Know Your Source

“Happy are they who… meditate on God’s teaching day and night,” the Psalmist declares in Psalm 1, our psalmody for today. “They are like trees planted by streams of water, bearing fruit in due season, with leaves that do not wither; everything they do shall prosper.”

What a beautiful way to introduce the Psalms! It’s likely that these verses were situated deliberately at the beginning of the Psalter, or set of 150 Psalms, to guide the way we navigate the entire collection. God’s word, God’s wisdom is not just written information, the Psalmist implies, but a coursing stream that nourishes all who access it, like a waterway that supports the flourishing of nearby trees. More than markings on a page, in other words, the word of God is “living and active,”[1] living in us and acting upon us for our sake and for the sake of the world God loves.

It’s worth contemplating that metaphor for a moment. Consider the mature tree on the banks of a stream. Its roots reach deep into the earth, fed continually by fresh water to mitigate the threat of external elements. Never mind the sun that scorches in summer or the wind that howls in winter, the well-watered tree stands tall.

What’s more, it feeds others. The tree rooted by the stream produces lush foliage and flowers, and yields its fruit “in due season,” or at the appointed time year after year. That is to say, the well-watered tree fulfills its purpose in relationship to the whole ecosystem, which is good news for the birds of the air and the beasts of the field– those that take shelter in the branches and consume the harvest of a healthy tree, a healthy grove. The stream is a source of life abundant for them all.

So know your source, the Psalmist insists.

We might draw a parallel between this ancient wisdom and the modern psychological concept of secure attachment. Secure attachment describes a relational style that is comfortable with both intimacy and autonomy, and presumes that others are generally trustworthy and reliable. Developing from consistent, responsive care from a primary caregiver, secure attachment in childhood facilitates healthier relationships, positive self-esteem, and effective coping skills throughout life. Securely attached people are able to balance their need for support with an ability to explore, feel safe in relationships, and manage conflict effectively.[2]

Resilience, a sense of self-worth, relational wellbeing– that sounds like the human equivalent of a tree planted by water, doesn’t it? And central to both the biblical image and the psychological category is a dependable primary relationship, like a river that never runs dry: Happy are they who are fed reliably by the living word of God; happy are they who know deep down the abiding love that is at the very root of life.

So know your source.

This summer, I did something I’d never done before: I sought out a spiritual director. It may come as a surprise to you, but pastors are not all spiritually adept; we struggle as much as anyone to trust God and to love ourselves and our neighbors well. And my spiritual director, trained in the art of perception, ascertained at my first session in July that I might benefit from reconnecting more intentionally with my source.

To that end, she urged me to take up a daily discipline. Centering Prayer, as the ancient practice is called, is a means of opening the mind and heart– that is, the whole being– to God as “the Ultimate Mystery, beyond thoughts, words, and emotions.” By grace, the one who prays in silence and stillness expects to encounter God within, “closer than breathing, closer than thinking, closer than choosing, closer than consciousness itself.”[3]        

So I spent the next month intending to pray.

And I returned to my second session in August with my tail between my legs. I simply hadn’t carved out the necessary space in my life to give Centering Prayer a real chance. My spiritual director smiled knowingly and sympathetically when I admitted this, perhaps not surprised by my lack of trying. Then she reframed Centering Prayer in a helpful way and asked me a follow-up question: Centering Prayer is the prayer of assent, she said, opening you to whatever gracious purpose God has in mind. So my question is: Why are you afraid of God?

It hit me like a brick. Why are you afraid of God, that is, what’s preventing you from turning to God as your source, the abiding presence that desires to love and lead you? I can’t give you a good answer to that question, but I can tell you that I’m following through now and devoting five minutes every afternoon to Centering Prayer. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Friends, if the Psalmist urges you to know your source, it’s because your source already knows you. God’s leading is trustworthy because God is love, seeking to sustain you in body, in spirit, and in relationship with God and others. As you well know, life will throw a lot at you. And as Jesus insists in today’s Gospel and elsewhere, faithful living will involve sacrifice. All the more reason to rely on what is most reliable, come what may.

So know your source.

Drink deeply.

And stand tall.

[1] Hebrews 4:12.

[2] Adapted from the Google AI overview.

[3] Thomas Keating, “The Method of Centering Prayer: The Prayer of Consent,” Contemplative Outreach, Ltd. (2006, 2019).