Psalm 1:1-3 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.**
I come to the counseling seat, ready to receive, ready to give. Today I am hungry. Life’s lies have gotten the best of my fickle heart and, this time, I catch it. Early. I need a God-infusion.
Desperate. Not for reason of any outward manifestation of my fog – today’s surface seemed smooth. But because my internal thermometer reads cold. And I refuse to resignedly accept cold as normal.
He has more for me.
I blow the day’s accumulation of dust off my Bible – it’s been too long for my hungry heart to not kneel before this Word, before this Man. He’s too good to overlook.
I start with Psalm 1, because I love new beginnings and I need one today. And I adore, and I pray. Exhale, then inhale this time.
Blessed. Who am I, oh rock of ages, to receive your blessing? Yet you call me blessed. You instruct with a promise, always a promise. Hope tagged on to every guideline you offer. There is life, in My keeping, You say.
And I want it.
I read that I could be blessed, that I am blessed and I praise you that my parched-life is one that might find itself by your rivers.
No longer looking at me, or even the promise, I look at You. This is what adoration does, oh God-who-calls-me-blessed. Man who has eternity wrapped in your hands, yet keeps His eye on the sparrow. You more than care about me, you bless me. You call me blessed and this child of blessing blesses you back.
Divine exchange, Your words an incense back to You.
Oh good Father, you replace my failures with prosperity. And when I look at the Man who calls me blessed, and realize it is Him that has called me blessed, I want it all. I want every piece of You that you can offer that might make up my prosperity.
Rich in You. Rich in the knowledge of You. Rich in the awareness that I have a life that is blessed. The Creator of blessing itself calls me blessed and I receive and realize, that to have more I must believe it. My belief becomes my reality, my faith a doorway for more.
Increase in me. Increase the awareness that I am blessed. Give me eyes for the river beside me and the early fruit-buds, even under winter’s stare. Believing blessing, not just when it’s obvious, but when it’s tucked away in your word.
And let belief of blessing be my eye gate, so that I see it. Perceiving blessing gives way to depth of perception, so that more blessing might be perceived. So that You might be perceived.
Prosperity birthed.
So that I then can’t imagine doing anything but meditating on your very breath-made-Word, day and night … and night and day. My bible, stained with morning smoothie, propped beside dirty dishes, resting on top of freshly folded towels. When I see You calling me blessed, and I bless You in return, I can’t help but cling. Grasp. Inhale.
Perspective is everything.
Eyes lost up in You, water lapping against my roots, and limbs full of fruit. This is what You promise. Even in the darkest hour, You still call me blessed. And because You do, I can’t help but adore You, and when I do, blessing’s birthmark becomes even more real.
**So what do I do with these posts, you ask, other than just read them? First, if you haven’t yet, read: Why I Adore to give you a context for this little space on my blog. (This post also gives context.)
If you are compelled, I invite you to participate. Set up a space and time in your own life to begin adoring. Over laundry or dinner dishes, on your commute to work, or in the wee morning hours — ten minutes is a great start. You can use the verse I list here every day or two as a launch pad for your own adoration.
Then practice praise.
Add to my adoration here, by posting a comment with your own words back to God about God …or hide it in your heart.
I promise your weary soul won’t regret it.
***You can easily subscribe to these devotional meditations as they are delivered, by using this feed: http://www.EveryBitterThingisSweet.com/posts/chai/feed or by entering your email address in the second box on the right-hand side… (scroll up a bit)
Additionally, all of the Morning Chai Posts can be seen, in the order of posting, by clicking here or adding this address to your reader: EveryBitterThingisSweet.com/posts/chai
