“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.”
Psalm 23:6
There are footnotes in my Bible that include an alternate translation for the beginning of this verse: “Only goodness and steadfast love.” Does this not settle the heart from anxiety, confusion, and fear? It isn’t that your God’s goodness, mercy, and steadfast love follow you along with evil and distress. Only goodness. Only mercy. Only steadfast love follows you. Your Shepherd will not stand for anything else.
He is surrounding you, this moment, hemming you in behind and before. He goes before you and He is your rear guard. He stands with rod and staff to lead, protect, and save. “He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber…The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore” (Psalm 121:3-4, 7-8).
This does not mean that difficulties will not come. It doesn’t prevent all hurt or affliction. But it does mean that our days, whether difficult or easy, are each marked by the steadfast love of our God. His goodness and mercy reign here. He will not leave, forsake, or forget us for a moment. When we hold fast to Him, we will find Him faithful.
In it all, we look forward to the day when we shall see Him face to face, beholding His radiant glory unveiled. That glorious day when all wrongs will be righted and all tears wiped away. The day when we “shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” The day when we see the fulfillment of this prophecy: “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:3-4).
So let us press on to gain Christ and be found in Him, that we may know Him and the power of His resurrection and all that it means for us. Let us look to our God in faith, trusting that whatever His plans hold for us, only His goodness, mercy, and steadfast love will follow us all the days of our lives.
“This I know, that God is for me.”
Psalm 56:9
In Pleasant Places 