Psalm 23
I’m preaching a short series on the Psalms right now. Tomorrow I will preach about Psalms of new orientation using Psalm 73, but I decided to share something else I wrote in May of 2020.
A Paraphrase of Psalm 23
For the Coronavirus Pandemic
God is my respiratory therapist;
I take deep breaths of oxygen.
The word for breath and wind and Spirit are the same.
When I’m scared, my nurse explains everything to me.
When I can’t sleep, my CNA brings me more pillows and gives me clean sheets.
When I feel lonely and miss touching my family,
the people who clean my room make sure I see a smile through all the masks.
Even when my lungs begin to fail and the ventilator must be used,
I know I am in good hands because you are right next to me
using every tool available to fill my lungs with air again.
And, when the worst of it is over
and the news station is shouting at me that the virus really isn’t all that bad,
God brings me refreshing Jell-O,
the red kind,
with a knowing smile that it may as well be a 10-course meal.
I am cleaned as gunk built up in the corners of my mouth
are gently wiped away by you. I have plenty of ice chips in my cup.
I never want to return to this place again,
but know that without a doubt,
I have seen God here,
that God followed me here,
held me here,
cried with me here,
and will follow me home too.
Even after the scariest time of my life,
I know that I am held in the arms of God
and nothing can separate me from that,
not Covid-19,
not death,
not fear.
Nothing.
I will be with God,
not because of something I do,
but because God pursues me . . .
I will be with God all the years of my life and throughout eternity.
