Iz and I shared our Time With God the other night. I did this for her, but turns out I needed it for myself. We were supposed to read Psalms chapters 1-5. I didn't get out of chapter 1. I got stuck on verse 3. This is how it reads....
That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.
Wait, let me go back... verses 1 and 2 tell us who "that person" is... and who he/she isn't....
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.
Okay so the person whose delight is in the law of the Lord and who meditates on it day and night....
THAT person is like a tree planted by streams of water...
THAT person is like a tree that yields fruit in its season...
THAT person is like a tree whose leaf does not wither...
THAT person prospers.
I have a hydrangea in my front flower bed. Lately, it has been a bit droopy. The summer heat makes it want more water, and I am not faithful to consistently give it the water it needs. Poor thing has a tendency to get droopy, limp, pale... and then it rains. Over the past week, we have had a nice steady rain and my hydrangea LOVED it. This morning I noticed that she is bright green and standing tall.
This gives me a great visual of the tree mentioned in these verses. When we are separated from Christ (the "stream'), we are droopy, limp, pale, sickly.. we don't thrive. In contrast, when we are saturated with Christ, mediating on God's Word, focused on the Holy Spirit and His workings in our lives, we are robust, we stand tall, we have everything we need.
Thinking about the promise that "That person" will bear fruit in his/her time...
Trees yield fruit in their season... apple trees give us apples in the fall, after they survive the scorching heat of summer. They do not produce fruit continuously. This reminds me that I won't bear fruit continuously. There are seasons when I will bear fruit and seasons when I won't... but when I am "planted by streams of water" ... rooted in the Holy Spirit... I will bear fruit when it's "my season." I wonder if we too bear our sweetest fruit after a "summer" of fiery trials.
Thinking about the promise that "That person" is like a leaf that does not wither...
I have a propensity for killing house plants, so I know a lot about withered leaves. They are crunchy, brittle, and crumble at the slightest touch. They fall away from the rest of the plant. (like those who are not close to Christ fall away from the church body.... but that's a post for another day) I also know what that FEELS like... when I am not rooted in Christ, I FEEL brittle. I crumble and fall apart at the slightest thing. My emotions are fragile. I'm easily offended. In contrast, when a leaf is hydrated, it can withstand much harsher treatment...instead of crumbling, it only bruises. Same with me...
Finally, why would being close to Christ cause us to prosper? How can God promise this?
When we are rooted in Christ, when we DELIGHT in the Law of the Lord, when we MEDITATE on it... our hearts align with His, our desires align with His, His plan becomes our plan, and so... we prosper.
Just my thoughts.
K
