Psalm 23: Still Waters & the Shepherd's TaleSample

I don’t remember learning to walk, but I do remember when my kids were learning.

At first, they took a few cautious steps toward me. I knelt with my arms out, encouraging them as they made the adventurous journey of just a few feet. But as their confidence grew, so did their independence.

Soon, they weren’t walking to me—they were walking away, ready to explore. And I followed. Sometimes, my wife and I would both trail behind, watching as they grinned proudly, picking up speed.

Every now and then, they’d stumble, and just before they hit something hard, I’d reach out and catch them—protecting them from what they didn’t see coming. I can still picture it in slow motion: my child, beaming, teetering forward, while we reached out to steady them.

Recently, we visited my daughter in college and asked how she felt about graduation. She sighed. “I mean, I am glad, but honestly? Being an adult is overrated. Imagine having to spend the rest of my life paying bills!”

She paused, then added, “I wish I could just live at home forever.”

That thought stuck with me. Imagine having it all—Mom and Dad, Goodness and Mercy—following you every day of your life. Imagine being cared for, protected, and never alone.

That’s not just a comforting thought—it’s a real one. Because our Shepherd does follow us.

He comes behind us with goodness—good plans, good thoughts, good desires. And when we fall? He doesn’t scold us. He picks us up, brushes us off, and surrounds us with mercy.

And after all the stumbling, bumbling, and falling—He brings us home. Not just for a season. Not just until we “figure things out.” Forever. No bills. No stress. Just a Shepherd who has prepared a place for us where we are always taken care of.

So I can keep walking forward in confidence. Because Goodness and Mercy have my back.