Like A Tree By A Stream

​Blessed is the man…
whose delight is in the law of the Lord…
he is like a tree planted by the streams of water
that yields its fruit in due season, and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers (Pm.1) (Holy Bible, ESVCE, 2020).​
 
Blessed in the one who delights in the law of the Lord. While law could be interpreted as the Old Testament Precepts and Ten Commandments and/or what we have received through Scripture, Tradition and Magisterium, law could also mean daily instruction. Every day, I write in my journal, “Lord, what is your WORD for me today?” Here, I am asking the Lord, not so much for logos (Greek for the inspired, written word of the Lord and Jesus as Word), but for rhema (Greek for the spoken word or unique utterance, always in harmony with logos). Basically, “Lord, you know my heart and my life, speak to me that I might hear you, know your presence, and follow you more closely this day.” Then, I proceed with a little cross sign in my journal and write what I believe the Lord has spoken to me in thought, image, or sense. Typically, I receive something simple, personal, clarifying, and encouraging. It is, indeed, something to delight in then and throughout my day.

​The one who clings to the word of the Lord is like a tree planted by streams of water. In dry climates, the trees that survive must be near water and send out roots to drink from the stream. How dry is the climate now? The earth upends with flood and fire, nations collapse in war and corruption, culture spirals into decadence and darkness, and even believers use the faith for their own ends creating greater polarization while those who are most helpless are left to fend for themselves. Yet, when I drink of your presence and word, my heart expands, my spirit is refreshed, and I remain without withering. In fact, I desire to yield fruit in due season. This yielding is both a bearing and a surrendering. The good tree grows good fruit, not for itself, but to be picked and eaten by another (Mt. 7: 17). A former spiritual director of mine, Ron Novotny, often tested the spirits by asking if I was a fruit tree or a Christmas tree. While a Christmas tree has ornaments hung upon its branches for a brief time, a fruit tree produces fruit, year after year, that then ripen over time, and when picked and eaten, nourishes the picker.
 
He desires prosperity for all, and especially those who delight in the word and drink from the stream. I am not an advocate of the “prosperity Gospel,” but  believe that those who follow the Lord, prosper from Him and in Him. Monsignor Shea at the 2024 Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis said, “It’s time for faithful Catholics to stop trying to live for God. Instead, we should start living from Him.” He gives a way, a life, and a truth that is the deepest longing of every heart. All thirst for this, but only those who have tasted it, can attest to its sweetness and  true source. Both Ez. 47: 12 and Rev. 22: 2 refer to the tree that bears fruit every month because it draws water from the sanctuary, bearing fruit for food and leaves for healing. The tree that draws from the stream bears fruit in season, and the tree that draws from the sanctuary bears fruit and healing in every season. Lord, plant me by the stream, and not just any stream but that flowing from your sanctuary. May I delight in your word, bear your fruit always, and prosper from you and for you. Amen.