HE GUIDES MY PATH FOR HIS NAME’S SAKE PSALMS 23:3

Growing up I’ve always recited the first verse of Psalms  23:1 ” The LORD is my Shepherd, I shall not want”,  whether at home or school, it was expected of us to know it.  But I’ve never paid attention to what the third verse might mean for the believer,  “He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” It made me ask the question, “Why would God lead me in paths of righteousness for ‘His’  name’s sake?” 

Which pointed to the fact that God’s grace and guidance upon a believer’s life to make him righteous and keep him in His will, is so that when everyone sees such a fruitful and exemplary life in that person, one can only say “this can only be the works of God, all glory and honour belong to God.”  

God leads us in the path of righteousness for His name’s sake. What does that mean? Firstly, it means when God guides us for His sake, He is also doing it for our good. If God refrains from guiding us, we have everything to lose and we will perish because we are wicked and fallen without Him. Have you ever wondered why people in moments where they feel lost or in need of a sense of direction for their lives,  they resort to asking God questions,  despite the limitation of their knowledge of God?  The reality is, they know that ” there is a God cognizant of our lives and and we are accountable to Him.”

God gives guidance or leadership because there is an intention He has with the creation that He has made. Unfortunately because of sin,  humankind disregards God’s ways and when they are left to their own will without the intervention of God’s will, they bring destruction and harm to themselves and those around them. So God’s guidance is to our benefit, but also for His name’s sake too. Secondly,  If God does not guide the path of His children, His name will be in jeopardy too.  To those that He calls to salvation, after having identified them as His own, they are called to carry the weight of His name, as they are also sustained by the name they carry. So therefore,  God guides us in our path so that we may reflect Him for who He truly is, ‘Righteous and Holy’ (Eph 4:24). 

If a believer lives a disobedient life, what they are truly saying is,” God, I am not willing to be guided by you and I am rebelling against your plan to bring glory to & Your name through my life.” Every attempt to live out a holy life under the grace of God, is an attempt to reveal more of the nature and character of God through our lives.  How we treat people, how we conduct ourselves, how we serve God,  the church and the community, is all for His name’s sake.  

Let us allow God to lead and guide us,  so that we can be the best vessels to bring glory to the God we live for, whom is our chief Shepherd.  

-Sibusiso Banda