Much thanks to Pastor Greg Stamper of Celebration Spiritual Center in NYC (who is also an incredible singer/songwriter/musician) for sharing his reflections on Psalm 23!!
From Pastor Greg: Growing up, my family would always say grace before each meal. Each time, we ended this prayer by collectively affirming the opening verse of Psalm 23, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” As a child I did not fully understand the significance of this powerful declaration—it was just something we said. As an adult, the significance of this well-known psalm is captured for me, in four words: I shall not want.
Even as the writer of the psalm invokes our imagination with the image of a shepherd, walking through valleys, or being in the presence of enemies, underneath it all is a reminder that we will want for nothing. When we need rest, it is provided. When we need shelter, it is provided. When we need sustenance, it is provided. When we need protection it is provided. When we need healing, it is provided.
In the final verse of the psalm we read “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.” The Hebrew word translated into English as “mercy” also means “kindness” or “lovingkindness”. Goodness and Lovingkindness are always with us. It does not matter what the outer circumstances of life seem to dictate. We are always taken care of.
I am grateful to my sister Hayley Thompson for choosing to capture the heart of Psalm 23. Her song provides a helpful and timely reminder that there is a Great Shepherd that lives within us. The unfailing presence of Goodness and Lovingkindness assures us that we shall never want. To that I say, “Amen!”
