Psalm 1:1, 2
Blessed is the man that walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in His law does he meditate day and night.
*Strong's Ex. Conc. No.
Meditate: ponder, muse
From the Hebrew word ' hagah' (pronounced daw-gaw'). A word with many meanings- to moan, growl, utter, speak, muse- but which in verse is defined as 'muse, ponder'.
In this crazy world we live in we are being told, even in some churches, to 'empty our minds' to reduce stress and the unhealthy consequences of stress. That's not what the Bible says to do. The Word of God tells us here to meditate on The Word of God. That's not emptying our minds, that's filling our minds and our hearts.
It's more than mere words: The Word of God has power. Power to change the heart, change the mind. Power to strengthen the weak. Power to fill the heart with a desire to overflow with the Word of God, the Love of God, the Power of God. Power to change first, the individual, then the multitude of individuals who meditate on God's Word.
In Joshua 1:7, 8 Joshua is being commissioned by God to lead God's people into the promised land.
7. Above all, be strong and very courageous. Be careful to observe all the law that My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may prosper wherever you go.
8. This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in all you do.
In Sunday School we learned a song that is still with me today "O Be Careful Little Eyes". A song warning each part of our bodies how to serve God best.
Be careful little eyes What You See
Be careful little ears What You Hear
Be careful little mouth What You Speak
Be careful little hands What You Do
Be careful little feet Where You Go
I would add one more: Be careful little soul How You Meditate. If we let our minds wander away from what is good and righteous to think on, then we are not thinking on The Word of God. We need to rein our thinking in. Paul wrote in Philippians 4:8 to Think On: lovely things, true things, honorable things, pure things, right things, admirable things, excellent things and praiseworthy things.
Think On here means to meditate on these things, take into account and consider these things. What is more true, more honorable, more right, more pure, more lovely, more admirable, more excellent or more praiseworthy than the Word of God, the Law of the Lord?
It is more than memorizing Scripture. A person can memorize Scripture and neither know, nor apply the Word to themselves and their way of life. Memorizing mere words is not meditating on The Word. Just knowing the words within The Word does not change a person or a person's heart.
Praying over the Scriptures before we begin to read or study them or meditate on them opens our hearts to God's instruction, teaching, law. Allow the Holy Spirit to lead you to passages of Scripture to pray over and into your lives.
Proverbs 29:18 tells us that "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keeps the law, happy is he." In other words, where the Word, the law of God, is not kept, people perish. They are alone, empty, vacant; unrestrained, out of control. But he that keeps (heeds, observes) the law, is blessed (happy).
There's a lot of unhappy people out there today. They do not keep God's law near, to dwell on it, meditate on it. They see God as a last resort and not as a Priority, if they see Him at all. God wants to be first in our lives, especially in our hearts. He even tells us in His commandments to put Him first, to give Him our attention, our worship.
When I can't sleep at night, I open my Bible and begin to read and pray over what I am reading. I ask the Author to make plain what He wants me to know and He does. Though there are times when He wakes me to pray for specific people, most of the time when I am awake, I meditate on God's Word. Then sleep finds me and I rest.
Let us go now and meditate on The Word of God, on His law. Let us rest in His Word, gain strength in His Word, be blessed by His Word. Let us glorify God with a desire to be in His Word, live in His Word and allow His Word to live in us. If you're happy and you know it, praise the Lord! If you're not happy, what are you going to do about it?
