Sermon Title: Mountain Stream.
Scripture Text: Psalms 1:1-6
Psalm 1 NLT
1 Oh, the joys of those who do not
follow the advice of the wicked,
or stand around with sinners,
or join in with mockers.
2 But they delight in the law of the Lord,
meditating on it day and night.
3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank,
bearing fruit each season.
Their leaves never wither,
and they prosper in all they do.
4 But not the wicked!
They are like worthless chaff, scattered by the wind.
5 They will be condemned at the time of judgment.
Sinners will have no place among the godly.
6 For the Lord watches over the path of the godly,
but the path of the wicked leads to destruction.
QUOTE:
You will only ever be as great as the people you surround yourself with; so be brave enough to let go of those who keep bringing you down. (Marc Chernoff )
Always remember:
Psalm 139:14 NLT
14 Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
The first part of our Scripture talks about hanging out with the wrong people. Or even listening to the wrong people because they can come up with an argument that sounds so right but is so wrong.
It may sound like I’m talking to young people but believe me I’m not. People of all ages fall into traps. Not all people are who they seem to be.
I saw a painting that caught me off guard. It was a normal painting of snow covered mountains in the background. A beautiful pond where you could see the clouds in the very calm pond. But there was a herd of sheep there. The details just pulled me into the painting. I just stared at the sheep. But as I was looking something didn't look right with the sheep. Then I saw two eyes and a snout that didn't belong to a sheep. IT WAS A WOLF. I could see it plainly now even with the sheep skin pulled over its entire body. The wolf was in the herd of sheep traveling with them.
Be aware of sheep in wolves clothing I’ve always heard.
Age doesn't have much to do with what I’m going to talk about. Here are a couple of tricks that human wolves can pull on us:
1. Avoid so-called friends that have Constant criticisms about us, our friends or maybe our Christianity.
2. Our friends should clearly understand what behavior we are willing to do ourselves and willing for them to do.
3. We need a structured life. Not so much we are hindered or can’t enjoy our lives but so much that we aren't pulled away from what we do as Christians.
4. We have to have limits. Think about it. We can enjoy certain things but we can’t keep going farther and farther. Life must have limits.
5. You don't have to tolerate mean friends. I push them out of my life as a friend but I will be friendly with them if I can.
6. Remember what we have been told. And we are never too young or too old to listen and remember.
- I remember coming home on leave after two years in the Navy. As I walked out the door Mom said “you be back here by 9”.
--I was home at 9. It was so worth it when I saw how happy it made her.
As we mature you may adapt to a 12 midnight coming home. But you will always, in the back of your mind, remember someone that cares for you enough to give you good advice.
I have been known to stay out past 10pm these days.
3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank,
bearing fruit each season.
When I read this verse I had some memories come back to me.
Where I was Pastoring at the time I got 5th Sunday off. I had a favorite fishing hole. The water wasn’t very deep so I could wade in the water. That was fun for me. It had big trees that hung over the water and the sun would shine through them and made it look beautiful.
It was great, this river started as a stream at my friend’s home way up in the mountains. I had actually drank cold clear water where this stream started.
The water could get strong as it rolled over boulders and pushed small sand stones around.
I could spot bass in the water and sometimes big catfish it was so clear. I just loved it there. An hour passed like only five minutes. I reached down to just over my elbow and picked up two sand stones. I moved them around in my hand and they were so smooth. I throw one down the river and watch it skip a lone way down the river.
As I felt the smoothness of my other sandstone I started to think. When God created this river from the highest stream it was probably very jagged. I probably would have never noticed it or picked it up.
This jagged rock became a beautiful, very smooth sandstone by being pushed downstream in stormy water and was beaten against other rocks and the fast moving water smoothed the edges. The stone laid there when the water was flowing gently over it. After a very long time the jagged rock became a very smooth sandstone. People now use these in that part of the country, to build their floors on their porches. And the larger ones to build their houses.
Life isn’t easy but we can over time become like these beautiful sand stones that are used in such a wonderful way.
The first part of our Scriptures says so too:
Psalm 1:1-3
1 Oh, the joys of those who do not
follow the advice of the wicked,
or stand around with sinners,
or join in with mockers.
2 But they delight in the law of the Lord,
meditating on it day and night.
3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank,
bearing fruit each season.
Their leaves never wither,
and they prosper in all they do.
