#4 Holy Wit – Reflections
(WW – Wisdom and Worship – Psalm 1; Psalm 112; Psalm 150)
Scripture References: Psalm 1; Psalm 112; Psalm 150
There was a man I used to see almost every Saturday morning at a small diner years ago. One of those older places where the coffee arrives before you ask for it because the waitress has already profiled your age and posture correctly.
He sat alone most mornings in the same booth near the window.
Nothing outwardly remarkable about him.
Ball cap.
Work jacket.
Hands that looked as though they had spent decades arguing with machinery.
He would eat slowly, read portions of the newspaper with visible disappointment, occasionally mutter “Well that’s dumb,” under his breath at headlines, and then leave an unusually generous tip.
But there was one thing about him people noticed.
He was remarkably calm.
Not cheerful in the artificial motivational-speaker sense. Not floating through life in mystical denial. Calm.
And in modern society, calm people eventually become suspicious.
You almost want to ask them what information they possess that the rest of us lack.
Because most people now operate at the emotional pace of caffeinated squirrels trying to file taxes during an electrical storm.
But this man remained steady.
One morning somebody in the diner asked him directly:
“How do you stay so relaxed all the time?”
And he answered in the simplest possible way.
“Well...the Lord’s still running things.”
That was it.
No sermon.
No lecture.
No twelve-part podcast series entitled Unlocking the Hidden Secrets of Emotional Alignment Through Quantum Positivity.
Just: “The Lord’s still running things.”
At the time, I thought the answer sounded almost too simple.
But the older I get, the more Psalm 112 sounds exactly like that man.
“He will not be afraid of evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.”
Now that does not mean the righteous man never experiences fear, grief, uncertainty, or sorrow. The Psalms themselves are filled with tears, confusion, and cries for help. Scripture is not emotionally dishonest.
But there is a difference between a troubled heart and an untethered one.
Psalm 1 describes the wise man as a tree planted by rivers of water. Stable. Rooted. Nourished continually from beneath the surface.
That image matters because modern culture increasingly produces the opposite sort of person — spiritually uprooted, emotionally reactive, constantly blown sideways by every new outrage, headline, trend, or catastrophe prediction.
And there is no shortage of those.
Human civilization now essentially functions as one giant machine for delivering anxiety directly into people’s pockets every seven minutes.
The Psalms push back against that drift by continually redirecting attention toward God.
Not because difficulties are imaginary.
Because God is greater.
That old diner man likely understood this better than many educated people.
The fear of the Lord produces steadiness because it places life back into proper proportion.
God remains sovereign.
God remains faithful.
God remains worthy of worship.
And therefore panic does not deserve permanent residence in the soul.
Psalm 150 then takes the whole journey of the Psalms and ends exactly where it has been heading all along:
“Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.”
That line lands differently once you realize praise is not merely emotional enthusiasm. It becomes orientation.
The wise life eventually becomes the worshiping life.
Not because mature believers never see darkness, but because they repeatedly return their attention to the greatness of God.
That changes people over time.
A praising person becomes steadier.
Kinder.
Less self-absorbed.
Less chronically outraged.
More grateful.
More aware that every ordinary mercy — sunlight, forgiveness, food, laughter, redemption, another morning to breathe — is undeserved kindness from God.
And perhaps that is one reason the Psalms begin with wisdom and end with praise.
Because properly seeing God eventually produces worship.
The wise man delights in the Lord.
The worshiping man trusts the Lord.
And after enough years walking with Him, the two become difficult to separate.
Eventually the soul simply learns this settled reflex:
The Lord is still running things.
And therefore:
Praise the Lord.
#HolyWitBibleStudy #GordonMcGinnis #WWWisdomAndWorship #Psalm1
(WW – Wisdom and Worship – Psalm 1; Psalm 112; Psalm 150)
Scripture References: Psalm 1; Psalm 112; Psalm 150
There was a man I used to see almost every Saturday morning at a small diner years ago. One of those older places where the coffee arrives before you ask for it because the waitress has already profiled your age and posture correctly.
He sat alone most mornings in the same booth near the window.
Nothing outwardly remarkable about him.
Ball cap.
Work jacket.
Hands that looked as though they had spent decades arguing with machinery.
He would eat slowly, read portions of the newspaper with visible disappointment, occasionally mutter “Well that’s dumb,” under his breath at headlines, and then leave an unusually generous tip.
But there was one thing about him people noticed.
He was remarkably calm.
Not cheerful in the artificial motivational-speaker sense. Not floating through life in mystical denial. Calm.
And in modern society, calm people eventually become suspicious.
You almost want to ask them what information they possess that the rest of us lack.
Because most people now operate at the emotional pace of caffeinated squirrels trying to file taxes during an electrical storm.
But this man remained steady.
One morning somebody in the diner asked him directly:
“How do you stay so relaxed all the time?”
And he answered in the simplest possible way.
“Well...the Lord’s still running things.”
That was it.
No sermon.
No lecture.
No twelve-part podcast series entitled Unlocking the Hidden Secrets of Emotional Alignment Through Quantum Positivity.
Just: “The Lord’s still running things.”
At the time, I thought the answer sounded almost too simple.
But the older I get, the more Psalm 112 sounds exactly like that man.
“He will not be afraid of evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.”
Now that does not mean the righteous man never experiences fear, grief, uncertainty, or sorrow. The Psalms themselves are filled with tears, confusion, and cries for help. Scripture is not emotionally dishonest.
But there is a difference between a troubled heart and an untethered one.
Psalm 1 describes the wise man as a tree planted by rivers of water. Stable. Rooted. Nourished continually from beneath the surface.
That image matters because modern culture increasingly produces the opposite sort of person — spiritually uprooted, emotionally reactive, constantly blown sideways by every new outrage, headline, trend, or catastrophe prediction.
And there is no shortage of those.
Human civilization now essentially functions as one giant machine for delivering anxiety directly into people’s pockets every seven minutes.
The Psalms push back against that drift by continually redirecting attention toward God.
Not because difficulties are imaginary.
Because God is greater.
That old diner man likely understood this better than many educated people.
The fear of the Lord produces steadiness because it places life back into proper proportion.
God remains sovereign.
God remains faithful.
God remains worthy of worship.
And therefore panic does not deserve permanent residence in the soul.
Psalm 150 then takes the whole journey of the Psalms and ends exactly where it has been heading all along:
“Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.”
That line lands differently once you realize praise is not merely emotional enthusiasm. It becomes orientation.
The wise life eventually becomes the worshiping life.
Not because mature believers never see darkness, but because they repeatedly return their attention to the greatness of God.
That changes people over time.
A praising person becomes steadier.
Kinder.
Less self-absorbed.
Less chronically outraged.
More grateful.
More aware that every ordinary mercy — sunlight, forgiveness, food, laughter, redemption, another morning to breathe — is undeserved kindness from God.
And perhaps that is one reason the Psalms begin with wisdom and end with praise.
Because properly seeing God eventually produces worship.
The wise man delights in the Lord.
The worshiping man trusts the Lord.
And after enough years walking with Him, the two become difficult to separate.
Eventually the soul simply learns this settled reflex:
The Lord is still running things.
And therefore:
Praise the Lord.
#HolyWitBibleStudy #GordonMcGinnis #WWWisdomAndWorship #Psalm1
#4 Holy Wit – Reflections
(WW – Wisdom and Worship – Psalm 1; Psalm 112; Psalm 150)
Scripture References: Psalm 1; Psalm 112; Psalm 150
There was a man I used to see almost every Saturday morning at a small diner years ago. One of those older places where the coffee arrives before you ask for it because the waitress has already profiled your age and posture correctly.
He sat alone most mornings in the same booth near the window.
Nothing outwardly remarkable about him.
Ball cap.
Work jacket.
Hands that looked as though they had spent decades arguing with machinery.
He would eat slowly, read portions of the newspaper with visible disappointment, occasionally mutter “Well that’s dumb,” under his breath at headlines, and then leave an unusually generous tip.
But there was one thing about him people noticed.
He was remarkably calm.
Not cheerful in the artificial motivational-speaker sense. Not floating through life in mystical denial. Calm.
And in modern society, calm people eventually become suspicious.
You almost want to ask them what information they possess that the rest of us lack.
Because most people now operate at the emotional pace of caffeinated squirrels trying to file taxes during an electrical storm.
But this man remained steady.
One morning somebody in the diner asked him directly:
“How do you stay so relaxed all the time?”
And he answered in the simplest possible way.
“Well...the Lord’s still running things.”
That was it.
No sermon.
No lecture.
No twelve-part podcast series entitled Unlocking the Hidden Secrets of Emotional Alignment Through Quantum Positivity.
Just: “The Lord’s still running things.”
At the time, I thought the answer sounded almost too simple.
But the older I get, the more Psalm 112 sounds exactly like that man.
“He will not be afraid of evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.”
Now that does not mean the righteous man never experiences fear, grief, uncertainty, or sorrow. The Psalms themselves are filled with tears, confusion, and cries for help. Scripture is not emotionally dishonest.
But there is a difference between a troubled heart and an untethered one.
Psalm 1 describes the wise man as a tree planted by rivers of water. Stable. Rooted. Nourished continually from beneath the surface.
That image matters because modern culture increasingly produces the opposite sort of person — spiritually uprooted, emotionally reactive, constantly blown sideways by every new outrage, headline, trend, or catastrophe prediction.
And there is no shortage of those.
Human civilization now essentially functions as one giant machine for delivering anxiety directly into people’s pockets every seven minutes.
The Psalms push back against that drift by continually redirecting attention toward God.
Not because difficulties are imaginary.
Because God is greater.
That old diner man likely understood this better than many educated people.
The fear of the Lord produces steadiness because it places life back into proper proportion.
God remains sovereign.
God remains faithful.
God remains worthy of worship.
And therefore panic does not deserve permanent residence in the soul.
Psalm 150 then takes the whole journey of the Psalms and ends exactly where it has been heading all along:
“Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.”
That line lands differently once you realize praise is not merely emotional enthusiasm. It becomes orientation.
The wise life eventually becomes the worshiping life.
Not because mature believers never see darkness, but because they repeatedly return their attention to the greatness of God.
That changes people over time.
A praising person becomes steadier.
Kinder.
Less self-absorbed.
Less chronically outraged.
More grateful.
More aware that every ordinary mercy — sunlight, forgiveness, food, laughter, redemption, another morning to breathe — is undeserved kindness from God.
And perhaps that is one reason the Psalms begin with wisdom and end with praise.
Because properly seeing God eventually produces worship.
The wise man delights in the Lord.
The worshiping man trusts the Lord.
And after enough years walking with Him, the two become difficult to separate.
Eventually the soul simply learns this settled reflex:
The Lord is still running things.
And therefore:
Praise the Lord.
#HolyWitBibleStudy #GordonMcGinnis #WWWisdomAndWorship #Psalm1
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