If you want to learn how to be happy, read the first Psalm. Two kinds of people are described: the blessed (happy) righteous people and the wicked people. A blessed (happy) person is one whose “delight is in the law of the Lord.”1 Blessed (happy) people are ones who obey God and whose heart’s desire is to please him. That is their hope and attitude, their goal and mission. A blessed (happy) person does one thing—just one thing—mentioned in this Psalm: “on his law he meditates day and night.”1
So . . . how’s that going for you? 😏 Do you meditate on (ponder about, wrestle with, and mull over) God’s Word? Throughout the day and the night? Because that’s the one thing to do to be happy (blessed). But how do we do that while we are busy with all the demands and tasks of our lives? It’s simple. We are to memorize scripture and recite it to ourselves all day long, even as we are lying in bed before/after sleep. It’s actually quite powerful! And if you are one of those folks who believe you cannot memorize scripture (you can! 😠), then write one on an index card and carry it with you. As I said, it’s quite powerful!
And just so you know, there are a few promises attached to this little mighty act of faith. Promise #1: the blessed (happy) people who meditate on God’s Word will “be like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season.”2 The promise? Fruit! What kind of fruit? Well, there is the spiritual fruit that Paul lists: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”3 But I don’t think that’s what we are talking about here and I’ll tell you why. The fruit of the Spirit is available all the time. The fruit mentioned in this Psalm is seasonal. Read carefully: the tree “yields its fruit in its season.”2
Metaphorically speaking, if we are orange trees, our branches will yield oranges—but not every month of the year! If trees are nourished by streams of water (and blessed [happy] people are nourished by meditating on the Word of God), then periodically, “in its season,” trees will bear fruit (and so will blessed [happy] people)—but not all the time! Hmm. 🤔 This makes me a little sad because I would like to bear fruit all the time! However, it explains a lot, doesn’t it? Like those unfruitful seasons we all experience! 🤨 How could an orange tree produce fruit every month of the year? It cannot! After seeds are planted and a tree has matured, a tree continues to need to be watered, fed, cared for and protected. There is also occasionally pruning and shaping. And all this takes, you know . . . time. And then—there is the harvest. After which, of course, several months will pass before there is another harvest. Fruit is seasonal, people! 🤪
It is best that we “get” this as soon as possible or else we will wonder why there is no fruit all the time. We might even blame God or ourselves for the unfruitful time. So, what is God’s good purpose for the unfruitful time? It is promise #2: Those blessed (happy) people who meditate on God’s Word will be “like a tree” whose “leaf does not wither.”2 What does that mean? It means there will be continuous growth! And that is not seasonal! Why is that? Because blessed (happy) people are constantly receiving the nourishment they need from God’s Word. There is actually new life—branches sprouting, roots digging deeper, and trunks growing sturdier—all happening during the unfruitful seasons.
And there’s one more thing. The blessed (happy) people who meditate on God’s Word have another promise. Let’s call it promise #3: “In all he does, he prospers.”2 How about that? 🙂 But “he prospers” in what way? We are not told, so my idea is that he prospers in any way that God would see fitting and beneficial and part of his good purpose. For “we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”4
Of course, this is all contingent on whether someone is truly blessed (happy), meaning his “delight is in the law of the Lord and on his law he meditates day and night.”1
So . . . as I said before . . . how’s that going for you? 😉
1Psalm 1:2 2Psalm 1:3 3Galatians 5:22-23 4Romans 8:28
