“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, But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. 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.” (Psalm 1:1-3)
“The ungodly are not so …” (Psalm 1:4a)
If the Lord wills, a New Year will arrive this coming Sunday. And just like every other year, for those of us who have experienced the coming of another new year many times over … we wonder what the coming year will bring.
I don’t have a crystal ball and don’t want one. But I know enough to know that if we follow the news events of the world with all of its turmoil and negativity, it would be easy to become discouraged and apprehensive about the New Year.
On the other hand, we can choose to believe that the child of God can and will have an entirely different perspective. Whatever might happen in this world … it will not catch the One who created our world by surprise! “He is on His throne …”
We serve the One true Living God … who knows all … who is everywhere present, and who possesses unlimited power! He is the “I AM THAT I AM.”
God’s people … His “… special people …” have so much to be thankful for … to be happy about … and to look forward to in eternity!
The “blessed man” of Psalm 1 is the man I want to be today and every day He blesses me with life and breath. And the writer is very clear that the choice is ours in choosing which course of life to pursue.
“My delight is in the law of the Lord” and I pray yours will be as well. While so many in this world have no room for God in their hearts or lives … to the child of God everything finds its center in God!
The “blessed man” is the godly person who submits to the guidance and instruction of the Word of God … he becomes so familiar with its teachings that he can discern between right and wrong. He can by the “lamp of God’s Word” find the right path to walk on throughout his life!
My goals, resolutions, or whatever terms one might use are all based on my relationship with God. That being so, we can look forward to the coming year, 2023, with the joy, purpose, and the anticipation of “walking in the sunlight” … serving our Lord … being thankful for whatever He asks or expects of us to accomplish His will!
My friends, we are “workers together with God” and He will use us as we surrender our will … our heart … and if necessary our very lives to bring honor and glory to Him!
In short, the sum total of all I hope to accomplish by His grace and mercy is to be ‘more deeply planted’ in His ways so that it can be said,
“The righteous shall flourish like a cedar in Lebanon. Those who are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age. They shall be fresh and flourishing.” (Psalm 92:13-15)
Bill Fairchild, Jr.
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