Stress Relief

Do you check work email on the weekend? Do you sometimes eat dinner with the TV on and the laptop open, even while you try to carry on a quality conversation?

Hallelujah! Maybe you have arrived at this page for a reason! Psalm 23 is pure stress relief.

Psalm 23 is the best known and most popular of all the psalms. It is attributed to King David and is thought to have been written toward the end of his life.

The psalm is loved by Jews and Christians alike. When you consider that Muslims also read the Old Testament, that means that the majority of the world’s population recognizes this passage as somehow important.

Psalm 23 is divided into two sections. The first explores the image of God as shepherd, guiding and caring for His sheep. We see this theme again in the New Testament, where Jesus is identified as the Good Shepherd of the flock (John 10:1–21).

In the second section of the psalm, David is invited to partake in a meal, and the Lord God is the host of this extravagant banquet.

When I lived in Pennsylvania, our outgoing pastor preached one of his final sermons on this psalm. He advised us to read Psalm 23 slowly. Read it in the morning when you get up. Read it during the day. Read it when you get home and before you go to bed. Meditate on the words. Don’t hurry.

He said by doing this you will, among other things, relieve stress. I took him up on the challenge, and I can tell you firsthand that the transformation was real.

Hope you have fun answering the question from others, “Hey, how do you stay so calm?”

“He refreshes my soul.” — Psalm 23:3, NIV

Prayer: Our Lord and Shepherd, in Your parable of the sower, the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the Word and understands it. May Your Word fall on good ground today.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jim deWeerd is a Compassion IT director responsible for three areas: 10 International Partners, 10 customer groups at the Global Ministry Center, and associated third-party products.

Read all the One in Spirit devotionals.