07/06/2025
I went to sleep at my normal early hour last night, but I was awakened in a sweat, having been unsettled by a dream. I was worried about my teenage grandson who is at a crossroads in his life and is having a particularly rough time determining which way he should go. Through the Spirit, I knew I had been given this dream to comfort me and to teach and guide one of my grandsons. God often speaks to me through dreams it seems, and I felt that this was yet another of those occasions.
“For God speaks in one way, and in two, though man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, while they slumber on their beds,”
Job 33:14-15 ESV
In my dream I received an email which asked me to read aloud two passages from the Bible, one during each of two separate Bible studies, and I was given what I should read. Well, in my dream I read the first passage on the assigned night and all was well, but somehow, I lost track of the days and forgot to look up the second passage. So, as everyone waited on me to prepare myself I hurried to my computer and tried to find the email so that I could read the second passage I had been given… I searched frantically for it but for the life of me I couldn’t find it. Finally, in desperation, I picked up my iPhone and googled a simple question “What is the most read psalm in the Bible?” And it was here that I awoke sweating from my dream. I was unsettled but I knew that the Lord had given me this question for a reason. So, I looked at the clock on my nightstand and it was exactly one o’clock. The most studied psalm, one o’clock, I got out of bed and picked up where my dream had left me.
Obediently I went to my prayer chair, picked up my iPhone and googled the question I had been given… “What is the most read psalm in the Bible?” and almost instantly the answer came back to me. The answer read…
“Based on the provided search results, Psalm 23 is considered the most read and recited psalm.” iPhone Google through the help of artificial intelligence had answered me… or was it really AI?
I thought to myself that this wasn’t a surprise, after all, it was only 6 verses long and like so many people that I knew, I had memorized it in grade school when I was in the third grade and couldn’t count the number of times since then that I had both read and recited it in my life. This calming psalm says…
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
Psalm 23:1-6 ESV
But it was then that the Holy Spirit spoke to me again and told me to ask another question…. “What is the most studied psalm in the Bible?” So, obediently, I took my finger and typed this new question into my iPhone just as I had done previously.
Once again the answer came back almost instantly. I was expecting it to return the 23rd Psalm again, but it didn’t, it told me that Psalm 110 was the most studied because of its frequent quotation in the New Testament, Messianic significance, and the way that Jesus used it to challenge the Scribes and the Pharisees. It then went on to describe it as a foundation of New Testament theology through its use in explaining the identity of Jesus, but there was also a mention of something more, Psalm 121…
So, knowing this, I reread Psalm 23, Psalm 1 and then went immediately to Psalm 110, and on to Psalm 121 reading each of these short psalms to refresh my memory of them. Psalm 23 spoke to God’s presence in our lives, Psalm 1 spoke of sin and its dangers, Psalm 110 spoke to the power and identity of Jesus, and Psalm 121 said this…
“I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.”
Psalm 121:1-8 ESV
Truly, the Lord had not slumbered nor slept, no, he had dealt with me as I slept and awakened me to reiterate through the Spirit that He was my keeper, both day and night. More than that He revealed a truth about my grandson’s crossroads, and that He was also my grandson’s keeper as well as mine. This is what was written in Psalm 121…
“The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.”
Psalm 121:7 ESV
Through prayer and dream I have been led by the Spirit to read these psalms this morning. They are messages for not only me, but for my grandson too. And I am certain that as this message is read by many others around the world, they will bring them comfort, peace, and encouragement as well.
In them we are told that the Lord is indeed our shepherd and then the answer to some deeper questions regarding the dangers of sin, Who Jesus is, and Where our help comes from. Are you struggling to know these things, and where your help will come from today? Do you trust in the fact that the Lord will indeed shepherd you through your problems?
Sometimes we just need to be reminded that our God doesn’t sleep, that he is with us throughout our lives, and that He will guide us through the problems and hard places we face as we go.
Prayer,
Father, thank you for comforting me today. Thank you for the dreams and miracles you use to comfort and help me, and those I love, as we face trouble in our lives. Thank you, Holy Father, for reinforcing in me what you told me once before when I was worried about my family… you said then, “They are not yours, they are mine, and I will help them in their lives just as I have helped you, and continue to help you, in yours.” Merciful and full of grace are you, Abba, who never sleeps nor slumbers, and who has loved us so much that you sent your only begotten Son Jesus Christ to live, suffer, die, and be resurrected so that our sins would be remitted, and we would find eternal life and peace in Him. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my God who brings your peace and rest into my life, and who allows me to find tranquility in my sleep by knowing that you are watching over me, and those I love, both day and night. Praised be your name Holy Father and look into my heart where you will see that I love you with all I am and everything I will ever be.
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, and Amen!
“Come to me [Jesus Christ] all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.””
Matthew 11:28-30 ESV
“In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.”
Psalm 4:8 ESV
Rich Forbes