A Concord Pastor Comments: Pause for Prayer: GOOD SHEPHERD SUNDAY 2020

Good Shepherd by Duncan Grant

Good Shepherd of us all,
I thank you today for all the good shepherds in my life
and for all the ways you've shepherded me
through their love, their watchful presence,
their devotion and protection...

I thank you for my parents, my first shepherds;
I thank you for their protection, for the shelter of their love,
and for all they sacrificed for me
to help me grow...

I thank you for other shepherds in my family
and for all my friends
who comfort and challenge me,
who dry my tears and make me laugh,
who stay faithfully close by my side...

I thank you for all the shepherds
who taught me in school,
who counseled and directed me,
who shaped me and helped me to become
the person I am today...

I thank you for shepherds
whose names I don't know, who stand in harm's way
'round my town and 'round the world,
keeping vigil through the night to keep me safe,
standing guard that I might sleep without a worry...

I thank you, these days, Lord, for the shepherds
who care for the sick and dying sheep among us,
who bind up wounds, give comfort in pain,
who speed the path to wellness
or ease the path to end of days...

I thank you for the shepherds you've called home,
especially those gone much too soon,
whose gentle shepherd's crook I miss,
whose presence still abides within my heart...

I thank you for those shepherds
who remember me in prayer,
who keep me in the sheepfold of your grace,
lifting up my name and needs to you:
to you, my good and gentle Shepherd,
Good Shepherd of us all...

Amen.

Here's a setting of Psalm 23 that brings me much peace...

The Lord is my shepherd,
Therefore can I lack nothing,
He shall feed me in a green pasture
And lead me forth beside the waters of comfort,
He shall convert my soul,
And bring me forth in the paths of righteousness,
For his name's sake,
Yea, though I walk through the
Valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
For thou art with me,
Thy rod and thy staff comfort me,
Thou shalt prepare a table before me
Against them that trouble me,
Thou hast anointed my head with oil,
And my cup shall be full,
But thy loving kindness and mercy
Shall follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell In the house of the Lord, forever.

And yet another setting, one which is part of my morning prayer
every day of the year...