March 3 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

Do you feel like you fit in with others? Fitting in can be a major concern for young boys and girls. It bothers them if they sense they do not fit in with their peers. Quite often young people are pressured to join others or face the humiliation of being an outcast.

The desire to fit in does not disappear the moment you step out of school. All of us want to fit in. We feel secure when we are accepted and appreciated by others. Nevertheless, we are walking a dangerous path if we are more concerned about fitting in with people than we are with following the pathways of the Lord.

Psalm 1 speaks about the blessedness and happiness children of God receive by being in a relationship with the Lord. That blessedness does not mean believers will always fit in with others. The righteous often stand alone and do not fit in.

We tend to feel sorry for a person who is excluded from what others are doing. The righteous, however, need to learn that they cannot expect their happiness coming from the support they receive from the crowd or from following a path everyone else is taking. In fact the righteous will only find true happiness if they do not walk in the counsel of the wicked and do not cave in to wrong pressures.

True happiness does not hinge on our ability to fit in with others. The psalmist says, “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful.” That implies the righteous person avoids all the ways of the wicked. He does not take over their thinking, ideals or philosophy. He is on guard against it, for himself, and for his children.

The righteous, however, are not left alone. They are placed in the congregation of the Lord Jesus. The goodness and grace of the Lord draws the righteous to each other. “The righteous will surround me because You shall deal bountifully with me.” (Psalm 142:7) What a powerful perspective! Life, for those whose righteousness is in Christ, is not about fitting in but about being drawn together by the love and mercy of the Lord. That’s what gives us lasting happiness and security!