Take charge...take control. Make it your own - Psalm 23.
- Christine DiGiacomo
- 29 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Just when you thought there could be nothing left to say about David's shepherd psalm, alas, there is more. The 'more' involves you, directly and personally.
Almost every morning when I write my prayer, I employ words from the psalms and pray them as my own. Before we close the page of Psalm 23 in our Bibles, allow me to share my morning prayer from the beloved psalm with you. And I pray it will inspire you to do something similar!
For reference, my starting point:
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Here is how I made the psalm my own, praying to the Good Shepherd:
Dear Father,
You are my Shepherd...my Good Shepherd. And because you know my needs before I do, you are already providing for them.
Lord, thank you for the green pastures--in you and only you, do I have true rest.
And still waters, necessary for the shepherd to scout out for his flock...
I thank you, Lord, for sustenance--for food and water to nourish me so that I can flourish. O, may I never take them for granted.
You restore my soul, Lord. For truly, only you can heal the wounded places, the painful memories, the stored trauma, even the shame and guilt. hmmm...
Lord Jesus, thank you for showing me the way I ought to live--the righteous, set apart way. And thank you for showing me that the way to honor you is by obeying you, walking closely with you.
Even when I am in the darkest of valleys, you are with me; no reason to fear if I am walking next to you... not even evil will cause me to be afraid.
Just as the shepherd wields his rod and staff, so you let me know of your presence by guiding me, giving me direction, making me aware that you see me... you are with me.
Thank you, Lord, that you prepare a table for me - no matter what swirls about my life - a table for two now, each day, as I meet you in the morning, and then walk with you each day. But you, Lord, also prepare a place for me at the table with you and brothers and sisters aplenty... and that, forever!
Surely your goodness and your mercy will be mine all the days of my life, because you are so good! And when I pass from this life into the next, I will be with you forever.
Thank you for being my Shepherd, Lord God. I pray all these things in the mighty name of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, Amen.
You too can make Psalm 23 your own by praying the inspired words back to God. They will surely be a little different than mine. Go ahead, grab your Bible, or look at the psalm in this briefing, and then either pray it for yourself, or even better, write out your prayer from the text.
Why should you pray Psalm 23 or any of the other psalms?
Here is what I know - the reason God-fearing people stop praying regularly is because they are bored with their own tired, repetitive 'asking for the same things in the same way' prayers. The book that changed all of that for me is Praying the Bible - small, but transformative. The author invites us to not just read the words of Scripture, but to grab ahold of them, and pray them. Chief scriptures for this? Probably the psalms, because these have been the songs of God's people for more than 2500 years. You see, Friend, the psalms capture everything you and I will ever feel or experience, and because they are inspired by God, it also means that we are praying in alignment with Him.
So, today I 'prayed' Psalm 23. 'What about the 149 other psalms,' you ask? I love Donald Whitney's suggestion, (the author of Praying the Bible), using the day of the month and a multiplier of 30, because the average month has 30 days. Today is the 5th, so we take a look at Psalm 5 + 30 =35 - I looked this morning at Psalm 35 + 30 = 65 + 30 = 95 + 30 = 125... Again, looking at 5 different psalms, I quickly read through them, and then choose one that I will pray, grabbing ahold of words to use as my own. [This is not hermeneutics or considering the Hebrew words originally used, doing a deep dive; this is grabbing ahold of the psalmists' heart to reach for our God in prayer!]
God's Word is so apt, so fitting for life - for every situation. And taking the words of God for ourselves, praying them back to him ... and apprehending them for another person, yes, of course! I mean, Friend, when is the last time you grabbed one of Paul's prayers and prayed it over your life or someone else's? Substance like nothing else you have experienced or prayed.
Again, how many times have I prayed this for someone: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15.13.
There is power in prayer - and personally, there is even more so when we pray Scripture to God! So grab ahold of the words, make them your own, pray them back to God. That's right - make them your own!
How I love the Word.
Christine
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