Delighting in the Lord. Psalm 1.

O, that I should Praise the Lord my every waking moment, seeing Him in all things that I know, all things that have been given to me, all things that I can hold, and taste and see and smell. Lift up my voice to praise the Lord my God.

The word that comes forward in Psalm 1 is “delight.” The Psalmist is clear, the Word of God is something that we find delight in, when we spend time reading it. When we seek to bring His word into our hearts and our minds.

Then we are like the tree with firm roots, sunk deep into the soil, and nourished by the flowing waters.

If we have any doubt as to what we should do, then look to God’s Word. Look to Christ who gives us direction. But here is the thing. What is required is “trust.” It is one of the themes that weaves through the Psalms. Trusting the Lord to be Who He is, so that we can rest in His promises.

This is something that Abraham did. He stood firm knowing that God would come through. Many times he doubted how it was going to happen. Don’t we do the same? He grew to be a very old man before Isaac was born. And yet God honoured him.

And it is something that David does throughout the Psalms.

If you “trust” is in God, then “praise” is something that comes naturally to your lips. All things are from Him, and when we recognize that as a fact of how we live, and think and what we do, then thanking Him for those things becomes our default position. It has to, doesn’t it?

Notice that the Psalmist cannot “delight” in the Lord without first having God’s love given to him. Without Grace, without Mercy, there is no ground in the heart where the Lord can plant seeds of love, and forgiveness to grow.

He loves us first, so that we can love. And more important, that we choose to do so. What a wonderful place to be.

Amen.

When life gives you lemons, think about the Cross

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New Year, new Bible reading resolution

The start of a New Year is looming, and the usual tussle of New Year's resolutions is happening off stage. Over the last few days, I have been looking into Bible reading plans. I wanted to find one that I could stick to. I get sidetracked very easily wanting to study in more depth, word studies, topical studies, manners and customs and background. This is by no means a bad thing, but it doesn't get the job done in terms of beginning to end in one year. At the end of 2024 I am in the last couple of chapters of 1 Samuel, and I have just finished the Gospel of Luke. That gives you an idea how deeply impacted I am by this malaise of digression! There were a few options. A few too many really. It seems that almost anyone of any ilk offers a Bible reading plan. Variations on a theme. There are two main types. The first is the traditional start at Genesis end up at Revelation and read Psalms and Proverbs as you go. There are others that break the Bible down into genre, grouping...

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