoughts for a desperate situation.

We have to travel dark valleys and hike treacherous paths to reach the mountain top, the place we stop and rest.  A shepherd takes his sheep to the high country, known as the table land, every summer.  He goes before his flock preparing the plateau for them. He removes poisonous plants, leaving salt and minerals for his flock.  He cleans out the water sources. Despite his efforts, the shepherd cannot remove all dangers.

Cougars can hide and pounce upon a straying sheep. If the shepherd can deliver that sheep from the enemy, the sheep learns that staying near the shepherd provides security. The flock soon learns they have no reason to fear in the presence of the shepherd.

Like a true shepherd, Jesus wants us to experience the high country. He wants us to leave the world and our cares behind. He wants that intimate relationship with His sheep. A place where we have no fear, even in the presence of our enemies.

Jesus goes before us, removing the toxins of this world. He doesn’t want us drinking from polluted waters, especially when He offers us refreshing water. The water of the Word that sanctifies us. He desires for us to walk in holiness.

Have you spent time with Jesus on the spiritual table lands? Has His presence abolished fear? Even now, He prepares a heavenly place for us in our future home, but we can have the table land experience on earth when we draw nigh.

If you are making that hard journey today, know that our good shepherd has prepared a table before you. Enjoy this place of intimacy, even in the presence of your enemy.

Don’t allow the glitter of worldly substitutes to draw you away. Our good shepherd offers a love unlike anything this world can promise. Perhaps, like sheep, you have already strayed far from the shepherd’s protection. It’s never too late to return. The first step back is one step closer to Jesus.

Lord Jesus, I fail to spend intimate time with You in the table land. Too many times, the world draws me away and leaves me feeling discouraged, but when I come back to You, I am refreshed. Help me spend that time with You from now on. Amen.

DIG DEEPER

Read Romans 8:31 NKJV:

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

HIKING THE TRAIL

How does the above verse corollate with the shepherd’s protection on the table land? Is the Holy Spirit leading you to a new commitment concerning time with God?

RELATED RESOURCE

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Much information in this devotional was gathered from: Phillip W. Keller, A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23 (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1970, 2007, 2015) Kindle version, Chapter 9.

Originally posted on October 1, 2021 @ 3:00 am