Who Is God To You? Part 2

[Jacob] blessed Joseph, and said, “The God before whom my ancestors Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, the angel who has redeemed me from all harm, bless the boys; and in them let my name be perpetuated, and the name of my ancestors Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude on the earth.”

Genesis 48:15-16

In yesterday’s Life for Leaders devotion, we saw that Jacob referred to God with a threefold identification: 1) the God before whom my ancestors Abraham and Isaac walked; 2) the God who has been my shepherd all of my life to this day; 3) the angel who has redeemed me from all harm. In the first part of this description, Jacob referred to God in light of his family history. He was not the first of his kin to be in a covenantal relationship with God. Rather, he inherited this status from his grandfather and father, and this was a crucial element of Jacob’s sense of God.

Help me, Lord, to trust you as my good shepherd. Keep me from fear of the unknown. Teach me to trust in you all things and at all times, knowing that my life is safe in your hands.

Yet, Jacob’s experience of God was not simply a hand-me-down. The second way he identified God was as “the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day.” Notice that God was not just a shepherd or the shepherd of all of his people, but rather “my shepherd.” Throughout his whole life, Jacob personally experienced God’s guidance, nurture, discipline, and tender care. He knew God in the way of the writer of Psalm 23: “The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.”

Jacob’s example encourages us to remember how God has shepherded us in our lives. Perhaps you can pause for a few moments and think about this along with me. As I begin to make a mental list of how God has guided me, protected me, and blessed me, I am stunned once more by the goodness of God my shepherd. Of course there have been times in my life when I have had difficulty seeing God’s shepherding care, times when I have doubted that God was indeed, “my shepherd.” But, when I stand back and take a wide and long look at my life, I have to agree with Jacob. God has indeed been my shepherd all of my life to this day. In faith, I believe he will be tomorrow and the next day as well.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:

Could you echo Jacob’s description of God as his shepherd?

Have there been times when you have been unsure of God’s shepherd-like care for you? Are you in one of those times right now?

What have you experienced in life that has confirmed the fact that God is your good shepherd?

PRAYER:

Gracious God, thank you for being our good shepherd, my good shepherd. Thank you for all the ways you have fed me, guided me, protected me, and helped me. Thank you for all the times you have delivered me from the messes I have made for myself. Thank you for having a vision for my life that greatly exceeds my own.

Help me, I pray, to trust you as my good shepherd. Keep me from fear of the unknown. Teach me to trust in you in all things and at all times, knowing that my life is safe in your hands. Amen.