"He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers"
God makes spectacular promises for those who would be willing to meditate on His ideas and His words. This verse in Psalms details the consequences of saturating your mind with God's way of thinking. It is an impressive list. It is the list that David experienced. This is what happened in his life because he chose to mediate on the Pentateuch while he was watching the sheep for his father. God did all of these things to and for him. They will also be true for us if we would fight back against the cultural ways of acting by meditating on the Bible.
he will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water
The great danger for trees in the desert was that if there was not a source of constant water, they would dry up and die. Having lived in the desert for almost twenty years, I saw this demonstrated over and over again. If you did not put a water line out to a tree that would automatically water that tree every day, it would not survive. It is this exact same way in the land of Israel. Things don't just grow automatically like certain places in the northeastern United States. I was stunned when I visited friends in Virginia and the Washington DC area when they said that the problem was not getting things to grow but to cut back the vegetation that grows automatically. In the land of Israel – especially the southern section – there must be a constant and sure water source or the tree will die.
David is comparing us to a tree. He is saying that when a person meditates on the Scripture, no matter where God plants them, He will bring a constant source of nurture, support, strength, and growth to them. The phrase streams of water is the Hebrew word peleg, which means channel or canal. This is an irrigation ditch. God will dig an irrigation ditch to feed the person who meditates on His Word. God will make sure that the person who meditates is not stranded without the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual support that they need.
God does put us in places where there is not the level of support that we need; but if we will meditate on His Word, He will make a way for the support to be there for you. I personally saw this take place. When I became a pastor, I was single in a town with no single people and hours from the nearest larger city. Yet I saw God provide spiritually, emotionally, mentally, and physically for me so that I was filled up with what I needed to do God's work and thrive as a person.
Now what would have happened if I had not meditated on His Word? I believe that the situation would have become intolerable for me as a person, and I would have most likely needed to move away to find what I needed. God even supplied the most awesome woman, who became my wife, through a series of miracles that could not have happened without God's intervention.
Please study the Scriptures every day and carry it with you so that God will bless you and dig the channels to carry the support that you need. He will do this for you.
Until tomorrow,
Gil Stieglitz