“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; 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)
What’s your influence?
Many years ago a friend gave me the following quote on a plaque that I hung in my office, “You can count the seeds in an apple but you cannot count the apples in a seed.” I pondered that for a while before I totally understood why she gave it to me. I did not manage an apple orchard so why did I care about counting apples? I figured it had to have a spiritual meaning. She gave it to me to encourage me as I shared Christ with others because you can count the number of people you share Christ with, but you can’t count all the people those people share Christ with. So keep sharing the Gospel.
I was reading some articles on influence the other day and came across an interesting possibility. Did you know that most of us meet an average of 2 or 3 people a day? So over the past couple of weeks I watched my life to see if that happened to me. Some days it was more than that and others not so many. If you live to be 80 years old you will have met almost 80,000 people. Some of them will be only for a moment, but others will have experienced you for a significant amount of time. Today I am crossing paths with at least four people I don’t know. Election Day was well over 100 as people came and went.
Psalm 1 is a psalm that I memorized at an early age. It has influenced me in many different ways. The question I’m seeking to challenge myself with, and encouraging you to consider this Sunday, is what is the influence that shapes every part of who you are? The question I’m asking is not so much how are you influencing others, but how are you being influenced? Psalm 1 is classified as a wisdom psalm. It gives an example of how some behaviors are wise and some are foolish. It is the introduction to all of the psalms that follow. As I study Psalm 1, I see two kinds of influence and their end results.
How you are influenced will affect how you influence others because there is no such thing as an incidental life. Our purposeful and short interactions with people influence the direction of their life, and as a result, the lives of others. The life you have been given is an assignment from the Lord. You need to be you, where God wants you. Remember, your life is not only about you, but also about those God has intentionally put in your path. Colossians 4:5 says, “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders: make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” How are you going to handle each and every one of those encounters? What is or what should influence you? Psalm 1 gives us a direct answer. We can’t look at every word on Sunday because there is too much there to cover it all in 20 minutes.
1. What does the word blessed mean, and why is it important to know what it means?
2. How do the beatitudes in Matthew 5 answer the question what does it mean to be blessed?
3. Is it possible to avoid walking in the counsel of the wicked?
4. Is it possible to avoid standing in the way of sinners?
5. Is it possible to avoid sitting in the seat of mockers?
6. What are the benefits of being planted by streams of water? What does the water and stream refer to?
7. What is your current practice of meditation? How has it affected your life?
8. What do you delight in and how does delighting in those things affect the way you treat them?
9. Does Matthew 7:24-27 relate to Psalm 1?
