FEBRUARY Psalms of Trust: Psalms 23-25

“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.” -Psalm 23:1-3

CHAPTER OF THE WEEK: Psalm 23 You can read it every day or just once, pray it, meditate on it, talk about it, or find other resources about it.

VERSE OF THE WEEK: Psalm 23:1-3 You can memorize it, read it every day or just once, pray it, meditate on it, talk about it, or find other resources about it.

ON THE LOOKOUT: Over the next few months, we’ll be taking a look at the different categories of the Psalms. There are all sorts of categories and themes in Psalms. Keep looking for attributes of God, but add to your list looking for the theme of the week.

RESOURCE OF THE WEEK: Steve Lawson did an excellent devotional on Psalm 23 with the Steadfast Hope ministry. YouTube Link

SONG OF THE WEEK: “Psalm 23” by Zach Winters YouTube link, Spotify link.

PLAYLIST FOR THE WEEK: Here is a playlist with songs from Psalms 23-25 YouTube link, Spotify link.

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK: As you read Scripture this week, see if you can categorize or find themes in the passages. Especially look for verses about or alluding to putting our trust in God.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “Jesus is the only shepherd who knows what it’s like to be a sheep. (John 10:11)” – from The Songs of Jesus by Timothy Keller

THOUGHTS ON PSALMS 23-25

The Psalm we are focusing on today will likely be very familiar, but the category of Psalm we’ll be looking at might be unfamiliar. Psalm 23 is largely considered one of the Trust or Confidence Psalms. Usually, these ten chapters of Psalms are placed in this category: 11, 16, 23, 27, 62, 63, 91, 121, 125, and 131. It’s kind of interesting when you really take a look at Psalm 23, it becomes clear it’s not like the majority of the Psalms we’ve read so far. Most of the Psalms we’ve read have been laments or complaints to God combined with praise and thanksgiving for who God is and what He has done. But Psalm 23 is a calm, confident proclamation that God is trustworthy.

What is a Psalm of trust? To trust means to believe that someone or something is true, honest, effective, or reliable (Merriam-Webster). We see that level of trust so clearly in Psalm 23. David makes the analogy of God as a shepherd to his sheep who are his children. Sheep are notorious for being stupid. They have a herd mentality and will blindly follow each other. They can’t save or protect themselves and they constantly wander off. They take great care and guidance from an outside source to stay alive. Isaiah 53 rightly compares humans to sheep because they wander from God, the One person who can keep them alive. I don’t think we feel like sheep though. I think we often think we’re cats; self-reliant and not dependent on anyone. In reality, we need to trust a good shepherd to guide us through life. Luckily, we have a guide in Jesus who claimed the title of Good Shepherd in John 10. Not only is He sovereign and guiding us every step of our lives, He has experienced humanity Himself and never gave into temptation. This should comfort us that our Savior and Shepherd can identify with our failings and yet remained perfect. It should be easy to trust such a Redeemer with our lives!

What is a Psalm of Confidence? I noticed that some websites and books use the category “Psalms of Confidence” instead of “Psalms of Trust” to refer to this Psalm group. Trust and confidence are super similar in definition. The one difference I saw was that trust is a belief and confidence is more tied up with feelings. When we are confident about something, we don’t just have the head knowledge to trust, but also the sure feeling that something is right. Not once in Psalm 23 does David have to convince or remind himself that he can trust in God. “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil” (Psalm 23:4) His feelings align with his beliefs.

How are these prayers useful? Here’s an interesting question. If Psalm 23 displays complete confidence in God, then why do people find it so useful when they don’t have confidence in God? This is the beauty of reading Psalms. The Psalms are prayers that we can use to align our feelings with our beliefs. When I’ve gone through major trials in life, I know God is with me, but I don’t feel like He is. I know He is a shepherd, but I feel lost. This can be very dangerous because our feelings can change and dictate our beliefs. When I pray Psalm 23, I go through captivating imagery that reminds me who God really is. It comforts and consoles me so I come to place where I don’t have to feel afraid. I knew all along that I didn’t have to be afraid, but now I feel it so it won’t shake my beliefs and in turn helps my actions align with God’s will. These Psalms of trust and confidence can be read when we are in the mountaintops or valleys of our lives.

What if Psalm 23 isn’t working? This Psalm can have an almost placebo effect because most of us probably can think of multiple occasions when this Psalm was helpful. When we return to it, it feels like an old friend. I set out to primarily look at Psalm 23, but we also read Psalm 25 this week. This Psalm is a little longer, but I highly encourage you to take a look. It’s similar to Psalm 23, but with a more in depth look at life. It is a complex prayer of calm requests amidst suffering. Sometimes we need the simplicity of Psalm 23, but sometimes our lives are so mixed up that we need more specific and detailed prayers. Sometimes we get tired of the same old reading and need something fresh as well. Next time you feel you don’t have words and you’re lacking confidence in God and Psalm 23 isn’t working, remember there’s a whole book of 150 prayers in multiple categories about many different things. God made sure we’d be able to find exactly what we need. He is a Good Shepherd indeed.