Where did this title “Your Flourishing Life” originate?
Psalm 92:12-13 “The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God.”
For those who think that God is old and cranky and doesn’t delight in his children, this verse tells us that this is certainly not true!
Do a study on the palm tree and you will discover that apart from grasses, it is the most beneficial plant for sustaining life. In the near east it provides shade, food, and resources for weaving. It enjoys a long and productive lifespan. In fact, a single grove may produce for 100 years.
Now consider the famous Cedars of Lebanon. When we think of Lebanon we think of arid countryside, but that was not always the case. A thousand years before Christ these amazing trees sustained a multi-national economy throughout the near east. Their logs were shipped to Jerusalem for building Solomon’s Temple; they were shipped to Egypt and used in the embalming process. In fact, they were abundant until the early 1900s when they were harvested to become rails for the railway. The forests were desecrated, the springs vanished, the weather system altered, but their history is renown.
What does God says about righteous people? They will grow abundantly long-lived and long-blessed like the palm tree; they will flourish like Lebanon’s cedars.
The question becomes–if I am a person who pursues right living and I am not flourishing who moved? Did God–or did I?