"Psalm 23:4 "Your rod and your staff, they comfort me."

When my dad was alive and living in Lodi, I used to visit him fairly often. As he had gotten older and begun to lose his eyesight, different people began to give him canes of various types, and pretty soon he had a whole collection of all kinds of crazy canes. Some were shaped funny. Some were brightly colored. Some even had carvings on the top. We would go to his "cane closet" and he would pick out a cane whenever we would go somewhere. The cane that he would choose was the thing that would hold him up, and give him balance. As I look back on those years, I am reminded that the Word of God is a staff.
Whenever I have faced discouragement, I've been reminded of the verse that says, "For the Lord, thy God, He it is that doth go with thee. He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." Deut. 31:6. When I have literally faced impending danger, the Lord has spoken to my heart from Psalm 91:10 "There shall no evil befall thee"..
When our children went missing, during those long days, weeks, and months that followed, I found another staff in the promise, "In my distress, I cried unto the Lord and He heard me." Psalm 120:1, and I knew that no matter what was happening in my life, I could trust in my Lord and Savior to hear my cries.
When my dad, who had been nearly blind, went home to be with Jesus, the Lord gave me this staff to lean on, ""The Lord openeth the eyes of the blind." I knew that God was speaking to my heart, that in heaven, my dad could see perfectly!
When I have felt alone, the verse "As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so is the Lord round about His people from henceforth for ever," has been a staff on which to lean during difficult days.
When I have been without direction, I have chosen the staff, "For I know the plans I have for you...plans to prosper you and not to harm you..plans to give you a hope and a future." When I have been overwhelmed by life, and felt "stuck", the staff that I have walked by has been "When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path." Psalm 142:3
When I have felt downright unlovable, my staff has been "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the Love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:38-39
In times of doubt, when human judgement seems to be of no value, I have found it easier to go forward with this staff.."In quietness and trust is your strength" Isaiah30:15, and when I have felt like I failed, I am reminded that "In Thee oh Lord, do I put my trust." Psalm 71:1..and I have been comforted.
Beloved, no matter what you face today, and no matter what rocky path you may be on, you can be sure that God will provide you with a staff. You are equipped with the Word of God. You can lean on it. You can trust in the Living Word to hold you up. He would never send you on any journey without well equipping you.