Surely Goodness and Mercy Will Follow Me

^{Psalm 23: 1} The Lord is my shepherd;
I have all that I need.
² He lets me rest in green meadows;
he leads me beside peaceful streams.
³ He renews my strength.
He guides me along right paths,
bringing honor to his name.
⁴ Even when I walk
through the darkest valley,^]">[a]
I will not be afraid,
for you are close beside me.
Your rod and your staff
protect and comfort me.
⁵ You prepare a feast for me
in the presence of my enemies.
You honor me by anointing my head with oil.
My cup overflows with blessings.
⁶ Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me
all the days of my life,
and I will live in the house of the Lord
forever.

This Psalm was our meditation when I was in labor with Lilia.

There's no method of study that compares with labor. Really. There I was, in pain that exponentially exceeded anything I'd experienced to that point (or since -- my second labor was cake), feeling like the world was caving in on me every 2 minutes, desperate for some kind of rescue, saying over and over again, "Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life."

Someone posted a discussion of this Psalm on Facebook and it brought me back to something like a loving relationship that I have with it. I love it like an old friend.

When I look at it now I can see that these words that roll off so easily are completely the opposite of so much of the world around us, just like they were for me in labor. The pain, the devastation, the grief that surrounds us is almost unbearable and yet we say that we lack nothing, that goodness and mercy follow us, that we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

The contrast, I think, is exactly why this Psalm has become so dear to me. It's what it means to be (as my family called it when I was young) a Believer. One who believes. It's the root of my faith: a God who follows me with a love that knows no bounds, a mercy that is new every morning, a goodness that isn't tainted by my error, a power that goes deeper than the deepest hurt the world has ever known.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.