Truly Happy

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. Psalm 1:1-2

FINDING AN ENGLISH TRANSLATION for the Hebrew term ashre, expressed by the first words of this psalm, isn’t easy. “Truly happy” might be the best English translation. But happy can often signify a fleeting emotion. So often we say that we want our kids to be happy. But really we want much more than that. We want them to experience what is expressed here in Psalm 1. Ashre conveys a deep sense of well-being, contentedness, and fulfillment.

The first thing we learn in Psalm 1 about those who enjoy this kind of happiness is what they do not do. They do not follow, stand, or join the wicked, sinners, or mockers. The psalmist’s choice of words —follow, stand, join —seems to describe a progression of engagement that makes its way through thinking, behaving, and belonging. So happy people don’t absorb the ideas and values or follow the advice of those who live their lives assuming that God is irrelevant. They don’t conform to the behavior or lifestyle of those who sin with no conscience. They don’t keep company with cynics who get a good laugh by making fun of the things of God.

It’s not that truly happy people can’t be influenced by anything, however. It’s that the central influence in their lives is not the advice offered on social media or the opinion of the cool kids at school. It is something quite different —the Scriptures. These happy people have implanted the Word of God in their minds and souls. They don’t drag out their Bible every now and then because they ought to. They read it often because they want to. This is the happiness we want for our children.

Lord, I want ________ to have this kind of blessed life. I want ________ to have this kind of happiness. So I pray that ________ will recognize the wicked and refuse to follow their lead. I pray that ________ will refuse to join in with those who mock what is precious to you. I pray that the Scriptures would increasingly become the controlling influence in ________’s life.