Once there was this little five-year-old girl who once found herself standing for the first time with other kids to recite memory verses in front of the whole congregation. When it was her turn to speak out, she started off very confidently, ‘The Lord is my shepherd’ and then she noticed everyone was looking at her intently and she felt proud of herself for a moment. And then it happened, she forgot the rest of the verse. She tried hard to remember, she even looked at her mother for some help but all she could see was her mother’s lips moving as she was trying to remind her daughter the remaining part of the verse. It was not working. The child tried real hard by repeating the first sentence again and again and then suddenly her face beamed and she blurted out, ‘AND THAT IS ALL I WANT.’ The congregation burst into laughter. The little girl unknowingly had a made a statement which was so very true.
David, a shepherd boy himself, crafts out a song (which became the 23rd Psalm) from his own imagination. He puts himself in the position of a sheep and looks at the shepherd and gathers how he caters to the need of the sheep.
He talks of green pastures and still waters, which is so important for survival. Restoration of the soul, peace at heart and walking in the shepherd’s ways follows. Even when the going gets dangerous and sometimes life-threatening, the sheep has nothing to be frightened of because of the gentle nudges that it gets from the shepherd’s staff, which not only tells the sheep that it is not alone but also the fact that it is protected.
From here David starts to talk about himself in real life, but let us just continue with the sheep. The rest and peace even in the presence of its enemies makes the sheep feel that it is special and it is filled with gratitude toward the shepherd. After having such a wonderful experience the sheep is certain of the future that all good things, mercy and love will follow throughout its life and decides that it is going to live with this shepherd forever.
What a way to depict the relationship between the Lord and his children. Is it not so true in our daily life? Jesus in John Chapter 10 takes on from where David had left and goes a step further when in verse 11 He says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” Jesus did not merely say that, but he indeed did lay down His life for mankind making Him the Good Shepherd as David was talking about. And He still is doing everything that David mentioned in Psalm 23, for each one of us sitting at the right hand of the father – Romans 8:34.
Now, we all know that the little girl got the verse wrong, but I cannot help but agree with her that – THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD AND THAT IS ALL I WANT.