My least favorite book is the Psalms! I know… excuse me while I duck from those in the front row looking to toss me backstage! I made this comment in a sermon not too long ago. Since then, God has started to convict me to get to know His song and poem book better. I looked at the third one (not sure why but that’s where I went). I prayed over, read and prayed over it some more. I put some devotional thoughts on my social media and figured why not post these thoughts here.
A couple of weeks ago I looked at Psalm 1. I am quoting the ESV because my mother in law gifted me a journaling Bible and I have been using it for my personal devotionals.
The Way of the Righteous and the Wicked
1 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;
2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.3 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.
4 The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
Psalm 1 ESV
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
6 for the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.
The influence of the influencer.
We influence and we are influenced. We participate in both regardless of our intent, it happens naturally. Psalm 1 was all about the influence. We can be influenced by the wicked or the righteous. We are warned to not walk in the counsel of the wicked or get in the middle of the sin and the sinner. He doesn’t say not to speak to those wicked but not to be influenced (walk in the counsel) by them. Equally so, the righteous is planted by streams of clean water where we offer fruit in its season and do not wither. The righteous have a constant inflow of His water. We would be rooted firmly while the wicked are like chaff in the wind.
We influence others even if we try not to. Moms and dads influence their kids, managers their employees, and friends one another. We are influenced by others. We emulate the behavior of who we are around. We lean behaviors from those that go before us. We learn from what we take in from media – TV, social media, radio, social media, news , and social media – I mention social media? Are you being influenced by the clean waters of Jesus Christ? The clean waters that produce the fruit of the Spirit that can give a return of 30,60, or 100 times more? Or are you standing in the midst of the sin and sinner being changed into chaff that a slight breeze can turn you to and fro? Where will you be planted?
You are an influencer.
You are being influenced.
You choose the influence and influenced.
Biblical Bacon 