“He Makes Me Lie Down in Green Pastures.”   Psalm 23:2a

Whenever I read these words, a picture forms in my mind of lush green grass with blue sky overhead. The sun is shining and white puffy clouds float across the sky. It is a peaceful place of rest and harmony . . . A place where one lets go of anxiety and simply drinks in the beauty of the moment . . . A place where a mind is free to wander, dream and commune with God.

Years of pandemic stress, political upheaval and economic crisis have kept us on edge. The need for a place of rest and relaxation is crucial to our wellbeing. That God is the one who makes us pause in a place of rest, tells me we live in the abundance of God’s care. Carolyn Sharp says of God, *“There is nothing stronger, than the wild compassion of God.”

We are sustained as our Shepherd God leads us to places of rest and abundance. Close to the earth, we rest in the providence of God. Images form of healing from the wounds of yesterday. We sense the abundance of God’s care. Our spirits are calmed and quieted.

Howard Thurman writes, **“It is a feeling or tone of peace, of tranquility, that settles down over one’s spirit. It is the thing that can happen only when one somehow manages to ‘stay put’ for a spell. How wonderful to sit alone, with one’s own life parts gathered together, and sense the whole of one’s interior landscape’s being invaded by a blanket of calm.”

“He makes me lie down in Green Pastures.” Psalm 23:2a