A prayer for feeling blessed

Listen to this daily worship
Psalm 1 (NIVUK)
1 Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither –
whatever they do prospers.4 Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff
that the wind blows away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
Lord,
I once met a man — you knew him well
He knew he was blessed
But he had walked a difficult road
Life humbled him
He said the road got harder
When he left the mockers and the drinkers
Grief weighed him down
His past often caught up with him
His eyes at times were kind but sorrowful
He knew the strain
Of bad news, of sad news
He said when he started to keep Your company,
Lord — that’s when he knew he was blessed
I saw him change over time — he walked taller
Even though the road got harder
He said his burden got lighter
He smiled and said
He was delighted
He took great delight in this psalm
He would greet me with the words
“Blessed is the man” and then laugh
We’d sit down and talk
Read scripture, drink tea and pray
We felt we were like trees planted in a stream of water
Blessed because there was a promise of fruit to come
Lord,
His road got even harder — he refused to bend
We sat in a barber’s chair apprehensively
Sharing jokes — sharing a close shave
Pastor and parishioner, boys together
Healing happens under many guises
We spoke last in a hospital ward
“I’ll not see it,“ he said, “but they will”
The fruit will come
The promise will not wither
His road was coming to an end
He was grateful for his Walkman
There were earplugs in his ears as he shouted
“Blessed is the man” I’m listening to the song
“Broken lives worth mending” - that’s me!
He laughed — I cried!
Oh Lord!
How wonderful are your ways
Blessed is the man,
BLESSED IS THE MAN!
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