GREAT LIFE BY THE RIVER

I love spending time by the water.  Fortunately I can see the river from my apartment and it’s easy to get to the side of the river either to sit and relax or to walk on the boardwalk downtown. 

There are many riverside walking paths and trails within a few minutes of my home that my friend Evelyn and I go to on a regular basis for a little afternoon walk.  The smell of the air, the birds singing, the fresh green around us – the list of lovely things by the river is too long to name here.

Here’s another description of life by the river from the Bible.

Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers.  But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.

Psalm 1:1-3

God has kept things simple for us.  Life with Him that is good for us is not complicated – we are to spend time with God, and we do that by not just reading a few words from the Bible but taking some time to think about them and pray about them and asking God to show us what they mean for us in our day.

It’s certainly the reason I put these little videos together.  I know from my own experience the peace and blessing that results from not just quickly passing over some words but considering what I’ve read.

Most days I’m making notes in my journal.  For some reason when I write things down more understanding and more peace comes.  Maybe it’s just the “slowing down” of forming and writing the thoughts/prayers.

However You spend time with God today I hope you take time to let God’s truth so resonate in your heart that you delight in what He is saying to You.

Loving God, You give us a good way to navigate each day.  Jesus said He came that we would know life, life to the full, and that’s what we experience over and over again when we give You a chance to speak into our lives right at the place where we find ourselves.

We want to live fruitful lives.  We want to thrive and prosper, not necessarily in the way our culture describes thriving and prospering, but as people whose hearts and minds are at peace with that “all is well” sense from day to day.  We know that will make whatever the work we do in any given day much more satisfying and a blessing to all around us as well. 

Thank You for blessing us over and over again, one day at a time, one moment at a time.  Amen

Let’s enjoy “life by the river” today.