"Authentic"

Soon the day is coming,

When you finally decide,

If you will be authentic,

Or from Jesus hide.

You’ve tried to please the others,

You worked to get their smile,

You changed your plans to suit ‘em,

You’ve gone the extra mile.

And had good intentions,

Keep peace and get along,

Btu when you did the best you could,

You still did not belong.

To the club that they insisted,

Was where you ought to be,

And the price of their admission,

Was just too high you see.

The Lord gave you salvation,

He gave you special gifts,

You have the Holy Spirit,

Through you folks’ burden lifts.

But the cowboy way you’ve wanted,

Is in your DNA,

And you know God will use it,

And He has shown the way.

For you to be authentic,

Just be who you are,

Surrender all to Jesus,

You trust His grace so far.

And He will not forsake you,

Just learn to cowboy up,

Be the man He made you,

And let Him fill your cup.

“He restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” (Ps. 23:3, NLT)

The twenty-third Psalm is perhaps the most well-loved psalm of all. It is beautiful, and describes our relationship with God our Shepherd. Much later Jesus described HImself as the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep. The psalm is all about coming home to ourselves as those who are cared for by God. He restores us to our true selves, heals us of the frantic stress of trying to be someone or something other that who we are. Being led on paths of righteousness means we learn to cooperate with the identity God wants us to have, made secure by Him. We are His sheep and He the One who gets to define us and discipline us from false and selfish identities that compete with God’s best. He fills our cup to overflowing and promises eternal companionship. There is no better way to live.

Lord, help us receive You wholeheartedly as our Shepherd, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Robert “Shoofly” Shufelt, used by permission. Thanks, Robert, and God bless you.