The Lord is my Shepherd … I am the Gate for the sheep. In all three lectionary cycles this fourth Sunday of Easter is known as Good Shepherd Sunday. As part of that celebration we have the very familiar words of the 23rd Psalm detailing God's presence with us in every aspect of our lives. We have Jesus telling us that he calls us by name – and at that call our hearts will waken and respond to a voice that calls us to life. And then we have the book of Acts that tells us how to live as those who live shepherded by God.

The 23rd Psalm continues to be the most quoted text of the Hebrew Scriptures … bringing comfort to us when we are in need of reassurance. We read it at funeral services, bring it to mind in times of distress and doubt, we have much of it memorized. It is indeed a Psalm of comfort that details for us once again that there is no time or place in our lives we can go where God is not. But in the context of our readings for this morning it is also a declaration of where we place our hope and trust. As we look at what it means to be Easter people, this Psalm becomes a continuation of the subversive message of Jesus – a message that reminds us true hope and security is found in the love of God and not in any earthly power. This was a message that made the Roman rulers nervous and continues to unnerve the world when it is lived out faithfully. On the declaration of God as my Shepherd, Kenneth Bailey writes:

Scene one opens with the familiar words, "The Lord is my shepherd." Had David written, "The Lord is my King," the reader would have looked to a political institution for security. Had he affirmed, "The Lord is my commander," the military would have been an image for God. Instead he writes, "The Lord is my shepherd." Shepherds lead their sheep into uninhabited places in open wilderness. With no cell phones, helicopter surveillance, or desert patrols, the appearance of a lion or two, or thieves with heavy sticks, would threaten the flock with great danger. The language David chooses is worthy of serious reflection. It means, at the very least, "I do not rely on police protection for my security."

Kenneth Bailey, Copyright 2008, The Presbyterian Outlook. (link)

As familiar and comforting as the words of the 23rd Psalm are … as lovely as the imagery of Jesus calling us … and as beautiful as the image of community painted in Acts are – these are also texts that should sting us into action. First, by asking us to know where our faith and trust truly is; and secondly by sending us out as the "evangels – those who help people hear and respond to God's voice in their own lives. To say that the Lord is my Shepherd means just that – that therein lies my hope, my security and my trust. A lot is made about the issue of security these days. People are willing to give up a lot in order to find security. In the New York Times this week was an article about the fence being built on the border between the US and Mexico – it didn't matter if laws were being broken in order to build the fence – it was about security. There is great anxiety around financial security, job security, you name it … we are an anxious people. As if any of those kinds of security can top the security found in "the Lord is my Shepherd. There is a story told of a crocodile who wanted to be a jazz musician. The crocodile, being a crocodile spent all of his time in his little pond, catching (and of course, eating) all the little duckies there. He asked a great jazz teacher what he must do in order to become a great jazz musician. The teacher answered: "You must start by letting go of your duckies." What if we put as much time and energy in doing what it takes to find security in God as we do in finding all the other temporal forms of security? Are you willing to be truly "shepherded" by God? Are you willing to let go of whatever you need to let go of in order to truly receive the gift of God's presence? What "duckies" do you need to put down in order to claim God as your shepherd?

The second part of living with God in charge has to do with being the presence of God in the world … and here comes the dreaded "E" word again. Yup – EVANGELISM! Evangelism is not about being liberal or conservative. It is about proclaiming to the world – I've put down my "duckies," and placed God in charge of my life, my security, my comings and my goings – do you want to join me? As an unapologetic liberal, I can still say that evangelism is something important to me – I look around at the world, our culture and compare it to what kind of community I see here in this church – and I want people to know about what we have here. You get opportunities all of the time to proclaim that. Last week I went to get my hair cut … what's the best part about getting your hair cut? The shampoo of course! It is also for me a bit of an escape – a time away from my role as minister. However, as I was driving to my appointment this time, I found myself being unwilling nudged by something our Bishop said at a conference meeting. He related that whenever he is in a taxi or some similar situation he always asks the driver if he or she has a faith community, and if not shares with him about The United Methodist Church. I found myself thinking, yes, but not right now, not today. And … especially not during the shampoo. Ah well … just as the shampoo person settled in to do the scalp massage part she asked me if I was looking forward to a relaxing weekend. I told her it was going to be a busy weekend, with work … and that weekends were usually like that for me. So, of course one question leads on to another, and I tell her I'm a United Methodist Pastor. Turns out that is just what she needed at the moment, for she shared with me that ever since she and her family had moved from California they hadn't yet found a faith community … how much she missed the church and choir and the various things she used to participate in. I asked her what area she lived in and was able to tell her about a wonderful United Methodist Church in her area. Anyone want to guess who our most faithful and effective evangels in this congregation are?

The Lord is my Shepherd … I shall not want. Our second hymn sang that truth as we ask Jesus to stay with us, walk with us, guide and keep us. In this coming week may you find both a comfort and a challenge in those words. The comfort of God's eternal presence with you … the challenge in discerning what you need to do in order to be shepherded – putting down, letting go of what gets in the way. And as you find yourself more and more living with God as your security and guide, be the presence of God to others that they too might know the comfort and challenge of being one of God's own.