Planted by the River of Life

 

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in ethe 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 1:1-6 ESV).

 

When I was a freshman at Texas A&M University, I was able to participate in the building of the annual bonfire. It required the harvesting of hundreds of trees from land that was donated for the purpose. It took weeks to cut the trees, limb them, and transport them to campus where they would be stacked and wired together for the burn the night before the traditional Thanksgiving game. A part of the “cut” was always the replanting of more than were cut. I didn’t understand the full significance of that until many years later; and, I didn’t recognize the Scriptural reference until I left A&M. It has always been one of the most significant memories of my time in Aggieland. While the bonfire is no longer held on campus it is built and burned off campus. The replant is still a vital part of the effort.

 

The Bible’s message is that God created us in love and has saved us through faith in Jesus, by grace alone. As people saved by grace, we are invited to live the good life that God has designed for us. We live this way not to earn our salvation, but to show our gratitude to God, to grow in faith, and to flourish in the good life God wants for us. God has given us salvation as a free gift, and we gratefully aim to follow God’s law because it’s the best way to live. It’s what we were designed for.

 

Our reading today says that living this good life is like being a tree planted by streams of water. That tree will yield fruit and will not wither, because the tree is living the way it is meant to live, nourished by the water of life given by its creator. So, it is with people. When we are planted and nourished by God’s way of love, we will flourish. Regardless of how long we live or “tall” we grow, our lives are replated in eternity to continue to grow and bear the fruit of the life God has provided. That is real beauty!