Psalm 1 - Praying God's Word

                                                 Summer of Psalms

It was 2005. Ron received orders to Iraq; he would be gone for many months, including most of summer. I dreaded the thought of him being away for so long. Prior to his departure, many of my days were filled with heart pounding, paralyzing anxiety. Thankfully, the LORD gave me Psalm 73:26: “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” Every time I started to have a panic attack, I said that verse over and over and over ... miraculously, my heart rate would return to normal, and I could breathe again.

When the day came for Ron to get on the plane to leave, I had the peace from God that surpasses comprehension (Philippians 4:7). And I had a plan for how to thrive (not merely survive) the days while he was gone. My countdown chain for Ron’s return was to read one psalm a day. In my Bible, each psalm is dated with those days he was gone. It is a precious reminder of the LORD’s faithfulness and how He used His Word to turn dreaded days into a savory season with Him.

For the next 100 days of summer, you will read 100 psalms. Summer can be a time for refreshing. It can be used for relaxation and vacation, a carefree departure from the normal. Let these daily doses of prayers and praises from Psalms keep you focused on God. We hope that as you read and pray Psalms, this will be a summer to savor with your Savior.

Please read Psalm 1.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/psa/1/1/s_479001

Meditate on verses 4a and 6b.

The wicked are not so; the way of the wicked will perish.

In Psalm 1, the way of the righteous person is contrasted with the way of the wicked person. The wicked are hostile toward God. They have a path they want others to walk with them, and they have a seat where they sit and scoff at God (v.1). A righteous person refuses to partake in their evil ways or listen to their counsel; instead, they delight in and meditate on God’s Word all the time. The result is a person who thrives and lives a prosperous and fruitful life, knowing and being known by the LORD (vs. 2-3, 6). Extermination and destruction are the result of the wicked person’s choice to rebel against God and His Word (v. 6).

Who do you choose to be? Pray Psalm 1 over yourself and those for whom you stand guard as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

“LORD, I want my family to be blessed by You.

Please do not let _______ and me walk in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers.

Let us delight in Your Law, LORD, and meditate on it day and night.

Let us be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water which yields its fruit in its season and whose leaf does not whither.  Let us prosper in whatever we do. 

Do not let us be wicked.  We do not want to be like chaff which the wind drives away. 

We want to stand in the judgment and be in the assembly of the righteous.

 LORD, You know the way of the righteous.  Make us Your righteous people. 

Do not let us perish.

In Your name, Jesus~”

The WATCHMAN on the WALL, Volume 2 – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell