Blessednesses

My favorite verse today!  It's the answer for everything!

  "Blessed are those who have made the LORD their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted near a stream with roots that reach deep into the water. They are not bothered by heat or drought. Their leaves stay green and they never stop producing fruit" (Jeremiah 17:7-8).

 Perfect, right?

The first word is 'blessed.' It means 'supremely happy and fulfilled.' In Hebrew the word is actually plural -- there is no singular form. It describes a multiplicity of blessings or an intensification of them.

It is also the first word of Psalm 1, and so opens the entire Psalter. (Certainly fitting for the readers!) That verse could have been, correctly, translated, 'Oh the blessednesses of the man whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on His law day and night.' (Psalm 1:1)

And it's in His Word, His law, that we find our 'hope and confidence.'

What are we compared to? A 'tree planted' -- purposefully, intentionally situated by the Master Gardener! We are not wild bushes that sprang up after a spring rain for a short life of painfully seeking moisture and nutrients. We have all we need to thrive and produce abundant fruit!

And that's not all. Look at Isaiah 61:3. He plants us, not as solo trees, but with others and so 'They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of His splendor!'

He has purposefully planted us where we are -- for our good and His glory! To 'display His splendor!'

Where are you planted? Look around you -- we are right where He planted us -- for our good and His glory! To display His splendor!

(Reminds me of the old phrase: 'Bloom where you are planted!')

I can't think of a better way to start the day!