Psalm 1

Good Morning!!!

Psalm 1 (English Standard Version)
BOOK ONE
The Way of the Righteous and the Wicked
1Blessed is the man[a]
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
2but his delight is in the law[b] of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
3He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers. 4The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
5Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
6for the LORD knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.
Footnotes:
a. Psalm 1:1 The singular Hebrew word for man (ish) is used here to portray a representative example of a godly person;
b. Psalm 1:2 Or instruction

Once upon a time we could pray in school. Once upon a time we could read the Bible or have the Bible read to us in school. Once upon a time we could memorize Scripture in school. Once upon a time…

I was in the fourth grade at Fernbank Elementary School when I first learned this Psalm. My teacher was Mrs. Lyle. Her husband was a ministerial student at Candler School of Theology (I think – or perhaps it was Emory University back when it was attached to the Methodist church). The school year was 1958-59 – and God was still welcomed in our presence at school. How things have changed over the years. Sadly…they have changed.

Friday, Fox News reported that a professor at the University of Illinois was dismissed for hate speech. What kind of hate speech, you may ask? The professor taught Catholicism. A part of his curricula deals with the Catholic stand on homosexuality. Being a good Catholic, he stated to his students that he agreed with the church stand on the subject. One of the students took offense and made a complaint to the President of the University – and the teacher was dismissed. I just wonder where the American Civil Liberties Union is? Silent, I believe.

Our Psalmist points out a couple of real truths for us the grasp. The folks we hang around with influence us. You hang around with wicked people, sinners, and scoffers, you are going to end up being unblessed. If you avoid hanging with these folks, blessings are coming your way. Why? You will be blessed because your focus is on what God wants you to do – not on what man wants. Verse 2: “his delight is in the law of the Lord and on His law he meditates (thinks about it, chews on it, runs it over and over in his mind) day and night.

What happens when you focus on God’s law? You sink down deep roots – God’s ways become your ways as you draw from the freshness of His word. What a blessing. And what a promise from God!

I learned a lot in the fourth grade – but the lesson I still carry today is Psalm 1. Thank you, Mrs. Lyle. Thank you for teaching us God’s Word.

Agape’

Mr. Jim