May 17, 2015
Flourish
- Psalms 1:1-6
- Rev Ruth Chadwick Moore
To flourish means to grow or develop in a healthy or vigorous way – especially as the result of a particularly favorable environment. Every parent wants their child to flourish. We want our marriages and partnerships to flourish. We want our friendships and all our relationships to flourish. We want our careers to flourish. And Psalm 1 tells us that God wants us to prosper and flourish too.
From the very beginning, the book of Psalms invites attention to God’s will for us – for God’s will for justice, righteousness and peace. Psalm 1 sets the theological agenda for the other 149 psalms in the bible.
“Happy” – which is sometimes translated blessed – is the very first word in the Psalter. Given this introductory function it’s not surprising that “happy” occurs 22 more times in the book of Psalms. And perhaps one of the functions of the Psalms is to offer some commentary and reflection on the word “happy.”
What does it mean to be happy? I live with a man whose favorite expression is that “happiness is overrated.” I think he is joking – but maybe not. But I also have the privilege of listening to the wise men and women of the bible studies I teach here at Northminster and at American Village. When I asked them what happiness meant to them, I heard things like, contentment, thankfulness, blessing, gratitude, acceptance of what is, the joy of family and friends, and the opportunity to be a part of meaningful experiences. I didn’t hear anything about money, or having the perfect car or house, or the ability to go on trips to Europe or lavish cruises to the Bahamas. As nice as all those things are, they were not what brought about happiness or blessedness to their lives. In fact, I read somewhere that the planning of a trip brings about more happiness than the trip itself.
Recently there have been studies in academic circles and in the social sciences on what is means to be happy. And while the feeling of happiness is subjective, scholars are interested in what people think and feel about various aspects of their lives – income level, relationships, health, careers, and so on. While these studies are interesting, they are fundamentally different from the psalmists’ approach to happiness. For the psalmists, the primary subject is not the human being, but God. So, happiness is not primarily about what we humans beings feel, desire or accomplish. In contrast to much of what society tells us, the psalms tell us that happiness is not about doing what we want to do, but instead, happiness is about doing what God wants done.
In Psalm 1 the repetition of the word law – or as it is in Hebrew, torah – reinforces this conclusion. The word law in Hebrew doesn’t mean legal rules, as much as it means “teaching” or “instruction”; and in the broadest sense it suggests God’s will. So when we hear that the people’s “delight is in the law of the Lord,” we are invited to delight in God’s teaching and instruction for our lives.
The Psalmist does not tell us that happiness can be reduced to a mechanical process of following a set of rules for which you are rewarded. Instead, happiness is a dynamic process that involves – and requires – meditation upon God’s instruction to us – God’s will for us– in order to discern what God would have us do with our lives. As Jesus later summarized when he talked about the torah or the law, happiness is obtained from discerning what it means at all times and in all places to “love the Lord your God with all your hearts, and with all your soul, and with all your mind…And… your neighbor as yourself.” (Mt 22:37-39, Dt 6:5, Lev19:18)
I’d like to read you a retelling of Psalm 1. This is a conversation between two people.
Voice 1: What do you think the secret of a happy life is?
Voice 2: That depends on what you mean by happy.
Voice 1: I don’t really know what I mean.
Voice 2: Well, what does happy feel like? Do you want to feel light and breezy all the time? Or be jovial and laughing all the time? Do you want the buzz of being the center of attention and having people swarm around you? Do you want a lot of money and everything your heart desires on tap?
Voice 1: No, I think I want to feel content.
Voice 2: So, what does content look like?
Voice 1: It’s sitting back at the end of the day, being pleased about decisions I’ve made, being satisfied, having no regrets, knowing I’ve achieved things and done my best. It might seem weird but I imagine feeling like one of those century-old trees that stands on a river bank – noble, secure, stable, well-watered and fed, knowing my place, doing my bit for the world.
Voice 2: I could give you the research on happiness – there has been a lot of work done, or I could just tell what I think and what I’ve learned.
Voice 1: Do that, I’d appreciate hearing what you think.
Voice 2: Well then:
Learn to tell the difference between those who’ve got your best interest at heart and those who are self-interested.
Engage with those who’ve got your back, not those who’ll drop you and run when things go wrong.
Don’t be guided by the cynical and world weary, those that condemn but do nothing to make things better.
Take trends that come and go for what they are, fun and interesting for the moment but not necessarily things to build your life on.
Let go of things that cause you pain and suffering, history is history and can’t be changed, but what you do in your next breath can set you on a new path.
Treat all people with respect, especially those who aren’t as advantaged as you are.
Do good when you can.
When you find yourself in circumstances where you could turn away or make a difference, choose to make a difference.
Be kind to all you meet, even those you don’t really want to engage with, you don’t need to be their dedicated soul mate, but a small act of kindness never goes astray.
Stop often during the day to send a loving thought to the people you care about.
Be grateful. When something good happens say “thanks.” When warmth fills your heart take time to delight in the moment.
Appreciate the gifts of the world that surround you, gaze at the stars, watch the sunset, walk in the rain, swim in the sea, sing with the birds, cuddle your pet.
Voice 2: Pet cuddling is not a problem, but some of the other stuff is tough; I’m not sure I can do it.
Voice 1: Kindness is at the heart of all of everything. Start by being kind to yourself and to those who are around you and let it grow from here. Remember, that big, old tree was a small, vulnerable seed at the beginning of its life. You don’t need to be a giant right from the start.
I do think it’s worth noting that the tree described in this Psalm does not plant itself. The text tells us that the tree or might we say the happy person is set where she will remain fruitful, verdant, prosperous – set where he or she will flourish! The fact that the tree is planted and well placed challenges any notion we might have that the happy person brought about his or her own prosperity. Instead, faith formation has a better chance of taking root if we place ourselves in a position not to be seduced by the counsel of the wicked. We’re more likely to bear fruit if we place ourselves in a position to consider God’s word. That doesn’t mean we will have a life with no struggles or challenges – but planting ourselves in the right soil, being kind, growing outward towards others, that kind of living will certainly increase the odds for a blessed and prosperous life.
The Hebrew word for “blessed” or “happy” comes from the verb that means “go straight,” “go on,” “advance.” The happiness described here then is not happiness in the sense of elation – it is the kind of happiness that comes with a sureness of purpose. Our delight then is not the 632 rules found in Leviticus or the rules of the Presbyterian Church’s Book of Order – it is not in law or laws in that sense – our delight is in the way God leads us… “Day and night,” the Psalmist says, “in the way of the righteous” – across time and through space – along the journey of life.
The writer of Psalm 1 challenges us to discover true happiness. Hopefully that is what we have entered into during this season of Easter. We’ve looked at what stops us from being flourishing, thriving, and prosperous people. We have become aware we no longer need things that separate us from God. We’ve been challenged to understand that happiness is found in having a right relationship with God based on living loving, just and compassionate lives. While we probably wouldn’t use the same language at the psalmist, there is wonderful imagery in Psalm 1 – those that delight in God are “like trees planted by streams of water” – they flourish. When we understand what separates us from God and neighbor we can then let go of those things and they can become “like chaff that the wind drives away.” Jesus too desires happiness for us when he prays in the Gospel of John, “That they may have my joy complete in themselves” (John 17:13). Just as a river delta flourishes with flooding waters, we flourish when we open our hearts to the living waters of the Holy Spirit.
And as I close today I leave you with the words of another psalm - Psalm 119. It is like a bookend to Psalm 1. May it be so for you.
Happy are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD.
Happy are those who keep his decrees, who seek him with their whole heart,
who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways. (Psalm 119: 1-3) Amen.
Resources:
Seasons of the Spirit – Sunday, May 17-Saturday May 23, 2015. “Flourish.”
www.day1/org/497 -foolish_wisdom by Rev. Dr. Rick Dietrich.
www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1733. Commentary on Psalm 1 by Walter C. Bouzard.