The Paths of Righteousness

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall now want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me besides still waters.
He restores my soul.
He guides me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. - Psalm 23:1-2

Psalm 23 is all comfort until we get to those paths of righteousness. It’s hard not to think about being meticulously moral when the word ‘righteous’ comes up, isn’t it? And that’s where things start to get religious again, and too many of us begin to see God as the bully in the sky ready to whack us if we get out of line.

But as Brenna and Israel pointed out on Sunday, what if God wasn’t switching back and forth from kind Shepherd to cosmic Killjoy in mid-sentence? What if the kind Shepherd is guiding me in the paths that will get me home? That image is far more consistent with the rest of the psalm - and far more consistent with the character of God.

There’s a church with a kindred heart that posted this recently: “Who told you that you need to beg for forgiveness? We confess our sins to get back into alignment with love, not to convince God to do something God has already done. Lay off the self-flagellation & get on with the good work of being present to your life today. That’s worship.” - @thetableokc

Take time right now to ask God to understand righteousness and forgiveness and reconnection better. Take time to ask the Spirit to guide you in those paths that lead home to God - and home to your true self.