01/02/2021
2020 in the rear view mirror -
What a challenging year this has been. I could have used many different adjectives to describe 2020 but I’m trying to be positive.
I think of an early 80’s movie entitled “My Favorite Year” -
2020 would not qualify as that!
When thinking of what we’ve gone through as individuals and as a nation, I get the image of a ship that is “listing”, leaning dangerously at an angle after taking on water. Surely we have all sensed an uncontrollable drift happening. This drift has been years, if not decades in the making. We can point fingers as to the cause of the damage which has flooded the ship, but at this point we simply want to stop the intake.
We also understand that there are those who would like to see this ship sink - enemies of our republic and the enemy of your soul!
What I seek, and I hope we all seek, is a cure which all the corrupted wisdom of mankind continually fails to produce.
I’ve read several Pslams this week, so to begin the year, let me give you this offering from King David in Pslam chapter 1:
V 1 Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.
4 The ungodly are not so, But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish.
I won’t talk about this whole chapter, but just the first verse.
We often hear people say that they are “blessed”, so much so that it sometimes comes across as a coined phrase. But what does “blessed” really mean and how do we get to that state of being?
V1 “Blessed is the man”
“The Hebrew word esher is here is translated blessed, which has the idea of happiness or contentment. Esher is a form of the Hebrew word ashar, which in its root means “to be straight” or “to be right.” Blessed is the man who speaks of the happiness, the blessedness, the contentment in the life of the man or woman who is right or “straight” with God. The righteous man will be a blessed man, a happy man.”
“Blessed” means supremely happy or fulfilled. In fact, in Hebrew the word is actually a plural, which denotes either a multiplicity of blessings or an intensification of them.”
When reading this I noticed that God’s blessing can straighten a listing ship (a nation, or a life)!
After this statement of blessing, verse 1 becomes a cautionary tale, warning us that we won’t be “blessed” (straightened or righted) if we live the regressive trend of
⁃ Walking in the counsel of the ungodly
-Standing in the way of sinners
-Sitting in the seat of the scorner
Has the negative chaos of 2020, or the accumulation of time taken you away from the intersection of sensing the manifold blessing of God? Have you found yourself transitioning from the encouragement of the Apostle Paul to “run with patience the race that is set before you”, to now walking in ungodly counsel, standing on a bad path, or sitting in the seat of the critic?
The grace of God is calling to you, to me, and to our nation, offering to straighten out our situation and bring His blessings onto the scene!
Read over this chapter again.
I hope you don’t feel anxiety! If you do, you’re missing the point that God is wanting to bring blessings into your life!
Let’s endeavor to take advantage of that wonderful offer. Please join me as I pray that you and our nation experiences Gods riches blessings in 2021!
Hope to see you Sunday-
Mike Wilson
