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Psalm 1 (KJV)

1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

4 The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

6 For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

Living a lifestyle that includes daily meditation on scripture invites the power, provision, and protection of God into the life of the believer. God desires to bless his children. However, many of his blessings are not automatically obtained. You must position yourself so that God’s power can flow freely into your life. This positioning involves controlling your thought life, monitoring your associations, and meditating on God’s word. All of these steps are part of a lifestyle, they are not practices that you undertake casually. You must consistently live according to the teachings of scripture if you are to walk in the power of God. Psalm 1 speaks of meditating on God’s word, but it also teaches about other lifestyle habits that the Christian should have. A lifestyle of meditating on God’s word also involves controlling what we allow into our minds.

The first thing that Psalm 1 tells us is to not adhere to the advice of the wicked. If we are blessed by not walking in the counsel of the ungodly, we can biblically conclude that we will be cursed if we do. “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 14:12). The carnal mind of man, that is man’s mind without the direct influence of God, cannot produce true wisdom. Today we are bombarded with perverse wisdom. And the Lord tells his children not to give heed to it. The world has embraced all sorts of demonic philosophies concerning sexuality, religion, and the sanctity of life. God’s solution is to saturate our minds with his word so that we will be able to discern good from evil. “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2). The worldly counsel that we are talking about is a global message of perversion and evil, but we also must guard against evil advice given to us by those who are close to us.

The ideals of the world present a danger to the Christian, but the wicked advice of acquaintances can be even more deadly. Satan will often use our “friends” in an attempt to poison our minds and to lead us down a path to destruction. Our acquaintances are close to us, and they are able to interject misdirection into our lives at very crucial times. Many times false teachings, doctrinal compromises, and perverse morality are presented to God’s children by those who are close to them. Not walking in the counsel of the ungodly means rejecting the trends of the world, but it also means to not follow the ungodly advice of those whom we know. We guard against this type of influences by controlling our associations. “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness: and what communion hath light with darkness?” (2 Corinthians 6:14). A Christian should not form strong friendships with those who are not saved. This does not mean that we cannot associate with the lost, but there needs to be a limit to the depth of our friendships. Psalm 1 advises us on what not to do, but what does it tell the child of God to do?

“This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” (Joshua 1:8). To meditate on God’s word is to fill our minds with his word and to focus on it. This is not a casual time of contemplation, we are to take time to saturate our minds with God’s word. We can look at approaching God’s word in three ways: reading or hearing the word, studying the word, and meditating on the word. Meditating of God’s word renews our minds and strengthens our inner being. Meditating on God’s word usually does not involve large amounts of scripture in one setting, we are spiritually ingesting small portions of scripture that relate to specific topics or issues. Meditating on God’s word conforms our entire being to the will of God, and the result is that we are blessed in all that we do. Psalm 1 teaches us about the foundation of a blessed life.

We will prosper in whatever we do if we turn away from the advice of the wicked and focus on God’s word. The scripture centered life is the blessed life. God’s power, protection, and provision is available to us when we reject evil counsel and meditate on his word night and day.