A different kind of Psalm

Please allow me to indulge in a little reflection. I would like to look at tattoos as psalms. Webster defines a psalm as…
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English psealm, from Late Latin psalmus, from Greek psalmos, literally, twanging of a harp, from psallein to pluck, play a stringed instrument
Psalm: a sacred song or poem used in worship; especially : one of the biblical hymns collected in the Book of Psalms.
So basically it is the use of words, to describe or capture how a particular person feels about God. I know that is an oversimplification, but it should work for our purposes here. You see, our church is going through the Psalms these past few Sundays. On one of them, our preacher / pulpit minister / head microphone using guy, was looking at the psalms as what it means to follow Jesus. You know, how all the different emotions we are capable of feeling come to the forefront at one time or another. How following Jesus is not always (in fact rarely if you ask me) a “happy happy joy joy” kind of thing. He also talked about how the pain we go through in life shapes and changes us. Again, this is a horrible oversimplification. If you would like to read more of what he said, please go to http://www.tentpegs.blogspot.com/ I would give you a link if I knew how… well maybe I just did, how do I know?

So anyway, it all got me to thinking. I propose that you could look at certain tattoos as psalms written in flesh. For many people, they are the outpouring of emotions, not in words, but images. They chronicle the changes and pain that shape our lives. Sound familiar? Let me give you an example…

My God,
You consume me with a holy fire that pains me, and refines me.
You have called me Your own, and have placed your Spirit in me.
You have opened You ways to those who were not Your own, You grafted wild vines onto your stock.
You sustain my family, and bring life to all that is nourished by You.
You uphold us through all of our changes.
My God, it is You I will serve all my days.

Now, would you feel comfortable calling that a psalm? Granted it may not be a very good one, but I think it qualifies non the less. I just wrote it! I never intended to write it, but I just did. Why? It describes all the elements of my tattoo. That tattoo came first by a long shot. It signified my devotion to God as a minister, no matter what I found myself doing for a living.


The Trinity knot is a symbol of God. It is flaming because “our God is a consuming fire”. The flames are blue simply because I wanted them to be…. It’s cool! The Chinese characters translate; “religion of light”. It is what the early Taoist called Christianity. I had them put there to remind me that not all of Christianity looks the same. The characters themselves were found on a stone tablet in China. The two trees symbolize my wife and I. We are separate, yet very much intertwined. God stands at the center of us. Along the top of the trees they transition from winter, spring, summer, to fall. This shows the seasons of our life, and the changes that we go through.

Now I know there are a lot of people out there that don’t like tattoos. That’s fine, they don’t have to. But what negative thing can you really say about this one? One of the complaints I heard recently about this tattoo ministry is.. “They’ll regret getting them some day”. Maybe, maybe not. Unless I turn from God, I don’t see that happening. And if I do turn from God, I will always have a reminder of Who I have deserted.

So there you have it. I think there are a lot of people feeling a lot of things, and finding a lot of ways to express them. Some are good, some are not. But just remember, the next tattoo you see, may just be someone’s prayer, whether you know it or not. Maybe, just maybe, the tattooed and pierced could teach church folk some new kinds of prayers, and the church folk could teach the tattooed and pierced some new kinds of Psalms. I think both sides would be blessed… don’t you?

Pete