First, let’s clear up the fact that success is not always the size of your bank account; As Jim Rohn, someone whose advice I follow, says “Success is doing ordinary things, extraordinarily well” and “walking from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.” I see this in King David. Over and over he messed up. Over and over he got back up. Over and over he praised God in every situation!
I got so excited when I realized what was actually in the Psalms. They are not just a Jewish song book or a collection of feel good poems, easy to check off our Bible reading list; instead, they are a treasure of tips to overcome and succeed in every day living. So, here we go.
Psalm 1 – Who can be Successful?
In this Psalm it is clear who can be successful. Verse two says it is the person who loves the Word of God. Not just that, but it is the person who thinks about it day and night. “Well, that’s just unrealistic,” some might say. It is if you think it means your head is in the clouds and your nose is in the Bible every moment of every day. That is not what it means. God is not stupid. He said, if a man wants to eat, he needs to work. Thus, he knows we have to get up and be about our day.
To meditate on the Word day and night means that it is your guiding principle day and night because you have given it a prominent place in your daily life. If you sat and studied the Bible all day, every day, you would get nothing done; you wouldn’t see anyone; you couldn’t help anyone; however, if you love the Word and you do meditate/study/think on it every day, it will always be in the forefront of your mind; therefore, it will guide you, preventing verse one from happening which will zap your joy, kill your purpose, and rob you of your success.
Greater still, if you love the Word, you will be confident (firmly planted v3) where you are – even if where you are is not where you want to be because you are still trying to get where you want/need to be. This love and delight in God’s word will water your spirit and mind so that you can be healthy in your thinking and planning in every day things. A tree with a constant source of water will have roots that grow deep and branches that produce luscious fruit. So will you. If there is a constant flow of the Word into your life, your understanding will be deep and your life will result in prosperity wherever you are (verse 3). This is not man’s idea. It is God’s plan for anyone who wants to be successful. It is so simple, we miss it.
In contrast, the one who despises the Word – or not even to that extent – the one who simply pays no attention to it or has no time for it in the daily scheme of things will not have it pop into their mind when decision making comes around; there is no thought given to it; they just simply chose what seems best at the time or what others have done that works. Therefore, as opposed to being confident and able to stand, this one will be blown about like dust in the wind – or the proverbial ship tossed about by the waves.
“Well, I know some very successful people who don’t give a flip about the word of God, and they are running circles around me,” you may say. It is true; good happens to the just and the unjust; however, that success is short lived. Do not look to those whose end is destruction (though it looks great at the moment). Look to the one who created the universe and shows the way to true success, both now and forever.
ACTION STEP:
- Look at a calendar right now. Consider your schedule. For the next 21 days, write down a time that you will focus/meditate on God’s Word. Some love the early morning quiet. Others use their mid-day break. Night owls love the late night quiet time. Pick one. Give the Word a minimum of 15 minutes in your life every day. If you say “I’m going to spend more time in the Word,” and you don’t plan when that will be, most likely it won’t happen.
- During this 15 minutes, highlight in your Bible or write in a journal at least ONE thing that stands out to you for this day’s reading.
Share with me here which time you will carve out for the Word.
Vickie L. Perez: Vitality 