Dave's Diary

Daily reading: Psalm 1

On Monday we reflected on John 15 and saw how Jesus promised that our lives will bear much fruit if we abide in Him through abiding in His words and His love. To abide in Jesus is to continue in a healthy, open, honest, committed, loving, free-flowing fellowship with Jesus. This openness to Him keeps us open to an influx of the life-giving, fruit-producing power of the Holy Spirit.

Today, Psalm 1 reminds us that one of our best methods for abiding in Jesus’ words is through disciplined meditation on them. The person who abides in the Word of the Lord through consistent study and meditation discovers that doing so greatly increases our Christian fruitfulness. We become “like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither” (v.3). Allowing the Word of the Lord to be our constant companion and our greatest thought-influencer sets us on a path of flourishing because, after all, the One who spoke the Word is the Author of Life.

By contrast, we are warned to avoid allowing ungodly, sinful, scoffing voices to influence our minds. One of the great dangers of our contemporary world is the ease with which we can spend time exposing ourselves to the thought-influence of voices that come to us through mass media, the entertainment industry and, in fact, anyone wielding a decent smartphone and a social media channel. Often these voices are ungodly, negative, seductive, and overtly contradict or undermine the eternal Word of God. This online world can be the modern-day equivalent of the “counsel of the wicked”, the “way of sinners” and the “seat of scoffers”.

The eternal Word of the Author of Life should be given far, far more influence on the thoughts and attitudes of Jesus’ disciples than the mere human, fallen voices of the “influencers”, the social media “gurus”, and the sophisticated communicators of our day. Psalm 1 warns us that our choice of influence has far-reaching and even eternal consequences, and it teaches us that the path to a life of fruitfulness and flourishing in Christ Jesus is paved with constant attentiveness to the written words of our Lord and the whispered words of His Spirit. May His words be the streams that bring life and fruitfulness to us today.

Lord, awaken in me a thirst for Your living words of life! May Your voice be my constant companion today. Amen.