I will cause you to pass under the rod

Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me. Psalm 23:4

When I was almost fifteen I spent the summer at Forest Home Camps, volunteering with the children’s program. They fed us and housed us and we played with the kids during the morning and babysat them at night so their parents could attend night meetings.  We got to go swimming at the lake in the afternoon, and I remember vividly playing dozens and dozens of games of solitaire by flashlight, alone except for sleeping children in the dark creaky woods. Every morning our leader met with us in a little room off the gift shop and we read through A Shepherd Looks at the Twenty-third Psalm.  I felt so cool and in-the-know.  Not only was I like a almost-real staff person but I was also really understanding what this psalm was about that I had memorized when was in first grade, along with the books of the bible in order to earn and red leather Bible with my name on it in gold gilt letters.  

And as Brandon knows we have one of those very cool rods sitting by our fireplace that he always likes to swing and sort of hopes that I will give to him someday.  It is glossy smooth, with a big swollen ball at one end.  The rod was an extension of the owner's own right arm. It stood as a symbol of his strength, his power, his authority in any serious situation. The shepherd could whip it right at any danger or threat.  No problem.  And the staff represents lift and support for gently guiding the sheep, and disentangling them from the woes of the journey.  

And thus that rod so beautifully crafted, leaning up in the corner next to the machete and the log poker, is a clear reminder of His continual care, protection and detailed attention.  The LORD is my shepherd.  I shall not want.