A shepherd’s rod and staff are inanimate objects in and of themselves. However, they are an extension of the shepherd’s heart of love and care for the sheep. I could not illustrate God’s comfort with a couple of sticks, but rather of the Good Shepherd enfolding a lamb. I pray you will know His love that holds you forever so close to His heart.

I KNEW SHARON from childhood and last week she passed into the arms of Jesus. When she was a young teen in my mom’s Sunday school class, I was an adoring grade schooler. Years later she became a dear friend and always remained beautiful inside and out with an unwavering love for Jesus. Now she’s gone, leaving a huge hole in the heart of her husband, children, grandchildren, siblings, and many friends. What can comfort such empty aching?

Not only do we lose loved ones in this world, but we lose security in this evil day. Stephen W. Smith, Founder of Potter’s Inn for soul care writes, We live in unparalleled perilous times. The world’s tectonic plates shift to make this THE most fearful time in the history of our nation. Recession. Inflation. Wars on several fronts. Political melt downs in congress. Jobless rates and more. Fear now predominates emotion and from the looks of things, won’t improve quickly. The soul absorbs stress making us fear for our lives and panic to think what our children will face. With so much erosion, we need soul care as a foundation. [Www.pottersinn.coM]. Where do we find comfort in these evil days?

Comfort also flees because life often doesn’t turn out like we first imagined. We find ourselves on roads we didn’t mean to choose. We feel the loss of what could have been but wasn’t and we grieve, each in our own way. Each heart knows its own sorrows and losses, unfulfilled dreams, relational heartaches, regrets, remorse, guilt, and shame. Unless we stuff our feelings into the dark caverns of denial, these memories follow our aging bodies to the grave. Too often we seek earthly perfection, pleasures, praise, or power to medicate our pain.

Yet, only one comfort and one Comforter exist.

Always the Good Shepherd pursues us with goodness and mercy. He does not fix our hearts with stoic hardness. He grants us the emotional gift of sadness to feel the true value of people we lose and the passions we carry. He does not fix our emotions, He heals them with His rod and staff.

Metaphorically, His rod and staff parallel God’s Word and His Holy Spirit. These tools rescue, protect, and guide the sheep as well as comfort, restore, and revive God’s children. They rescue us from our fear, willful ways, self-righteousness, self-importance, and worldly appetites. They protect us from the lions who seek to devour us in humanistic programming. His rod and staff take us through enemy mine fields to green pastures and still waters.

Though we rejoice in His staff of love, wisdom, and power, we often despise His rod of discipline, correction, and reproof. This rod shatters our idolatrous pride. It strips us of power to control our own lives, other people’s lives, and our circumstances. It denies us the earthly pleasures of our fleshly cravings and exposes our vulnerabilities. Discipline is so painful because our old nature struggles so hard to survive.

Yet, how significant to find healing in His arms! How satisfying to rest in His Presence! How secure to dance for joy in the robe of His righteousness! How sufficient we find His amazing grace!

Though our old nature must die a painful and seemingly slow death, Christ became the Source of new life! His sweet comfort becomes a reality deeper than our emotions or intellect. Our wounded spirits find security in Him and overflow with a profound significance in the price He paid to purchase our salvation. He alone satisfies our longings with living water. He breaks our bondage to earthly addictions and fills us with gratitude. His discipline leaves us without remorse or regret and produces only greater joy and deeper peace.

When Jesus spoke of the world, He knew what was coming upon it. 2 Timothy 3:1-5 says, “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.”

Not only does the Shepherd’s rod and staff rescue, protect and guide us, but the rod brings justice. Revelation19:15 says, Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. ‘He will rule them with an iron scepter.’ He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. The King James Version says, rod of iron. He will bring truth and justice to this old world that comforts us as we witness the atrocities carried out in our world today.

Dear one, though weeping endures for a night, His promised joy comes in the morning (Psa 30:5). Jesus also said, “I told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! [be comforted] I have overcome the world” (Jn 16:33).

WORD & SPIRIT

Thoughts of You
Like soft rain falling,
Music drifting through.

Lurking fears,
In windows peering
Raindrops splashing tears.

Doubts move in
Like dark clouds crossing,
Tempting me to sin.

Listen, hear,
A still voice speaking
Whispers, danger near.

Windy gust—
His Spirit drawing,
Wooing me to trust.

Words of life,
A bright sword piercing,
All my sin and strife.

Comfort comes
With love songs playing,
Sweetly sung to me.

—MarJean S. Peters