September 4

“They found rich, good pasture, and the land was spacious, peaceful and quiet” - 1 Chronicles 4:40

Whatever your name may be, built into each of us is a powerful need to find this land that is “spacious, peaceful and quiet” - a land with “rich, good pasture.” David and his men, battle-worn, hungry and exhausted, by God's grace, found such a place on “the outskirts of Gedor to the east of the valley.” There by Brook Gedor they took time out from the battle to rest and regain their strength for what lay ahead. Perhaps that place was the inspiration for David to write Psalm 23?...”He leadeth me beside the still waters....He restoreth my soul.”

The story's told that on a particularly damp and windy day, hundreds of calves were huddled outside, shoulder to hindquarters, tucked between the fence and the barn. The rain had created a mass of mud and the calves looked dirty brown instead of the usual black and white. They looked miserable. All except one calf. In the face of the wind he skipped and jumped like a child, oblivious to the downpour. The mud-caked calf looked happy.

Throughout the time David was fleeing from, or fighting a battle against Saul and his army, he retained the capacity to see the sun beyond the clouds - despite being huddled in the cave of Adulam with 400 dirty, stinking men – his army. David chose an unusual moment to declare his joy as a child of God - “Those who look to Him are radiant, their faces are never covered with shame.” David had implicit trust in God.

We all need a place where we feel safe. Inhibitions gone, we can drop our baggage, kick off our shoes, wiggle our toes in the water, then stretch out and rest. Gedor is an actual geographical location, but we can find our own “green pastures,” and streams of “still waters” right now where we are, as we experience the grace of God.

Do you need rich, good pasture today, a place that's spacious, peaceful and quiet? If so, then turn to the Saviour, this moment, right where you are. And He promises, “I will give you rest” - Matthew 11:28

Bryn has a real appropriate song for us today, “Camping in Canaan's Land” - Selah

   

     Housekeeping details for you

     The point of this short blog will become clear if you decide to use this reading in the way we intend it. Netherfield Seventh-day Adventist Church believes in healthy churches. You can see what that means if you head to the relevant Healthy Churches page of the website. We also want other churches to be healthy. That means you can join in our campaign to create healthy churches, with healthy people serving the people in those churches.

     A healthy church is one where Jesus comes first. A healthy church is one where the people work together to put Jesus first. One thing we are doing is to join people together to spread that news. I would like you to look at our prayer partners page. This will explain how we want you to use this short devotional. Very basically we want you to find a like-minded Christian friend who you will join with to : choose to pray together every day, decide together on a way to serve other people together, to help them grow as Christians - and to invite the Holy Spirit into your life every day. This blog that you will receive every day simply gives a common spiritual purpose. If you are a newcomer and want to join the blog with this object in mind click here