One of the most highly prized passages in all of the Bible is Psalm 23. It has earned that exalted place by being one of the most helpful and encouraging references to so many people over the centuries. The first verse says, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” This is a great introductory summary of the whole chapter. The word Lord is Jehovah, which reminds us that the true, living, Creator God is self-existent, eternal, almighty and actively involved in the lives of His sheep (children) personally all of the time: past, present and future. Shepherds do three major things for their sheep and so does God for His children: protects, guides and provides for all of their other needs.
Since He has, is and will shepherd me, I will never lack anything that I truly need to fulfill my God-given purpose of pleasing Him. From the Bible, the Holy Spirit, the help of His church, other individual believers and His overall providence, I can know and do what pleases Him.
Perhaps you heard of the little 4 year old girl who stood up to quote Psalm 23. She simpy said, “The Lord’s my Shepherd, that’s all I want.” She did not remember every word in the whole chapter, but she did get the main point! Lord, help us to live in light of this main point of Psalm 23, as so many others have before us.