The familiar verse grabbed my heart last week:
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing (Psalm 23:1).
I’ve read it a million times before. Memorized it. Quoted it. Heard it at funerals and seen it written on greeting cards and picture frames. And still God’s living and inspired word spoke to me in a fresh way, giving me what I needed but failed to recognize I craved.
The Lord is my shepherd. I lack nothing.
The second phrase pierced my soul. On most days there’s a long list of things I feel I lack. I lack dollars in the bank and hours in the week. I lack the self-control to back away from the chocolate and the discipline to get myself to the gym three times a week. I lack patience with my children, the photography skills to look good on Instagram, and for someone who calls herself a writer, I spend more time than I should staring at a blank screen.
The list of things I lack grows longer every day. Yet God asks me to face the gaping maw of my inadequacy and make this declaration by faith:
The Lord is my shepherd. I lack nothing.
It’s not that God has suddenly transformed me into some smarter, kinder, thinner, and more fashionable version of myself. I lack nothing because God is everything. He offers strength for my weakness and grace for my deepest sin. He offers endurance when my energy is gone and a fountain of living water when my soul runs dry. He is the bread of life to satisfy my hunger and wisdom when I don’t know which way to turn. He is creativity and power; patience and discernment; faithfulness and never-failing love. The Lord is my shepherd, and he meets my every need.
The Lord is my shepherd. I lack nothing.
Maybe you’ve been in a similar place–feeling trapped by your own fears and failures, limited by all the ways you fall short and fail to measure up. Today, stand with me and make this declaration by faith: The Lord is my shepherd. I lack nothing because he is everything I need.
