Planted by the Rivers of Water

I started reading in the Psalms and I asked God to show me something new even in the familiar passages. He did that for me and I wanted to share what I saw.

Psalm 1

1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord: and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season: his leaf also shall not wither: and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
4 The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6 For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

The verse that stood out the most to me was verse 3. We are compared to a tree in this verse. Now when I think of a tree I think of something that is stable, stong, and unmoving.

Plant is defined as to place firmly in position, to establish. So to be planted is to be firmly in position, to be established, and deeply rooted.

One of my favorite trees is the oak tree. When I was growing up we had two beautiful oak trees in front of our home. They had been there for decades and were firmly rooted. Even when the winds blew they stood firmly in place.

We should be like an oak tree and remain planted firmly. The winds of life shouldn't knock us down. But what should we be planted in?

1) In the Word of God. Make time each day to read God's word. Just like verse 2 says we need to be in His word daily and meditate on it throughout the day and night. The Bible should be our guide book for every decision we make.  This is the only way we can make sound decisions.
2) In the church God has placed you in. God has a church for you to be a member of, to serve in, and to grow in Him! Allow Him to direct your path to the place He has for you. He led me to a wonderful church and I love serving Him there. It's wonderful to see God's hand in my life.
3) In God's will. Sometimes we know God's will for our lives but we chose to go a different way. It will be easier, we think. And God allows us to make our choices all the while knowing what will happen. Praise the Lord we can always come back to Him and ask His forgiveness! But wouldn't it be better to resolve to be planted in His will no matter what it is and no matter what we think about it?

Once we are planted is that all there is to it? Of course not. I can read my Bible and gain nothing if I'm not purposeful in my reading. I can go to church and just go through the motions if I don't focus my attention while I'm there. I can be in God's will but have the wrong attitude and feel deprived.

In verse 3 it says "his leaf also shall not wither". If we are planted by the water the way we should be, we will be drinking the water and our leaves won't wither. We have to be purposeful to drink the water to grow and nourish ourselves. Get in God's word on your own! Don't just wait for church! We also have to be focused on drinking the water God provides in the messages we hear at church. And we have to keep the right attitude to enjoy being in God's will.

God has so many good things for us to enjoy! Let's be like a tree and be planted where God wants us and make the choice to drink the bountiful water He has supplied!

Course Altering Possibilities

One small thing can alter the entire course or your day, week, and even your life. For me it was a possibility, a glimmer, that a dream could come true.

I have always wanted to be married and raise a family. Because this dream has always seemed impossible and distant I have poured myself into my work. In some ways you could say that I have married my work. I am overly committed to it at times. I pour everything I have into my job which causes me to work longer and harder, on and off the clock. I love my job and have great aspirations of continued growth and opportunities with this company. But now I'm asking myself if this is realty where my focus should be or how much of my focus should be here.

Sometimes one small occurrence can cause you to question the direction you are going. Is this really what I want? Is this really what God wants for me?

Last week a potential opportunity came up and reminded me of my deepest dream of being married. I realized that maybe I've settled in my life. I have an amazing job but maybe, just maybe, I've let go of the dream that God has for me and replaced it with the dream I created because I was tired of waiting. I was tired of being lonely and tired of being patient. To diminish the pain I turned all my focus to my work instead of God. My job isn't evil and it's not wrong to move up within the company; what is wrong is letting my job take first place over God. I didn't realize this had happened until I was faced with the choice between a company picnic and this possibility. That may sound silly but I don't think it was an accident that they would occur on the same day. I believe it was a God thing.

I did choose the possibility over the company picnic. I realized that if I continued to hide behind my job that's all I'd ever have. After taking this chance I see things in a whole new light. The things that really matter have come to the surface of my heart. Obviously my job is still important for my livelihood but God is first. Serving Him and living for Him must be my focus.

The potential opportunity is still just to possibility. A beautiful and exciting chance for my deepest dreams to come true. I don't know how the story ends but I know God is speaking to me and helping me focus on Him.

There are small occurrences in life that take us away from the path God has for us or takes us back to His path. We have to be close enough to God to discern between the two. We can always grow closer to God and this is my goal.

God bless,
Linda