I Shall Not Want

What do you want today?

We believe the lie that satisfaction waits over the next horizon. You can hear yourself saying, “If only I had…” Sometimes live in longing for that one thing to settle us. Even worse though, we get what we want only finding ourselves looking for the next horizon.

Psalm 23:1 in the King James Version says, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”  Other translations like the NIV say, “…I lack nothing.” You may have heard those words thousands of times. Perhaps, like me, you memorized Psalm 23 as a child. Let this first verse sink into your heart, soul, and mind today — I shall not want.

Recently, my mind was racing through what I wanted. Like you, I have a picture of how my life could be better. Often, most of our desires and wants seem more like tweaks rather than winning the lottery. Then I heard the song by Audrey Assad; I Shall Not Want. Look at these lyrics:

From the love of my own comfort
From the fear of having nothing
From a life of worldly passions
Deliver me O God

From the need to be understood
And from a need to be accepted
From the fear of being lonely
Deliver me O God
Deliver me O God

And I shall not want, no, I shall not want
When I taste Your goodness, I shall not want

Psalm 23:1 points us to the Gospel. The acceptance, comfort, courage, love, and all that we crave does not come over the next horizon  — but we have all we need in Jesus.

That’s Good News. For those, who feel worn out by their expectations. For those, who live with the anxiety of trying to please others. For those, who have an exhausting ambition for producing. For those, who spend cycles of energy trying to access control motivated by fear.

I Shall Not Want becomes a counterculture anthem for rest and cry for wholeness in Jesus. The One who created you will sustain you. The One who offers life through His death and resurrection invites you to experience that life today. Free to receive His love and acceptance. Free to dismiss the lie that satisfaction comes on the other side of the horizon.

So, what do you want today? Ask yourself, why you want it? Take a moment to listen to I Shall Not Want in the link below. In prayer, release these wants to Jesus and seek the truth of the Gospel — in Jesus, we have all we need.

Photo by Céderic Vandenberghe