Found
A Picture Speaks
I've kept a picture for many years…40 to be exact. I drew it when I was just a little girl, and for some reason, only made clear to me today, I never threw it away.
When I was a child, I didn’t know much about God. I went to church, but, I never heard about His love for me or the incredible gift of salvation. You may wonder how that could be. I don’t really know, except that I grew up in a time and place where the tradition of attending church far outweighed the importance of being taught the Word. I think that makes where I am now in my relationship with the Lord all the more miraculous. Anyway, this morning God gave me a precious window into my past. I was reading my friend Joan Hall’s post from Reflections of His Grace. She wrote about verse 4 of the 23rd Psalm and I had a light bulb moment. All of a sudden I remembered the picture and how, when I was about 10 or 11 years old, I read about the 23rd Psalm in a book. It wasn’t the bible, but rather, a children’s story that referenced it.
At that tender age, I had never experienced a true valley, but the words of the Psalm so moved me that I set out to memorize it. As I learned the Psalm, His words penetrated my heart.
The children’s book that I read also talked about a loving shepherd who had lost his sheep. He set out to find it and rejoiced when he did. It was then that I first felt the gentle tug from my true Shepherd, though I didn’t understand that until later. And, as children often do, I drew a picture about what was on my mind. It was a simple child’s rendering of the shepherd in the story finding his lost sheep.
When I was a child, I didn’t know much about God. I went to church, but, I never heard about His love for me or the incredible gift of salvation. You may wonder how that could be. I don’t really know, except that I grew up in a time and place where the tradition of attending church far outweighed the importance of being taught the Word. I think that makes where I am now in my relationship with the Lord all the more miraculous. Anyway, this morning God gave me a precious window into my past. I was reading my friend Joan Hall’s post from Reflections of His Grace. She wrote about verse 4 of the 23rd Psalm and I had a light bulb moment. All of a sudden I remembered the picture and how, when I was about 10 or 11 years old, I read about the 23rd Psalm in a book. It wasn’t the bible, but rather, a children’s story that referenced it.
“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil:
for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4, KJV).
for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4, KJV).
The children’s book that I read also talked about a loving shepherd who had lost his sheep. He set out to find it and rejoiced when he did. It was then that I first felt the gentle tug from my true Shepherd, though I didn’t understand that until later. And, as children often do, I drew a picture about what was on my mind. It was a simple child’s rendering of the shepherd in the story finding his lost sheep.
After reading my friend’s devotional and God giving me the memory of that saved picture, I set out to find it. I spent quite a bit of time digging through the boxes in my garage and I finally found it, tucked away between some old records. As I gazed upon the simple drawing, I smiled. I could feel myself as that long ago child, with just the tiniest glimmer of understanding of who God was, and I grew emotional. I realized that the moment I drew that picture was the moment I first had a hint of understanding that I had a Shepherd who would seek after me if I became lost. As I held the precious picture in my hand, I flipped it over. There on the reverse were written these words in my childish writing, “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost!” (Luke 15:6)
How could I know, those many years ago, the journey I would take? I had no knowledge of suffering, pain or loss. I didn’t yet know what sin was nor how it separated us from our Father. And yet, I wrote those precious words from Him on the back of a drawing of a shepherd. Though I didn’t know the journey I would take in my life, God did. He knew the mistakes I would make, the valleys I would pass through and the mountains I would climb. But God chose me, as he chose you, to be in relationship with Him. I think that the reason I saved that picture, the only picture I saved from my childhood by the way, was because that was the moment that God’s indelible fingerprint first left its mark on me.
As I look at the picture now, I realize that God gave me a message through His Psalm and that childish drawing that I didn’t fully understand at the time. But now, as I look back over the journey I have taken with Him, I can see that my Shepherd loves and cares for me so much that He tirelessly pursued me until I was found…and now, I am safe in the Shepherd’s arms.
So thankful for my Shepherd,
Linked with Spiritual Sundays
As I look at the picture now, I realize that God gave me a message through His Psalm and that childish drawing that I didn’t fully understand at the time. But now, as I look back over the journey I have taken with Him, I can see that my Shepherd loves and cares for me so much that He tirelessly pursued me until I was found…and now, I am safe in the Shepherd’s arms.
So thankful for my Shepherd,
Linked with Spiritual Sundays
I invite you to link up beginning tonight at 6:00 p.m. for "Sharing His Beauty" and share the blessing that God is to you in your life. Simply click on the "You're Next" linky below and enter your blog information.
Or, if you choose, you may leave a comment on my post to tell of the beauty you have found in His hands. Be sure to visit some of the other inspirational sites linked up and be encouraged today!
Or, if you choose, you may leave a comment on my post to tell of the beauty you have found in His hands. Be sure to visit some of the other inspirational sites linked up and be encouraged today!
1 Comments
Love this! Thank you for sharing!
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