Read: Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. Psalm 23:1
If King David wrote this beloved psalm as the text suggests, then this reflection is of a simpler time when his worries did not include the flood of demands placed upon him by his position of leadership. In this psalm, David reflected on his early years when he shepherded his father’s flocks in the field. There was something divine about the simplicity of a shepherd guiding, protecting, and sustaining sheep. Could the cosmic relationship between God and God’s people be accurately captured in such an image? Could God be trusted as sheep trust the one who watches over them? Could the multiplicity of fears that lurk in the valleys and shadows of our lives be dismissed in favor of trusting the One who walks by our side? Could life and leadership be that simple? Psalm 23 offers us a resounding and poetic “Yes!”
In what ways do you need to simplify your life?
Lord, my life has become too complicated. I have too much stuff. I keep too many commitments. I have more worries than I know what to do with. I want life to be simpler. I want to live less encumbered by the demands that assail me. I want to live essentially, which means I want to live by Your direction. You are my shepherd, I am Your sheep. Lead me so that I may not want. In Jesus’ name, I pray. AMEN