Lord, Restore My Soul by Tim Dalrymple

He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul.

My mind has been stuck on the 23rd Psalm lately. Most of us are very familiar with this passage, but something has kept drawing me back to it’s lyrics this last couple weeks. As I think on it, there is deep sense of comfort in my soul and an assurance of God. Something about it rings true in the deepest parts of me. One idea that has specifically stood out is the idea that God is the restorer of my soul. There are often times when I don’t think I understand much about my soul, much less anything I could do to restore it.

As it pertains to worship, the truth is, sometimes when I come to church I don’t feel like singing at the top of my lungs. I think most of us can relate to this. Sometimes my heart is not filled with happiness and enthusiasm, but with grief or weariness. I know I can’t feel that emotional exuberance toward my life in God in every moment by the simple fact that I am human and created to feel a wide range of emotions. I love that David writes in these moments where the soul is in need of restoration. Of course, God understands those emotions and relates to me at the level of my deepest need. I have experienced that He meets me in the low times too. When I don’t have anything to offer Him, I know He still shepherds me.

That’s one of the things that keeps drawing me back to Psalm 23. The simple request of the sheep–“Lord, restore my soul” –is sometimes the most authentic prayer the heart can offer. That’s a good thing.

Yes, worship should be associated with our offering and sacrifice. But, in a unique way, it is also about receiving what God longs to offer us and setting aside what we feel we should offer Him. In listening and responding to His invitation, we find rest for our souls.

It has been valuable for me to understand that I can worship in moments of quiet assurance as well as moments of passionate expression and give myself permission to believe that God meets me wherever I am.