A Message From God - Reading Planنموونە

Start with prayer, asking God to meet and speak to you. Then watch the film clip below.

Read Psalm 1, stopping to think and pray about anything that strikes you.

This beautiful poem acts like an introduction to the whole book of Psalms, laying out the central beliefs and foundations on which it is based. At its heart is the conviction that living our lives with God at the centre is the best way to live. But that isn’t just about ‘doing well’ or living up to a standard, it is the best way for us to flourish and enjoy life too.

The Psalm opens by saying that we are ‘blessed’ if we follow God’s ways, and then expands on that with the beautiful illustration of a thriving tree. We will be like it, fruitful, drought-resistant, flourishing and permanent – who doesn’t want their life to be like that?

What is the source of the blessing though? The answer is that being rooted in God’s word is like being planted by a living stream. One reason I love this picture is that it isn’t just about learning or following rules, but something deeper. A tree is constantly rooted in and drawing on the water at its roots, not just tapping into it from time to time or learning about it. In the same way, the Psalmist talks of ‘delighting in the law of the LORD’ and 'meditating on his law day and night’ (v2). Building our lives on God’s word is not supposed to be an irregular and impersonal chore, but an on-going source of delight, growth and sustenance.

That won’t mean that life is always easy though, and another element of this picture that I love is that it leaves room for the ups and downs of life. The Psalm talks of seasons (v3) and hints at bad times as well as good. Sometimes we expect the Christian life to be all easy and simple, but scripture shows us that there will be difficulties as well as joys. The beauty of this picture is that it reminds us that dark seasons pass, and promises us all we need to survive through them and thrive and bear fruit beyond.

The Psalm then finishes by reminding us of the source and reason for all this – God. We thrive when rooted in scripture because ‘the LORD watches over the way of the righteous.’