*What Is Chasing YOU?
Disaster or Mercy….
When my husband of 35 years left home unexpectedly, my son was profoundly affected and my teenage daughter began her rebellious years, it was DISASTER upon disaster which seemed to CHASE me.
I needed to get a job and take over running of the household as a single parent which was NOT easy, as most single parents know.
Disaster upon disaster seemed to compound the trauma.
There was much anger and grief that I needed to deal with. Post traumatic stress syndrome raised its head. Over the next couple of years, the jobs I had were NOT good ones. My household seemed to implode even further.
Disaster, heartache and sorrow seemed to follow me every day!
Yet I continued to recite Psalm 23 that I had learned in my childhood, believing every word of it, even with tears streaming down my face.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
Please notice that at the very end of the chapter, it reads that “goodness and mercy shall follow me every day of my life”.
The original Hebrew word, radaph, for ‘follows me’ means PURSUES me!
Thus, I began mentally picturing goodness and mercy chasing and pursuing me down the long, difficult stretch called ‘my life’.
How encouraging was and is that even to present day!
Sure, sometimes goodness and mercy come cloaked in difficulties but, if we place ourselves into the hands of the Good Shepherd, we will be able to see (maybe even years later), that God meant it for GOOD for us.
Let’s bow our head and thank Him for every single happening in our life.
Dawn Ulmer, a retired Registered Nurse, has enjoyed writing since the age of 19 when she wrote ‘My Philosophy of Nursing’. After marrying and becoming a mother, she developed a newsletter for young mothers called ‘Moms and Sidekicks’. She has been a columnist for a women’s newspaper in Grand Rapids, Michigan on the subject of time management. From that column, her first book was written and published: “Balance of the Hurried Woman”. Through the years, she has been published in ‘Decision’ magazine, ‘Our Daily Bread’ devotional and other publications. Presently, she is enjoying writing on Medium, her favorite platform.
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