Blessed is the Man
Psalm 1:1-3, "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; 2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. 3 He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.
When my sons were growing up, I often reminded them to be wise in their choice of friends, because whoever they spent time with would, knowingly for them, or unknowingly, be an influence on their thoughts, attitudes, and behaviors.
Verse 1 of Psalm 1 indicates the type of people who need to be avoided in order to control the negative influences upon a man's life. The influence one allows others to have, determines, to a large extent one's spiritual destiny. The walks, stands, and, sits seems to suggest a progression of influence that results from initially turning one's attention in the wrong direction. Whatever we continually expose and feed our minds with, influences how we think, act, and speak. There are many negative influences in our modern world. Not only do we need to be aware of them, we also need to close every door of their influence upon us. (Shut them out). We have become so accustomed to them, we are not aware of or ever consider their presence or influence upon us. Some of these spheres of influence are: television, movies, the internet (a biggie), magazines, secular news /media, cell phones, violent video games, and people that we should not be hanging out with. The more we allow all this influence in our lives, the deeper we get into negative thinking, detrimental thinking, misguided speaking and ultimately, flawed acting. God created us to think, speak and act like Him. Take note of verse 1 in Psalm 1 again..."if you do not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, stand in the path of sinners nor sit in the seat of the scornful; you will be blessed." The only way to prosper, succeed, and be happy in this world is to be as we were created to be....like God.
In the beginning, God said, "Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness." (Genesis 1:26) We need to fill our minds with God's way as instructed through His Word.
Throughout the Psalms, God's divine revelation is variously called: "the law", "commandments", "testimonies", "statutes", "precepts", "judgments", "word'," "ordinances", and "ways". All of these are referring to His Word.
Psalm 1:2 says, "But his (the man who chooses blessing) delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night." The Hebrew word for delight is "chephets" which means; to be delighted in something; to take pleasure in; to be bent or inclined towards; to cherish; to be favorably disposed toward someone; and to love and cherish. This definition reminds me of the Song of Solomon, where we read that the two lovers cannot keep from thinking of each other; and how they long to be together because of their desire for one another. This then, should describe the extent of desire we should have for God's Word.
The second part of Psalm 1:2 instructs us to "meditate" on God's law or Word - day and night. To "meditate" means: to ponder, converse with oneself, mutter; to meditate or contemplate something as one repeats the words and to quietly repeat the scriptures in soft droning sounds while utterly abandoning outside distractions.
Every time we read scripture, we need to contemplate: What is God saying? What is He teaching me? and How does this apply to my everyday walk? Allow the Holy spirit to reveal God's truth concerning the verse or portion of scripture you are reading. I would rather have you gain insight of one verse and be able to apply it to your life, personally, than to hear that you read an entire chapter, but couldn't see the relevance of it for you.
Let's look at the last part of Psalm 1 verse 2, "in His law he meditates day and night."
Joshua 1:8 also instructs us to meditate on His Word day and night that we may succeed.
1 Thessalonians 5:17 says, "pray without ceasing."
I am sure a lot of people would ask, "How do I do that?" "I have a job, a family, responsibilities that require my attention." I believe the answer to this question is that we live in a constant state of awareness, communion and fellowship with God. There are always time throughout our day or night when our thoughts can be or are on God.
Psalm 63:1-6, "O God, You are my God; early will I seek You; my soul thirsts for You; my flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water. 2 So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory. 3 Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. 4 Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. 5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips. 6 When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches. We see in these verses that the psalmist is totally involved in his worship of God. Verse 2 - his eyes, to see: Verse 3 - his lips, shall praise; Verse 4 - his hands, lift up my hands; Verse 5 - his soul, shall be satisfied and his mouth, shall praise; then in Verse 6 - his mind, meditate. To love God and His Word involves all of our being. We need to be aware of Him and His desires for us at all times.
Psalm 119:147 and 148, " I rise before the dawning of the morning, and cry for help; I hope in Your word. 148 My eyes are awake through the night watches, that I may meditate on Your word."
All of us have times when we are awake early in the morning, late at night or in the middle of the night. These are good times to commune with God. For most of us, those are the time when we experience quietness and peace, which allows us to more easily speak to and hear God.
Whenever you take or make time to commune with God and meditate on His Word, may God's Spirit transform you into the image He created you to be - His.
Press on. He blesses His children!