Day 4 – The Way To Topple

“Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.” (1 John 2:6, NLT)

“If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” (1 Corinthians 10:12-13, NLT)

Before giving us a vision of a rooted and fruitful tree, the psalmist also offers an insightful warning about how someone topples. The psalm reveals a progression toward being blown over and blown away by the wind.

How happy is the one who does not

walk in the advice of the wicked

or stand in the pathway with sinners

or sit in the company of mockers!

Psalm 1:1, CSB

Notice the progression in a person’s posture toward what can destroy them—from walking to standing to sitting on the wrong path. First a person is tempted to walk toward something that can destroy them. Then they are tempted to stand and check it out, and finally they sit, planting their life in a place that brings destruction.

We also see progression in how a person can be influenced, from listening to participating to belonging. Someone is first offered advice from people who counsel them down the wrong path. Then that person is invited to join them on the pathway, and finally to belong in their company.

And we see progression in what can happen to our souls. Wicked is a general term, sinners refers to a more specific breaking of God’s law, and mockers speaks of celebrating rebellion against God and feeling no remorse for it. When leaders topple, they likely are in a place they never thought they would be and not feeling the remorse they thought they would feel if they ever got there.

The psalmist paints a devastating picture of the path to destruction, to being blown away by the wind. Our hearts can get harder as we move to sitting in our sin, belonging to people who are far from God, and celebrating our disobedience. As our feet get calloused if we get used to walking around outside, our hearts can get calloused as we walk away from the only One who gives true joy.

While it can appear that toppling happened overnight, both for trees and for leaders, the toppling was always the result of an unholy progression. Without God’s grace at work in our lives, we all head down the path toward toppling. We don’t drift toward holiness and healthy leadership. We drift down the path of destruction, away from holiness and healthy leadership. Left alone, our bodies drift to unhealth, our garages drift into chaos, and our hearts drift to destruction. Left alone, our hearts are prone to wander and leave the God we love. All we have to do to drift down the path of destruction is nothing.