The Staff of our Good Shepherd

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. (Psalm 23:4)

H.W. McLaughlin...asked [an old Israeli shepherd] how he used his staff to comfort and guide the sheep. [The shepherd] said that in the daylight he always carried it across his shoulders so the sheep could see it.... This reassured them of his presence and protection.... If darkness overtook him before...[they reached] a safe resting place...or if they were caught in a heavy fog, he would walk slowly while tapping it on the ground.... The sheep...could hear the tapping and would follow the sound, knowing their shepherd was just ahead.

God's inspired Word is to the Christian what that staff was to those sheep, reassuring us of God's presence, protection, and provision by day and by night.