Psalm 23:2

“He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.” 

One of the most difficult tasks that a shepherd has in caring for his sheep is to get them to lie down, because they are so restless.

Four things are essential before sheep will rest or lie down.
1.) They have to be free from fear because they are very timid.
2.) They have to be free from friction with other members of their own flock.
3.) They must be free from torment by flies or other parasites.
4.) They must be full. 

These four areas can be applied to our self, sheep's of Christ.
Fear is torment, but perfect love casts out fear (1 Jn. 4:18). We need the deep love of the Shepherd of our souls. In other words, to have an awareness that He loves us and watches over us will free us from fear. We need a personal assurance of Hebrews 13:5, that the Lord will never leave us or forsake us.

Next, we must be free from friction with other Christians. We should make every effort to live in peace with all men without compromising our standards. Understand that contention only comes by pride and an inflated ego (Prov. 13:10). Therefore, if we walk in humility and meekness, others will not cause us to lose sleep or our peace of mind. The key is to not be people conscious, but to be Christ centered. We must be kind to others and forgive them when they do us wrong (Eph. 4:32), not always insisting on having our own way.

We show true kindness when we have seen and experienced kindness ourselves. Anyone can be kind, but to be truly kind is when you have the history and experience of another showing kindness to your.

Sheep will only lie down when they have been satisfied with good food. Green pastures are only obtained by careful planting, deep plowing, and watering the ground well. A good shepherd (pastor or teacher) has to spend much time and energy to find good pastures in the Word of God to feed to his flock. He (Pastors & spiritual fathers) takes great care of the product that they feed their sheep. We have to study earnestly and set in order many proverbs for our flock to feed upon (Eccl. 12:9). Everyone who is used by God to teach must constantly be seeking the Lord for fresh truths from His Word and be constantly meditating in His Word.

One large reason for spiritual leanness in the flock is because the pastor (shepherd) is feeding the flock the same diet every week, teaching them only about salvation, water baptism, and the baptism of the Holy Spirit. That is the description of an uncaring shepherd. Looking at Christ as the example, He takes care of what His flock eats and encourages them to eat daily. Like Ezra of old, we should aspire to be students of the Word who are able to open up the Word of God so that people can understand it. We should have knowledge of every verse of the Bible, making them crystal clear for people as we teach (Neh. 8:7-8).

How important it is to deal with the simplicity of God’s word. We not only have the milk and feed on the strong meat of the word so that we are strong in the Lord. Know the things of the word of God and do not occupy yourself with the things that God does not want to show you. As a sheep of God cry out before you study, something like this, "Lord what do you want to show me? What do you want to teach me?" Listen to what He says to you and lay the other things aside.

“He leadeth me beside the still [or quiet] waters.” 

There are three sources of water for sheep: dew on the grass, deep wells, and springs or streams. It should be noted that 70 percent of a sheep is composed of water. Thus lack of water will cause dehydration, disease of tissue, and general deterioration of health. Therefore, a good supply of water is essential for healthy sheep.

1.) Dew is upon the grass prior to sunrise when it is still dark outside. The dew satisfies the thirst of the sheep, enabling them to lie down contentedly all day as the heat of the sun rises.

The Lord rose early every morning and spent time with His Father in prayer. He heard Him speak every day. David said in Psalm 63:1, “Early will I seek thee.” It is noteworthy in Church history that all those who have ever had a major impact upon their generation and the generations to follow rose early in the mornings to meet with the Lord in prayer.

2.) Often shepherds would obtain water from deep wells in dark cavities carved out in underground caves. This speaks of treasures of darkness that we obtain when we pass through the valley of trouble.

3.) The other source of water for sheep was from springs or streams. Achsah cried out to her father Caleb to give her the upper and nether springs (Judg. 1:15). This speaks of the double portion of God’s Spirit. These two springs represent the rivers of living waters that will flow out from the Lord’s people in the last day revival during the Feast of Tabernacles (Jn. 7:2, 38).