You Shall Not Want (book review)

Psalms are an essential part of a christian spiritual life. Psalm study is often recommended on retreats or when learning about christian communities, saints, or mystics.

This book has helped me to engage with the Psalms.

You Shall Not Want: 30 Days with The Psalms
Edited by Richard Chilson for the 30 Days with a Great Spiritual Teacher series
Ave Maria Press 2009
106 pages
Book size 5×7

I was introduced to this book on a retreat in 2023. We were encouraged to read through it as part of our retreat prep and to use it during the retreat.

Each entry includes sections of prayer: My Day Begins, All Through the Day, My Day is Ending, Night Prayer. My Day Begins is the longest section of the paraphrased Psalm or Psalms. All Through the Day is the shortest, think of this section like a breath prayer or a short memory verse. My Day is Ending invites the reader to reflect on an aspect of their day. The Night prayer is exactly what you might think it is, something to say before you fall asleep. It also has some brief introductory pages about the psalms that gives the bare basics.

It’s so small that it could easily fit into a purse or a day pack if you wanted to carry it with you. I love the size for when I want to pack light. And it would be possible to leave the book on your bedside table but put the All Through the Day prayer on a sticky note or write it on your retreat schedule or the back of your name tag, etc. so that you have something to anchor your thoughts throughout the day.

The psalms are paraphrased from the King James Version. I don’t love this version for study but it does lend itself to poetry and the paraphrase is a contemporary english but still maintains a sacred feel.

The psalms are not identified in the book. It may not be a hindrance to some readers, but it was for me. When I get a resource like this on a retreat, yes, I think of the personal spiritual benefit but I’m also considering how I might use the resource in another context. If I wanted to use these prayers in the context of a psalm study or as part of a church retreat that is not 30 days long, I might want to coordinate with other texts I’m using. The book contains a “how to use this book section”, so I was surprised that a psalm index wasn’t included. Luckily, the retreat leader made a handout for this book that included with psalms were used. I wrote in my book so that I didn’t have to save a separate piece of paper. I’m not sharing that here, because it was his work and not mine.

While it’s not a book that I consult for the psalm reflection blog posts, it is a book that remains on my shelf because I remember liking it as a spiritual practice aid that I think I may use again.