The Terror in the Hallway

 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
   he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk
    through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

Psalm 23: 1-4

When we were kids, we loved to watch Alfred Hitchcock and Twilight Zone.  We would all gather in the family room and watch and tremble and get sooooo scared.  At some point, Dad would sneak out and hide.  We had a long, dark hallway that led from the family room to the bedrooms and we would have to walk down this hallway right after watching one of these shows.  We knew Dad had snuck out, we knew he was just waiting to jump out at us and scare the daylights out of us, but we loved it and walked right into it anyway. He would jump out at us and we would scream and run in opposite directions. Great fun!

It would be nice, as an adult, if the things that jumped out in the dark were anticipated; if it was staged and all in fun and no harm, no foul, just a massive adrenaline rush and lots of laughter.  But alas, that doesn’t seem to be the case most times. We are caught unawares, blindsided at times. And no one is laughing anymore.

This beautiful Psalm, a favorite of so many, is such a comfort and brings a wonderful promise. No matter how long the dark hallway, no matter what jumps out at me, no matter what diagnosis, bad report, pitfall, set-back is waiting to jump out at me, I don’t need to fear. My Shepherd is with me.

The role of the shepherd was to lead his flock safely to grazing places and watering holes and then safely lead them back to their safe place for the night. The shepherd protected the sheep from wolves and stayed on constant alert for any sign of danger approaching the flock.

Jesus is our Shepherd, watching over us, leading us, guiding us not only to safety but to places that feed and comfort us, protecting us from whatever may jump out at us. He never sleeps, He never slumbers, He is never caught off-guard.

Whatever the long, dark hallway you may be going through, Jesus is with you, every step of the way.  You do not need to fear. And while I traverse this long, dark hallway labeled chronic pain, I do not need to fear. How amazing is that?

Jesus, my Shepherd, thank You. Right now, the hallway looks long, dark and is full of so many things just waiting to jump out at me. This is not fun now like the hallway was when I was a kid. I don’t want to walk down this hallway, I don’t want to be scared. Thank You for being with me, for promising me Your presence and Your comfort. Lead me beside the still waters, refresh my soul and cause me to lie down in green pastures. I will fear no evil, for You are with me. Thank You Jesus, I love You, in Jesus’s name amen.

I would love to hear from you.  Please let me know if I can be praying for you.