“Blessed is the one…whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who mediates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water which yields it fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither-whatever they do prospers.”
For any life to be sustained on this planet, a consistent water source is required. The same is true of the spiritual life. We need a consistent water source if we are going to ride the ups and downs of life. It is especially important in times of difficulty and drought that we have a deep water source to draw from. If we are drawing from a shallow water source it will soon dry up. Psalm 1, the introductory Psalm to the Psalter, encourages the praying person to plant themselves beside streams of water. The planted person is the one who meditates and delights in God’s Word, Laws and Ways.
This is a very important directive and image for us to seriously consider in the current Covid crisis. Our water sources will be tested, will they be deep enough to sustain a long drought? There is a reason why those who collected all the prayers and songs in the Psalms put Psalm 1 as the first Psalm. It is there to grab our attention and guide us to a way of being that will keep us grounded and focused through all of life. It is encouraging depth over shallowness and consistency over spontaneity.
Psalm 1 is teaching us to cultivate a practice of meditating and delighting in the Word of God as a sustainable and plentiful source that feeds and nurtures our soul. It is encouraging us to develop a long term practice of being with God through His Word so that we grow deep in our intimacy with Him. It is a deep and growing intimacy with God that gives us the stability to endure all that life entails…the good, the bad, the uncertain, the loses and the unknown.
