Robert Houk Hitchcock

Psalm 1:1-3
   Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor
standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
   But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
   And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

   To walk in the delight of the law of the Lord, to meditate in the Word of God day and night, is to walk with and for God.  

   Each man can only walk for himself.  This kind of walk is so wonderful.  Look what it produces: he shall be like a tree planted by RIVERS OF WATERS.   Not bad.  Not in a drought-stricken field.  Not in a desert.  Can't get a whole lot more water than a river!  Ever seen the big oak trees next to the rivers in Central Texas?  Ever seen the giant cypress trees next to the rivers in East Texas?  They're HUGE.  Just so happens this tree spoken of here  is also a FRUIT tree. Fruit trees PRODUCE!   No withered leaves.  (A lot of people often feel like their lives are withered, don't they?!)  To top is all off- WHATSOEVER he doeth shall prosper.  That is a fabulous promise. 

When you are walking with God, delighting in His Word, meditating in it....AND... you are NOT walking in the counsel of the ungodly...life is really great.  Planted.  Fruit.  Not withered. Prospering.

Proverbs 3:1-6
   My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:
   For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.
   Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:
   So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.
   Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own
understanding.
   In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

   To "forget not" is to remember.  To remember is to think about something.  To think about it is to meditate, like Psalm 1.  Same Truth.  Let our hearts keep the Word.  See why in our ministries we've always been so excited about God's Word?!  It's the Word that enables us to walk with and for God.  The Word, and then operating the spirit of God within us. 

Look here what letting our hearts keep the Word produces:

        1. Length of days  (see, you can get more out of a day.)
        2. Long life  (wouldn't mind seeing great grand-children.)
        3. Peace  (that's a great quality of life.)

   Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own
understanding. That's the essence of walking with and for God.  God always has the bigger picture.  God always has the perspective that we don't have.  God knows what's going on all around us.  We trust in Him - remember:  delight, meditate, forget not, keep His Word- and then He shall direct your paths!

   You know how profitable it is to have GOD direct YOUR paths?!  That's why the Word says whatsoever you do, you'll prosper.  God will only lead you on the paths of righteousness and prosperity!

Proverbs 3:7-10
   Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
   It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.
   Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:
   So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out
with new wine.

   To not be wise in our own eyes, but rather to keep our eyes on God, can only bless our lives. To fear, that is, to respect, God will cause us to depart from evil. Again, look the the fruit, the result produced: health to thy navel, marrow to thy bones.  WOW. A healthy navel!  Didn't know they could get sick, did you?  It's a figure of speech. That navel once connected you to life itself.  Health to thy navel would be health and sustenance to all of your physical body, 100%. Marrow to thy bones.  The bone marrow produces the life-carrying red blood cells in your body. More marrow = more life.

   To honor God with our substance, our material wealth and increase, is simply to give to God what is proper to offer Him.  So far we are delighting, meditating, not forgetting, keeping, trusting, acknowledging, and now honoring.   It's no surprise to see the results of honoring: our barns are filled with plenty and our presses burst out (overflow) with new wine.  That's a promise from God for walking with Him and keeping His Word.

Proverbs 3:21-24
   My son, let not them depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom and
discretion:
   So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace to thy neck.
   Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble.
   When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet.

   In walking with God, we keep our eyes on Him and on His Word.  In so doing we keep sound wisdom.  The result: life unto our souls and grace to our necks.  (My neck needs a lot of grace sometimes!)  The result: thou shall walk in thy way SAFELY and thy foot shall not STUMBLE.  

   Sometimes life used to seem like a stumbling race, just stumbling from one mistake to a bigger mistake.  No more three-legged race/walks for us.  We're going to walk safely, and we are going to walk without stumbling.

   There's even more to this promise: we can lie down at night and just get a sweet sleep.  Maybe you've told that to your children or had your parents say that to you: "Have a sweet  sleep."  Well there it is in God's Word!  No more fear, wondering what is happening the next day.  No fear wondering about life and our problems.  Just a sweet sleep.  I'll bet 6 hours or sweet sleep is worth 12 hours of unpeaceful sleep!  What a wonderful promise of God.

   Walking with God by walking in His Word is an adventure in believing. We trust Him, we delight in Him.  We acknowledge Him.  We honor Him.  God takes care of us totally.

 What a fellowship, what a joy divine, leaning on the everlasting arms!