He Makes; He Leads

He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters. (Psalm 23:2)

Sometimes, kids need a nap. 

As a parent, my job is to lead my children. Sometimes, I can lead them by example, or through suggestion. And sometimes, because I'm the adult and know what's best for them, I have to express my will more insistently. I have to tell them what to do, and expect them to obey it. Naps are like that. Very rarely will one of my 5-year-old daughters tell me they want to take a nap. Even when I can judge by their behavior that a nap is exactly what they need, their own will is to keep going, to stay awake. So I must make them lie down. I'm not taking away their autonomy; I'm helping them grow, because I'm giving them exactly what they need -- even when they don't know it. 

Sometimes, God works this way as well. Once we put ourselves in His hands, His expectation is that we will be submissive to His will. We are the sheep; He is the shepherd. 

What this means is that sometimes He will lead us beside still waters. He will guide us to refreshing water, and we will drink, because it is in our nature to do so. But it is also in our nature to keep going, long after our ability to walk straight, to think clearly, to follow well. We're not people who trust easily; who put ourselves fully under the authority of another. We're not people who willingly rest under the protection of another -- even when rest is exactly what we need. So, like a loving Father, He makes us lie down.

Many people have experienced this. Certain doors close; options are removed until all that is left is to shut down and to rest in His arms. 

Maybe this is what Jesus meant when He said,

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 11:29-30)