“Blessed is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
or sit in the seat of mockers.
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers.
Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff
that the wind blows away.
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.”
- Psalm 1:1-6 NIV
What was your initial reaction to this scripture? A breath of power and esteem? A sigh of relief? An eye roll? A stir of annoyance?
More than likely depending on the day and what's going on in your life the reaction might be different. Most emphasis on this scripture is directed to be rooted in Christ, the stream of water. And how when you are then you will receive the prospering that is discussed. With that in mind, as a Christian you might have reacted in the positive manners, a breath of power or esteem or a sigh of relief. Even if this is the case, I still want to challenge you to go a little deeper with it! So keep reading. :)
But what if your reaction was on the other end? What if this scripture made you roll your eyes or it aggravated you? I want you to take a moment and ask yourself why.
Are you ready for complete transparency?!
This morning when I read that I rolled my eyes. {Catch your breath! Yes, me, the one writing all of these blogs and praying for you, the one who loves Jesus with all my heart, - I rolled my eyes!!!} I am far from perfect and as much as I hate to admit it, my flesh gets the best of my mind sometimes. When I read that a Christian is like a tree planted by waters that will prosper in whatever he does, I sent that through "a breeze through the trees"** of my thoughts and thought patterns that have been formed over the 24 years of my life. This morning followed the several days of the enemy attacking my thought life. So the trees this scripture breezed through were ones that were growing in toxicity; "humph, not me...", "not everything I do prospers", "I'm not good enough", and the list goes on.
Luckily, I have had wonderful mentors, pastors, and friends who have trained me since my spiritual birth to fight my flesh. They have taught me and walked with me through many of the spiritual growing pains I have faced. I have been raised well.
Have you ever met a 20 something, spoiled brat who doesn't know what real work is? Have you ever met a 20 something who has been raised well, with a head on their shoulders, manners, and a great work ethic? You can immediately see the differences. The same goes for spiritual growth. Some have been raised well, others not so much.
{{If you are a Christian who feels like you have not been raised well and you identify more with the 20 something brat, find strength and power in that there is still growing up to do. You're not stuck where you are, no matter how long you've been there.}}
Because of my spiritual upbringing I have been able to stand firm and not relinquish my thoughts and emotions to satan. So when I read that and rolled my eyes there was a spirit check. Why? Why was that my response? Also, God's nudging was there to push me from noticing a spirit check to discovering and shifting something in me. He opened my eyes to the rest of that verse.
"...which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither."
First, the tree yields its fruit IN SEASON, not continuously. If you've been in church for very long you know that there are "seasons of life", this is a churchy term used to describe the ups and downs and ebbs and flows of life. This is not exclusive to Christians, but effects non believers too. So we Christians can become used to this term and look it over easily in scripture, while maintaining our pre-percieved ideas about whatever we just read. While I read that the tree will bear its fruit in season I still had in my head a tree will bear fruit constantly and continuously. But that is not what the Word says. There will be a time to "bear fruit", {another churchy term that means to see the payoffs of our hard work - apply that to whatever area of life you need to}, but there will also be a time when no fruit is seen.
Second, the leaf won't wither. When do leaves wither? Extreme circumstances, cold/hot, and in fall, the "season" of death and dormancy. So this tree is not exempt from the heat or from the cold, it is not exempt from the seasons of death and dormancy. However, the tree will endure. The tree will continue to show signs of life, a leaf not withered.
This is there promise that we have from the Lord. If we remain in Him, if we obey and meditate on His laws, we will not wither and we will bear fruit in the proper season.
Through this scripture and others like it we are also promised that if we do not abide in the Lord, if we choose to "walk in the counsel of the wicked" and to make our selves at home there, then we will be like chaff; dried, dead, and useless. We will be tossed around by life, not able to grip anything. We will not truly live.
So, wherever you are, whatever you're going through, I pray that this message speaks to you. I pray that you hear your heavenly Father, your Rescuer, your Best Friend, calling out to you, encouraging you to walk with him. He has the water to provide for seasons, to keep you from withering away and to supply your fruit in the proper season.
Father, thank you that you care enough about us to encourage us and to prompt us to go deeper with you. Thank you for your provision and for giving us your best, no matter what life throws at us. Thank you for new life, for fruit, for steady stream, pouring into us constantly! Give us peace that goes beyond our circumstances and courage to stand firm in you!
~Awaken Us~
Brenna Stanford
Young Living
Member # 2645436
Young Living
Member # 2645436
P.S. So right after I had this moment with the Lord I read a post by one of my leaders. I'll share it below. Basically it was a post reminding us of how awesome and powerful these gifts of essential oils are. This particular one is a blend called Abundance. I have this, and actually had it in my purse. So I pulled it out and applied it topically and inhaled it directly. This gift from God paired with the reawakening of this scripture shifted my mind and spirit enough to kick satan's tricks out of my mind, refocus and walk in the abundance God has for me!
Post:
Seriously y'all. You need to use Abundance oil like water. No joke. It's the #secretsauce along with a train load of #hustle!!!
This essential oil has a powerful effect on your energy. If you are radiating the frequency of scarcity {poverty mindset}, it will be very difficult to move into a place of Abundance. Many people find this incredibly beneficial.
HOW DO YOU USE IT?
1. diffuse it during the day
2. diffuse it at night while you sleep
3. rub it on your feet
4. wear it like perfume
5. rub a drop on your phone (seriously)
6. rub a drop on your computer (yep)
7. put a drop on oily mail that you are sending out
8. put a drop in your wallet (no joke)
9. add a few drops to a spritzer with water and spritz yourself each day.
10. spritz the floor mats in your vehicle
Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us. Ephesians 3:20
#ALLtheabundance #getyousome
**This is a phrase taken from Who Switched Off My Brain? by a Christian neuroscientist Caroline Leaf. I highly recommend you reading this book!
