Restore

The last blog addressed Psalm 23:2 where God leads us to the green pastures and still waters. This action leads us to verse 3 and words concerning restoration.

You hear a lot about restoring these days. Restoring old houses and antiques are a popular past time. Many people find joy in returning these items to their original state. Upon investigating the official meaning of restore in the Webster’s 1828 dictionary, I found many definitions that included the following words: replace, return, recover, repair, rebuild, revive, renew. These words all represent restoration in the general sense but have very different meanings when examined individually.

The New King James Version of Psalm 23:3 reads,” He restores my soul; He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” This is the wording that is most familiar when thinking of Psalm 23. Examination of other versions brought some different wording to light. The New Living Translation says, “He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.” The Message version says, “True to your word, you let me catch my breath and send me in the right direction.” Each of these versions uses different words in the first sentence: restore my soul; renew my strength; catch my breath. Restore has many different meanings and is the perfect reference word for this verse as every individual needs something different in order to be restored. Restoring individuals is as unique as restoring old houses and antiques. The general steps are the same, but each item requires individual attention in order to achieve the original state.

Catering restoration to each person is essential in achieving the next part of the verse-leading to righteousness for His name’s sake; guiding to bring honor to His name; sending in the right direction. We are here to serve and bring honor to God and fulfill His purpose for our lives. Everything we do should lead to bringing honor to Him. However, our journeys are not all the same and can’t be achieved by following someone else’s path. God caters our restoration to our exact needs at the exact time we need them in order to continue us on the path that leads in the right direction in order to be where He needs us. We could survive and make it through our journey without specific restoration. We can thrive on our journey by letting God give us what we need at the exact right time!