valle Y GOd

C RISIS O f TEN TURNS OUR GOD PONDERINGS INTO PRAYER

There is no more familiar or beloved Psalm than “The Shepherd’s Psalm”, the twentythird. Attributed to King David, it speaks of God as “my shepherd”, and provides a portrait of a close and loving relationship between the human and the divine.

In almost 37 years of ministry, I suppose I have read it at 90 percent of the funerals and memorial services I have done. And although I usually use one of the modern biblical translations, somehow I cannot read this Psalm in anything but the old King James. I cannot count the times when I have been at the bedside of a sick friend who seems unconscious, but with the first phrase of the Psalm the lips move with me, drawing upon something deep within: “The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.”

It wasn’t until many years into the ministry, however, that I noticed a subtle but profound truth in the twenty-third Psalm. It starts out in the third person: “The Lord is my Shepherd,” then it goes on to speak of what God does: “He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters ...” Third person talk about God is theology — the study of God. Much of our talk about God falls into this category. We ask questions about God — is there a God? Is God a God of love? Why does God allow suffering? What does God think about the state of human society? Whenever we ask such questions, we are theologians.

But then something happens, in the midst of the Psalm. After green pastures and still waters, the Shepherd leads us “through the valley of the shadow of death.” I am impressed by the way the Bible tells the truth. The Psalms, especially, are honest about life and about us. While it would be comforting to restrict the Psalm to the serene and the beautiful, it would not be realistic, for we know all too well that there is more to life than still waters and green pastures. We know that there are also the valleys, the shadows, and the looming specter of death.

But it is right there, in the valley, that something profound happens. The Psalmist’s voice changes from third person to second person: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, thou art with me.” Now the Psalmist is speaking, not about God, but with God. Here the Psalm becomes not theology, but conversation. The rest of the Psalm is a prayer!

That’s the way life is, isn’t it? It’s usually in the valley that prayer is born. Until the hard times, we may speak about God, but in the dark, God becomes personal, and for the first time we hear ourselves saying “Thou”. I’ve heard many people express guilt that they never spoke much with God until some crisis came but that’s the way life is. Prayer becomes most real, most relevant, in the dark.

It’s a good reminder as we face another year. May you be led to plenty of still water, and enjoy the green pastures. But if the year leads you through any dark places, may you find there the intimacy of a conversation with God.

A Rising Star

The starting lineup of “On the Radio” included W.T. White senior Deidre Thornell , who won the Texas round of the Colgate Country Showdown, a singing competition that showcases the nation’s most promising country music talent.