deep roots

I fear this blog entry may be a rambling mess as I attempt to organize some revelations I have had that may only make sense in my own head and not translate well to paper (or screen), but I am nevertheless going to attempt to verbalize them because God is good and sweet to me and I want to remember the lessons I am learning.  It starts with Psalm 1, which was the first long passage (whole chapter) of Scripture I ever memorized:

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 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 that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.  In all that he does, he prospers.  The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.  Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.”  (Psalm 1)

I memorized it years and years ago and I have since had to go back to remind myself of the exact wording.  But this week I ran across a commentary on the first psalm by Dallas Willard and I felt it so fitting to my life that I decided to “rememorize” the words again.

“The image used here is that of a tree planted by water canals.  No matter what the weather or the surface condition of the ground, its roots go down into the water sources and bring up Life.  As a result, it bears fruit when it is supposed to, and it’s foliage is always bright with life.  It prospers in what it does.  And likewise the man who is rooted in God through his law: in whatever he does, he prospers.” (Dallas Willard)

I so much want to be that tree, the one that can weather any storm and the one that can bear good fruit, no matter the surface conditions, because I am deeply rooted in God’s living waters.  That image speaks to my soul so deeply, so much so that I feel like I need to find a painting of a tree with deep, well-watered roots to hang in my home as a reminder to me of those words and that longing.  I delight in the image of the tree by streams of water and I pray that I can delight in the law of the Lord (his best and good intentions for me) just as much.  And that is where I sit in awe of God this week... 

You see, the verses God put on my heart this year to study and memorize come from the first chapter of Joshua.  Yes, Joshua.  I really bristled at that at first because, seriously, what do Joshua and I have in common?  Joshua was with Moses during the exodus and he was Moses’ right-hand man through the desert.  He is the one who took over leadership of the Israelites after the death of Moses and was commissioned by God to lead the military conquests of the land of Canaan that eventually led his people into the Promised Land.  Exodus, desert, military conquests...  I really have been wondering what I am supposed to learn from this story... But the words God has put on my heart, and right in front of me in some weird and obvious ways, over and over, are the words he spoke repeatedly to Joshua before he began his military campaigns: “be strong and courageous.”  One of my mentors said that God had asked a lot of me and those are fitting words of encouragement.  And another had a vision of a door in front of me and the words “be strong and courageous” as what I needed to hear to enter the door.  I admittedly prefer at most times to sit paralyzed in my fear and insecurities than to approach a door, even a door that is filled with goodness and light.  It that respect, I relate much more to Moses who argued with God about not being the one to be picked for anything because he was not adequate... 

So in the midst of pondering what those words and ideas mean and why being “strong and courageous” is being spoken into my life, I run across the familiar and comforting words of my beloved Psalm 1.  And God is starting to tie things together, in that wonderful way that he always does...  I realized today that some of David’s thoughts in that first psalm compare to what was said to Joshua: “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it.  For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success” (Josh 1:8).

That may not seem strange to anyone, it is of course God’s instructions to us - to meditate on his law day and night.  It is for our own benefit and it is the way our roots soak into his tender goodness.  God spoke that wisdom to both David and Joshua, just as he urges each of us to also soak in his law so that we may prosper and thrive in and through anything.  But what really struck me was that this verse from Joshua - the one that mirrors my beloved first psalm - is sandwiched smack in between these words in verses 7 and 9:

“Be strong and courageous... only be strong and very courageous... that you may have good success...” (verse 7)

“Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (verse 9)

Is it not a weird thing that the “paraphrase” of my favorite psalm (about meditating on God’s law both day and night so I can be a prosperous tree and one with good success/good fruit) is sandwiched in between the words “be strong and courageous,” on both sides of it?  I mean I read that verse, verse 8, several times this year as I struggled with those “strong and courageous” lines before and after it, but I didn’t really dwell on it.  Then I read Psalm 1 this week, with Willard’s commentary, and see it right smack dab in between.  

I love love when God ties things up in neat little bows because I do badly need obvious and tangible signs to teach me.  I am still struggling to understand why and how I am to fulfill the be “strong and courageous” that is being spoken into my life in this season but I know any strength or courage in my life will flow forth like fruit on a tree that has been rooted deeply into the living waters of God’s law.  I delight in that process.