BIBLE W4 D1 The LORD is my Shepherd (Psalm 23)

Our theme for this week is meditation on God's word. Each day we will pick a verse from our scripture reading and say it over and over again... letting it's meaning permeate our thoughts.

The 23rd Psalm is a very rich source for our first day's meditation. Read the psalm twice and choose a verse that has meaning for you. I choose part of verse 3 "He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake". This morning I used a set of prayer beads to guide my meditation. I'll explain more about the prayer beads later, but they helped me keep on focus as I repeated the verse 28 times.

"He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake."

Now I'm to try and chew on this verse over and over in my thoughts all day today... ponder it's meaning... apply it to my life... try and get it under my skin (like that song from the radio the author describes on p.43). How does that happen?

Well, I start by saying it the 28 times using the beads, but then I write it out a few times as I'm writing my journal, then I type it again several times as I write this blog. By then I will have it memorized. Later in the morning I reach that point I face every morning when I try to find an excuse to avoid exercising, but then I think "He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake" and I realize that I need to care for this temple - my body - and hit the bike for 30 minutes. I repeat the verse to myself over and over again while I zone out on the bike.

Now I notice that the verse is starting to color my thoughts and actions. Kristen and John wake up to start their days and a minor disagreement starts to brew. I think... "He leads me on paths of righteousness for his name's sake" and I change course and let things pass.

At work, Today's PITA client or employee comes in and says those things that always seem to crank up my emotions, but in the nick of time, I hear my verse in my head "He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake", and I change course and try to be more understanding.

I think you get the idea. By keeping God's word in our heads all day, we enter a sort of state of constant prayer. This can only help us as we walk today's pathway in our pilgrimage on earth.

So choose the verse from Psalm 23 that speaks to you. Then commit it to memory and live with it in your head all day. I can't wait to hear what happens on Sunday.