The Psalmist’s Wisdom

"It’s not very helpful to keep telling me what not to do,” said one of my dear ones, looking at me with narrowed eyes. “If you want me to be constructive, come up with some better strategies.”

Fair enough. The psalmist gives us three suggestions about things we don’t want to do. They sound simple to the point of banality — until we think about them. Fortunately, he also suggests a replacement strategy.

Here’s the advice: 1) don’t follow the advice of the wicked; 2) don’t go along with sinners; and 3) don’t “sit in the seat of scoffers,” whom I take to mean cynics. None of these suggestions is as easy as it sounds.

Let’s start with No. 1. It’s easy enough to list the wicked advice I’m most aware of: Bend others to your will; do only what pleases you or advances your practical interests; and believe only what makes you feel good about yourself. Then there’s the voice that says you need more things — that it’s more important to be admired or envied than to be honorable or kind, and if it is hard, you shouldn’t have to do it.

But where is this wicked advice coming from? Uh-oh. I’d love to blame popular culture, but the truth is tougher. I am, hands down, my biggest source of rotten advice. How can I truly believe I will resist directions that are built into my flawed human nature?

How do I keep from going along with sinners, when we just established that I am one? For now, let’s give me the benefit of the doubt and say I’m on the long road to holiness (sometimes I am).
Finally, we get to the last suggestion: Don’t position yourself with the scoffers, the cynics. Who are they? People who never saw a person, plan or attitude they couldn’t make fun of. People who look for the ulterior motive in every action and can tell you all the reasons every crusade is hopeless. As a matter of fact, I have spent a fair amount of time in that seat. I can agree with the psalmist that it doesn’t command a particularly happy view, but it feels so secure.

The psalmist has an answer to the questions raised by his suggestions. How do I resist the bad advice built into my human nature and the world around me? I take my directions from the law of the Lord. How do I strengthen my ability to distinguish right from wrong and choose the good? I meditate on the law of the Lord. Where do I find security without cynicism? I will find it in the law of the Lord. I think the psalmist is referring to scripture generally, which helps us understand the nature and will of God, and our own place in the world.

In his analogy, when we connect ourselves to God through his Word, we give ourselves sturdy, well-watered roots. When we rely on our own resources, we are rootless playthings of the world’s wind.

— Linda Moody