All’s Well?



I want to share with you the story of the Shepherd’s Psalm. Perhaps it’s a familiar passage to you. If you were brought up in the faith if you went to Sunday school when you were young it may have been one of the first passages in the Bible that you memorized.

It was written by David who started out life as a shepherd and who later in life became the second king in Israel. Even with all of his sin God loved David and God described David as a man after his own heart.

Whenever I read the 23rd Psalm it is almost as if I am reading a map of one’s life. It could be your life. It could be my life. It was David’s life. Pretty much all of the ingredients in life are there. When David describes the Lord leading him through green pastures and beside the still waters he is describing a time in life when all is going well. We know what those days are like, don’t we? The sky is blue, the sun is shining, no storms on the horizon! Great days, fantastic days. “All’s well.”

But not every day is like that is it? The days are not always sunny and where we walk is not always green and the path we are on is not always smooth. Some days when people ask us; “All’s well?” We have to say; “Well, it’s pretty tough as of late.” “I’m not feeling so good. I lost my job. My bills keep mounting up and I just hope this whole economy turns around and we can go back to the good days of yesterday.” David experienced those days as well. The sun didn’t always shine for David and the grass wasn’t always green. Listen to how David would have replied to a Bermudian that approached him on such days and asked him; “All’s well?” David would have said; “I’m walking through dark valleys today. I’m surrounded by life’s enemies but my Shepherd is still leading me.”

Our days of green grass, still waters, dark valley’s and life’s enemies come and go. But there is a day coming for us all that no matter how hard we try we will not be able to bounce back from it like we sometimes bounce back from the valleys to the green grass. That day is called the day of our death and it will come for you and me and everyone else. David in his map of life as outlined in Psalm 23 describes what that day was like for him. In verses 5-6 he declares; “Lord, You have prepared for me a table 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 for ever.” David when he met the enemy called death was able to bounce back from the valleys in life not to still waters, green grass and blue skies but David was able to enter the glory of that place called heaven where Jesus went before him to prepare for his homecoming.

There is a common thread that ran throughout David’s life and which I pray runs through your life as well. The common thread was that Jesus his loving shepherd was with him by the still waters, was with him through the valleys and was there to welcome him home as he approached life’s greatest enemy called death.

You and I can walk through sunny days when all’s well and often we can survive the days that are not so well. BUT, we cannot walk nor can we even approach with any hope the gateway called death unless our Shepherd Jesus Christ is walking with us.

Some people will say; “Then I’ll wait until I die to meet Jesus.” But by then it will be too late. The Bible declares that now is the time now is the day to make certain that the Shepherd is with us in this life and preparing us for the life to come. When Jesus walks with us as our shepherd through all of life and someone approaches us with the question; “All’s well?” We can reply with a big smile, “I’m blessed because my shepherd is with me 24-7 “ALL’S WELL – PRAISE GOD!”



Rev. John

SHOPPING!






My blog today on shopping and a few weeks ago on “Living on an Island” are not meant to be a travel guide for those wishing to visit Bermuda but merely some things that I found very interesting since moving here four years ago. We have hosted family members and friends who have come to the Island for a visit. The agenda normally goes something like this; a tour of Hamilton, a visit to the Pink Church a drive along Harbor Road to see the city from the opposite side of the bay. On another day we drive to the gorgeous town of St. George’s where we visit St Peter’s Church and then to the harbor to see the “dunking board” being put to use. Jill usually packs a picnic lunch which we enjoy at a nearby park. Then, on yet another day we visit the dockyards on the other end of the Island see the massive cruise ships and enjoy a tour of the local museum. There are several fascinating places in between these two points not to mention all the beautiful beaches some of which have pink sand! Following a grand tour of the Island we then turn our family and friends loose to visit the grocery stores!

A visit to a grocery story can be a highlight to a vacation. It has been said that Bermuda is one of the most expensive places to live in the world. I have been asked whether or not I intend to live here after I retire and my answer has always been the same; “No way, I couldn’t afford it!” Many Bermudians have two if not three jobs in order to help pay the bills. Weekly groceries form a large part of one’s budget. We take people into the grocery stores and sometimes they can’t believe what they see. When we first arrived we would hesitate and complain before picking up something we needed and then we would remind ourselves how cheap it was in Canada. NOW, we say we need it and so we buy it and spare ourselves from any regrets. Cereals can be very expensive (over $7 a box), packaged cookies can be expensive and ½ gal of milk can run you well over $5. A loaf of your favorite whole wheat bread can run you over $7. Fresh local carrots cost about $7 for half dozen! There are other items like some meat and dairy products which cost you about the same as you would pay back home. If you are one who enjoys munchies and soft drinks then you had better add a few more dollars to your shopping budget. After you pay the cashier for your groceries it is expected that you tip the one who has packed them as this is the only pay they receive. One very obvious reason for high prices of course is that nearly everything is imported and when you are over 600 miles from the nearest shoreline shipping is very expensive.

So what do we do to save a little at the grocery till? We do the same as you would in any other country; you wait for the specials, you shop on Wednesday pay cash and save 5% and then you choose carefully where you shop. I always have our visitors to the manse especially if they come from Canada to bring a box of Shreddies (not available here) and a tin of Tim Hortons coffee!

Bermuda is a fascinating place to live even though it might be a bit expensive.