Yesterday, Dad preached on Psalm 23, a familiar passage to many. One thing that really stuck out to me was something he mentioned about the very first verse, Psalm 23:1 ("The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures.") It was specifically in the first half of verse one: "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." What does that phrase mean - "I shall not want"? It's an interesting statement if you think about it. David, the author of Psalm 23, just finished saying that the Lord is his shepherd, or his leader, his guide, his comforter, his provider, and his conclusion is I shall not want. But what does that mean, we're still wondering? Basically, David is saying that he has such complete and utter trust in the Lord, his shepherd, he wants nothing more. He is totally and fully satisfied in his Maker. He doesn't want the Lord + anything. He just wants the Lord.
Many people who call themselves "Christians" seem to have a much different view. They are not satisfied with only the Lord. They think they need a person + the Lord to satisfy. Or an activity + the Lord. A possession + the Lord. Money + the Lord. Something + the Lord. He is not enough for them. They may think He's their shepherd, but they still want. So what does that say about them? If they want anything but the Lord to satisfy them, then the Lord is not their shepherd. Now, just because we sin in not being totally satisfied in the Lord all the time, that doesn't mean we're not Christians. It means we simply must repent of our sin and pray that the Lord would bring us to the point where He is truly all we need.
So let's focus our desires on the Shepherd, not on money or people or possessions, so that we can wholeheartedly say with David, "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want."