May 11 Arriving without going

May 11

Arriving Without Going

Ps 112:1 Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.

 She broke into tears, grabbed her things and left the room. I never saw her again!

She was a student in my college computer class. I have used this illustration before but it bears repeating. During the first few days of class I made sure everyone understood how to do the basics on a computer; Load programs, save files, find files, etc. During one simple exercise she asked for help. Her question was how to do something very complex and far beyond what the class covered. I asked if she knew how to do the simple task we were working on. She said she didn’t want to waste her time learning simple stuff but only wanted to learn the real complex things about computers. Yet she was unable to even start on the simple task I had asked the class to work on.

When I explained she had to learn to walk before she could run she burst into tears and left. I recently found another example of the same thing.

Facebook holds very little interest for me outside of genealogy, but the other night I saw a posting of a prayer. It essentially asked Jesus to go through their house and remove all the sorrow, anger, hatred, and a list of other negative items. The Bible already explains how to remove those things from your home. It would be like buying a cookbook and asking the author to come over and make the cake you found in the recipe book.  I was sad to see the same person also posted obscene jokes, foul language and things inappropriate for a Christian.   

People everywhere are seeking happiness. Those who apply Biblical principles in their daily lives have discovered the way to be happy. The Bible word is blessed. People who seek happiness but are looking for immediate gratification usually do not find what they are seeking. Drugs, money, lust, selfishness, and greed don’t do it. We all know people who are miserable, sad, discouraged and cannot understand why they are so unlucky. They will not permit anyone to criticize their life style. They see no connection between their ethics and their sadness.

So what does the Bible say about how to be happy? There are 13 places where the phrase “Blessed is the man…” lists how to be happy. Instead of what makes people unhappy let’s look at what the Bible says makes a man blessed.

Ps 1:1 ¶ 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.

To obtain the “blessedness” the Bible talks about there are things we should do and things we should not do. The verse starts with what we should not do.

1.Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly,

If you seek happiness do not ask the ungodly for advice. That does not mean to ask a Christian, because I have known some ungodly Christians. It means seek people of the book, someone who applies what the Bible teaches, Someone who is happy, and understands how they got there. Advice from ungodly people usually is ungodly advice which returns ungodly results. Don’t ask ungodly people for advice.

    2 nor standeth in the way of sinners

If you follow the advice of ungodly people you will eventually find yourself standing around with sinners. If you value their advice you may desire their company. Their unbiblical view of the world will rub off on you. At the very least their language and values will dull your conscience from rejecting and opposing what they say that is contrary to Biblical principles.

   3 nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

People who permit the previous errors, listening to advice from and chatting with the ungodly, may find they will be welcomed to have a seat with those who are scornful. There are no limits to their scorn. It obviously includes religion as an object of derision and scorn. That is the progression; listening to their advice, standing around with them and finally joining them. Those are what the blessed man does not permit.

Here is what the blessed man does.

Ps 1:2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

The blessed man reads the Bible. No, not one of those devotional books people read while on the toilet. And not 3 chapters a day to read through the Bible in a year. He reads, thinks about and tries to understand what he has read. The verse does not say non-stop day and night, but that the portion of scripture he reads stays with him. During the day and during the night the Biblical principles he has read return to his thoughts. He finds ways to understand what it means and how it applies to his own life. The results?

He will be like a well-watered tree and he will prosper.

Some people want to arrive at happiness without understanding that happiness is not a destination. It is a manner of traveling.

Unfortunately there are those who want to arrive but won’t take the first step of the journey. They want to arrive without going.

Our meditation for today is to thank God for all that makes you happy.  For those who are unhappy but want to have a “happy cake”, go to the Bible and follow the recipe.

2Ti 3:16 All scripture is given …..for instruction in righteousness:

17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.