Several years ago I determined that Psalm 23 is approximately nine rods long. A rod being the length of a standard canoe, portages are measured in rods. As I walked between two lakes on what are usually sloppy wet and steep trails, carrying a canoe and/or a pack I discovered that as I quoted Psalm 23 outloud that it gave me a mantra ... a rhythm ... that broke through the silence and the monotony. I began to measure the length of portages in the numbers of times I could quote the Psalm while walking the portage. The waterfall in the photo above is one of the most beautiful portages I've been on and measures only five "Psalm 23's". Perhaps it might be useful to measure the transitions of our lives in terms of the psalms. I've been impressed with Lynn Anderson, who in the midst of his successful chemotherapy, memorized the Psalms ... all of them. I think he has achieved this goal.
Tonight I went for a walk in the rain. It reminded me of the many times I've canoed or hiked in the rain ... this just enough to cool the evening and not actually get wet. But I think that the great advantage of walking in the rain is the fact that it hides the tears of compassion for a broken world.
"He makes me lie down in green pastures,
He leads me beside still waters,
He restores my soul,
He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake ..."
Sometimes the paths of righteousness are pretty rough ...
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