Battlefield Picnics
“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.”
I love breakfast for dinner—pancakes when the sun is setting with a healthy side of bacon and eggs. To me, it feels like breakfast foods might be more delicious enjoyed at weird times of the day (if that is even possible). We all feel this way. There is a reason Waffle House is open 24/7.
Psalm 23 is a breakfast for dinner kind of Psalm. It is a story of eating a meal in an unexpected place at an unexpected time. God has brought David to the valley of the shadow of death for a walk. They are not alone. The sounds of David’s enemies surround him, pressing in on him to wage war. He is no stranger to the sounds of battle. His entire life was marked by the feeling of danger and uncertainty. Early in his life, Saul would chase David into the valley of death as he sought to take the life of his perceived rival. Later on, David's own son would steal his throne and try to kill David in the wilderness. Yet through all of it, David says that he is not afraid. "I will fear no evil," he says. Why?
In recent days, all of us have felt the impending sound of the valley of the shadow of death. There are websites committed to keeping an up to date tally of the growing death toll as COVID-19 moves throughout the world at an alarming pace. Our knee jerk reaction is to look to Heaven and shout at God to make it stop as if He is unaware of the sounds of the battle that surrounds us. But God is not far off. He is not watching the events unfolding around us from some cosmic cloud high above the earth. No, God is here, right here beside us, present in the light and the shadows. And, as God frequently does, He is working in unexpected ways. As we tremble and shout, He is asking us to stop and eat a meal. God has packed a picnic and spread a feast out before us. In the presence of our enemies, He speaks unexpected words. "I'm right here," He says, "let's have lunch."
David knew God in this way. His courage was never based on bravado; it was based on vision. His courage came with the knowledge that God was with him, just as our courage will come from knowing that God is also with us. In Psalm 46, God says, "Be still and know that I am God," meaning that our usual routine is to run around like crazy and think that we are actually in control. Times like these remind us in a hurry that we most definitely are not! A national quarantine is a pretty good way of making a nation be still and remember that they control nothing.
Maybe what feels like a curse in these days is actually the kindness of God. What if God is using the valley of a worldwide virus to make the Church be still? And what if this forced stillness is God's way of inviting us to a meal, to sit and remember His kindness and provision? What if He’s inviting us to remember what His voice sounds like? He has done this very thing before.
In the book of Exodus, before the final plague came upon Egypt, the one that would take the lives of every firstborn son, God invited His people to sit and eat a meal. Passover would become a feast of celebration, remembering the time that God used what seemed like darkness to bring deliverance to His people. Centuries later, on the night before Jesus was betrayed, He and His disciples would sit at a table eating the very same Passover meal. But on that night, Jesus made changes to what the meal meant. He was the firstborn son that would walk through the valley of the shadow of death. As God in the flesh, He was the one preparing the table in the presence of His enemies. He sat among friends, knowing that in hours He would be shouting through the pain of their betrayal, "Father forgive them, they don't know what they are doing." Jesus walked through the darkness alone so that in the pinnacle of our darkest days, we would always know the power of the resurrection. So we would know that no matter how dark, our God is with us, inviting us to sit and eat a meal and remember His unwavering presence—a presence asking us to release our fear of the dark and focus on the promise of the light.
As we sit in our houses over the next few days, we have a fantastic opportunity to be still and remember. To put down our phones. To not stare continually at the darkness. To tune out the sounds of the battle raging all around us, and for a beautiful moment, sit and remember the faithfulness of our God. We should smile as we whisper the words, "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." God is here. Be still and know.
Breakfast for dinner. Picnics in the battle. God with us through it all.