June 24th
Read: Psalm 1:1-3; Job 14:7-9
I memorized Psalm One when I was a child in Sunday School. Its words kept me straight during my teens. I could just picture that tree, perhaps one full of fruit, and I truly identified with it. I wanted to prosper as that tree, and even then I knew somehow that it was not the prosperity of worldly possessions but a prosperity of the soul which obedience would bring.
As I matured, the passage from Job (above) encouraged me even more. My physical life might be stricken, but the touch of God’s Holy Spirit would be able to restore fruitfulness to my life. How I praise God that in weal or woe I am rooted in Him and in His Word.
THE TREE BY THE RIVER
The green tree that grows
Where God’s river flows,
With roots that drink deep of His life,
Shall stand strong and sure
And even endure
The storms and the harsh winds of strife.
But if it should be
That this deep-rooted tree
Must fall from a near-fatal blow,
Just the scent of that stream
Will reach every extreme
Until leaves form and fruit starts to show.
Prayer: Dear God, I thank You for Your Word which keeps me on Your paths and encourages me daily to be fruitful for You.