I Shall Not Want

I have two poems to share this week.  The first poem is a reflection on Psalm 23.  The verses of Psalm 23 are cited in bold writing before each stanza of the poem.  This poem was written in particular for children but may also be helpful for adults. It is important for children to hear Scripture from a young age.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

Psalm 23:1

God is our Shephard

We are his sheep

God cares for all our needs

For our sins, our Shephard died

He rose again. He gives us life

He is our God; we are his people

He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.

Psalm 23:2

Our Father gives us food and homes

He gives us clothes

He gives us peace and rest

He gives us the Holy Spirit

He gives us faith in Christ

In Christ, our sins are forgiven

He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.

Psalm 23:3

When we go astray, God brings us back

Jesus bought us with his blood

We are his people and he is our God

The Spirit leads us in our walk with Christ

God is righteous and holy

We enjoy him. To God be the glory!

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.

Psalm 23:4

When danger lurks, fear not

Remember God is with you

He will never ever leave you

God protects and leads us

With his rod and staff.

Our souls find comfort in his care

You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.

Psalm 23:5

Those that hunger for righteousness

And those that thirst are filled

God feeds our souls. He gives us life

The wicked do not feed on Christ

By God’s grace we are saved

His blessings cannot be measured

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.
Psalm 23:6

God made each day; each day is good

Each day his mercies are new

The LORD our God is rich in mercy

He gives us faith in Christ

In Jesus Christ we have eternal life

We’re pilgrims here. Heaven is our home

This poem is scripturally based. Some of the additional Scripture references include:

Stanza 1: “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” John 10:14-18

Stanza 4: “It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” 2 Deuteronomy 31:8

Stanza 5: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” Matthew 5:6

Stanza 5-6: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” Ephesians 2:4-7

Stanza 6: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” Lamentations 3:22-23

Walking a Valley

Walking a valley with shadows of death

I fear no evil, comforted by rod and staff

A cross upon my shoulders wearies me

Until I look up and see my burden being borne

I hear of groanings to deep for words

Uttered on my behalf. I’m not alone

Weak and weary, I rest in God’s strength

In the shadow of the Almighty-

The everlasting LORD,

I find new strength

I mount up with wings like an eagle

I run unwearied; I walk and faint not

The second poem is a reflection on Scripture passages that have been on my mind lately. References include:

Psalm 23:4: 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.

Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

I have included part of Calvin’s commentary on Romans 8:26 below. I found his commentary a helpful exposition of the verse. I accessed the commentary through http://biblehub.com

And likewise the Spirit, etc. That the faithful may not make this objection -- that they are so weak as not to be able to bear so many and so heavy burdens, he brings before them the aid of the Spirit, which is abundantly sufficient to overcome all difficulties. There is then no reason for any one to complain, that the bearing of the cross is beyond their own strength, since we are sustained by a celestial power. And there is great force in the Greek word sunantilambanetai, which means that the Spirit takes on himself a part of the burden, by which our weakness is oppressed; so that he not only helps and succours us, but lifts us up; as though he went under the burden with us. [264] The word infirmities, being in the plural number, is expressive of extremity. For as experience shows, that except we are supported by God's hands, we are soon overwhelmed by innumerable evils, Paul reminds us, that though we are in every respect weak, and various infirmities threaten our fall, there is yet sufficient protection in God's Spirit to preserve us from falling, and to keep us from being overwhelmed by any mass of evils. At the same time these supplies of the Spirit more clearly prove to us, that it is by God's appointment that we strive, by groanings and sighings, for our redemption.

Psalm 91:1: He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.

Isaiah 40:3: But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.