As I was preparing a bible study during the week the earthquake hit Haiti, I began to think about verses that were relevant to the situation there. Psalm 23 kept coming to mind, and I kept dismissing it. Everyone knows Psalm 23 and in many circles it has become so commonplace or people have become so accustomed to it that it is almost trite. People can recite it from memory, but it has lost much of its significance because of it overuse. However going back and exploring the verse in light of the desolation in Haiti brought new meaning to it for me and my bible study.
Contrasting the images of devastation on the television and internet with the prayers and singing you heard in the background was truly a living manifestation of Psalm 23. As the Haitian people watched their already difficult world crumble around them and the death toll rose, I saw the valley of the shadow of death there. And yet the Haitian people sought consolation in God, despite losing their homes, their family members and their sense of safety, they knew that God’s rod and staff would bring them comfort and that they would eventually return to green pastures and still waters.
Their sense of hope in the midst of chaos demonstrated through their songs, prayers and interviews truly embodies Psalm 23 and brought it back to life for me.
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