a little journey through psalm 23: part 4
You spread a table before me
in the face of my greatest fears.
Oh my, isn't that a lovely image?
In the midst of our greatest fears (death, sickness, economic distress?)
our Good Shepherd spreads a table before us.
Reminds me of when I was a little girl
and was home sick from school,
my mom would make a nest for me on our sofa
and would pull the piano bench over next to me,
drape it with a soft towel
and "spread a table before me."
Chicken noodle soup from the can,
white toast spread with real butter,
mandarin oranges or canned peaches.
7-up with a straw.
It felt like a feast because it was served with such love and care.
This is the image, I believe,
that King David was trying to flesh out for us.
God is like a mom or a dad, a caregiver for us, his sheep.
And when we are scared - deep-down scared -
God not only protects us, but he feeds us
with the tender love of a mama,
the fierce love of a papa.
When we are scared these days
maybe a little chicken noodle soup
is what's called for?
