Let all the earth fear the LORD;
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!
For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.--Psalm 33:8-9
read
Psalm 1
Haha...I'm supposed to go outside to my yard or a park and find a healthy tree and focus on it for a while. Sadly, that's not really feasible at the moment. You see, it's 8:00am on Sunday morning, and I'm preparing for church. Maybe sometime during this week, I can do this. Admittedly, it would be worth my while to read this Psalm at the base of a huge, mighty tree. But for now, this will have to do.
Here's the Psalm, in Eugene Peterson's unique translation...
How well God must like you--
you don't hang out at Sin Saloon,
you don't slink along Dead-End Road,
you don't go to Smart-Mouth College.Instead you thrill to GOD's Word,
you chew on Scripture day and night.
You're a tree replanted in Eden,
bearing fresh fruit every month,
Never dropping a leaf,
always in blossom.You're not at all like the wicked,
who are mere windblown dust--
Without defense in court,
unfit company for innocent people.GOD charts the road you take.
The road they take is Skid Row.
think
Contemplate the correlation between being in God's Word and the strength of a tree.
A tree uses this magnificent natural "pump" system to suck nutrients from the ground all the way to the highest branches. It's really quite amazing. If we have our roots sunk deep into God's Word, we, too can "suck" nutrients from it to the very depths of our being.
Notice the difference between the wicked and the righteous.
The righteous are thrilled by God's Word. They meditate on the Bible, day and night. The wicked congregate with other wicked. What are the equivalents of "Sin Saloon, Dead-End Road, and Smart-Mouth College?" The more traditional translations use a progression of walking, standing, then sitting in various places of wickedness. The idea being that first you walk along with others, then you stop and congregate with them, then finally, you sit down and stay awhile with them.
What would my life look like if it were "bearing fresh fruit every month?" I think there is a correlation here to the tree that is mentioned in the book of Revelation. I don't know if this is foreshadowing by David or what. But the tree in the middle of the river flowing through the middle of the City of God in Revelation is said to have a different kind of fruit each month. How weird is that?? There is certainly no tree on earth that is capable of doing that! My life would be fresh and new all the time, if I were bearing fresh fruit every month.
pray
Father, I pray that my life will be like this tree, always in blossom and bearing fruit. I pray that my roots will descend deeply into your word and its healthy soil.
live
I thank God for his word and the wisdom and teaching that I find there. I plan to spend more time later this week meditating on this Psalm, preferably in the presence of a real tree...Heh.
Grace and peace.