Psalm 23:3
“He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.”
I threw away one of our bikes a couple days ago. Well, I put it on the street for the garbage truck along with some other junk. The bike was rusty, the tires were bald, the brakes were shot, and the colors faded.
The next morning I discovered the bike was gone. And the truck hadn’t come yet. Someone saw potential in it. Someone saw value in it. Someone wanted to restore it.
Have you ever felt like a piece of junk? Worthless. Unvalued. Cast aside. Forgotten. Too far gone. Unsalvageable. Maybe you did something or said something. Maybe someone else did something or said something to you and you’ve never been the same. Time goes by and you think you’re ok and then you hear or see something and you feel it all over again.
Did you know we have a God who’s in the restoration business? He sees potential, not problems. He sees beauty, not bruises. He sees worth, not waste. He sees goodness, not garbage. He sees treasure, not trash. When we disqualify ourselves or the world leaves us at the curb, God scoops us up and dusts us off and brings back the shine.
In Psalm 23, we’re compared to sheep who’ve wandered from the flock and from the shepherd. And we’re convinced our destination is the local garbage dump. But in verse 3 we read, “He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”
I’m reminded of a line from O Holy Night, “Long lay the world in sin and error pining, ’til He appeared and the soul felt its worth.”
Does your soul feel its worth today? What lies are you believing that tell you you’re worthless? Make a commitment to only listen to the voice of your shepherd who says, “You are my child. You are valuable. You are a blessing. I have a plan for you.”
You see, when Jesus died on the cross for you, He showed you how much you were worth. He gave it all for you. He paid the ultimate price. He gave His life. While we were sinners and worthless and enemies and left for dead, God made us alive!
Prayer: God, thank you for restoring my soul. I want to follow your path today. Help me to live for your name’s sake. Also, help me to see the potential in others just as you saw in me. Amen