Marissa Henley

Encouraging weary women to hope in Christ alone

The Shepherd Cares and Provides

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Can you think of a time when you felt well cared for? When I lived in Houston for months receiving cancer treatment, some friends of a friend took me in and let me stay with them. Their home was beautiful and cozy, and they were so generous. They, along with their grown children, treated me like family. I hated being away from home, but when I was there, I could see God’s provision in their sacrificial care for me. 

 Last week we started our three-week study of God as our Shepherd in Ezekiel 34. As we look at the next verses, we see God’s loving care and provision for His sheep. 

“I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord GOD. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.” (Ezekiel 34:14–16)

Imagine how wonderful these promises must have sounded to the Israelites in exile in Babylon. They were away from home, and times were tough. But their God promised to not just to feed them, but also to provide rich pasture. He promised not just to be with them but also to cause them to lie down—implying perfect peace, contentment, and safety. God’s words assured His people that He would heal, strengthen, and restore them. 

We find similar promises in 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 paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” (Psalm 23:1–3)

The Lord is our only good Shepherd. We may chase after counterfeit shepherds, looking for satisfaction, security, or peace. But those needs can only be met by our Savior, Jesus Christ. When He is our Shepherd, we shall not want. 

No matter what you face this week, your good Shepherd cares and provides for His sheep. 

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Our Good Shepherd

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We all know that sheep aren’t the brightest creatures, but have you seen the sheep video that went viral last year? It shows a young boy carefully pulling a sheep out of a narrow trench next to the road. You can almost hear the sheep thinking, “I’m free! Wheeee!” as it jumps across the green grass . . . and then lands right in the same trench again. 

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be studying the Lord as our good Shepherd. I love this metaphor and how often we find it in the scriptures, because it beautifully depicts the Lord’s loving care for His children. This week we’re looking at how the Lord seeks, rescues, and gathers His sheep. Even though we sinned against Him and strayed from Him—even though we keep jumping into those trenches over and over again—He faithfully pursues us and brings us back. 

Fun fact: we’ve never had a Monday devotional from the book of Ezekiel before! But my pastor preached on this passage a few weeks ago, and I knew right away that I wanted to share it with you. 

“For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country.” (Ezekiel 34:11-13)

This passage refers to God bringing the exiled Israelites back from Babylon to Jerusalem, but it also points us to Jesus. He ultimately fulfilled this promise when He died and rose again, providing a rescue for sinners and bringing them into the fold of the good Shepherd (John 10:16). 

If you belong to Christ, it’s because He searched for you and delivered you from sin and death. He brought you into His family by His grace, and He’ll never let you go. 

No matter what you face this week, the good Shepherd has sought you, rescued you, and gathered you to Himself. 

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Trust the Expert of Everything

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Have you ever needed an expert? In 2010, I was diagnosed with angiosarcoma, a rare cancer that doctors in my area only see about once a decade. I went to the largest medical facility in my state, where they see it once or twice a year. Then I went to MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. There we found an oncologist who treats it once or twice a week, with great success. My husband and I looked at each other with the same thought in our heads: “We choose this guy.” 

We trusted this doctor because he knows more about angiosarcoma than most people on the planet. We knew that no matter how much searching and reading we did, our understanding of this complicated disease could never match his. Because of his expertise, we decided to do whatever he told us to do—even when we didn’t like his plans, and even when his recommendations were difficult and life-altering. His expertise led us to put my life in his hands, medically speaking. 

The same is true of the Lord. There is no limit to the extent of His knowledge and wisdom, not just about cancer, but about foreign policy, immunology, and everything else in all creation. He is the ultimate Expert of everything. 

“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! ‘For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?’” (Romans 11:33-34)

We can confidently choose to trust the Lord because of His riches of wisdom. He knows the past, present, and future. He knows all the possibilities and which ones will become realities. He knows how He will provide for His children and every situation they will face. He knows what is best for us, even when it doesn’t make sense from our perspective. 

Not only does He know all things, but He uses His knowledge to always do what is right. Even when His commands are challenging and His plans are perplexing, we are secure in His loving and faithful hands.

No matter what you face this week, you can trust the One who is the ultimate Expert of everything. 

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Perfect Peace

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When I look back on my kids’ newborn days, I don’t remember a lot of sleeping, except one situation: the post-car ride slumber. We could strap them into their infant carrier, drive to a restaurant, put the baby in the booth with us (still nestled in the carrier), and enjoy a long, relaxing dinner. It didn’t matter what chaos was going on in the restaurant around us, our baby would peacefully snooze through it all. 

I wish I had the ability to nap in any setting, but even more than that, I long for a peaceful, calm spirit in the midst of a chaotic world. The kind of peace that allowed Jesus to be asleep in the boat in the middle of a storm (Mark 4:37-38). The peace that faces turbulence with hope, joy, and trust in our Savior. 

That peace is only found in Jesus, who said: 

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” (John 14:27) 

Jesus promised us His peace. This peace is different than any peace the world has to offer. The world’s peace is tentative and temporary. Jesus’s peace is steadfast and eternal, because it is rooted in the character and purposes of God. 

When Jesus gives us His peace, we don’t have to be troubled or afraid. We can be calm in the midst of chaos because we belong to the One who rules over all things. We are secure in His faithful hands. 

How do we get this peace? When Jesus spoke these words to His disciples, He was explaining to them that He was going away and the Father would send the Holy Spirit. He told them that the Spirit would “teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (John 14:26). 

The Spirit reminds us of God’s promises that we receive in Christ Jesus. He gives us peace that only comes from Him. This peace is available to us every moment of every day, because God’s Spirit lives in us. This is the only peace that will carry us calmly through the chaos. 

No matter what you face this week, Jesus offers you His perfect peace. 

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