May God Bless You!
The
first time I heard these four words, I did not understand the full implication
of the word blessing. Then I learned ‘A blessing is offering an
abundance of good.’ To understand blessing is to understand ‘good,’ and its
origin. Is a blessing negative or positive?
first time I heard these four words, I did not understand the full implication
of the word blessing. Then I learned ‘A blessing is offering an
abundance of good.’ To understand blessing is to understand ‘good,’ and its
origin. Is a blessing negative or positive?
The Lord is good to all, and His mercy is
over all that He has made. Psalm 145:9. The Word is all-inclusive. The Lord our
God ignores no one in this world.
“Behold, blessed is the one whom God
reproves; therefore, despise not the discipline of
the Almighty.” Job 5:17
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor
stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat
of scoffers, but his delight is in the law of
the Lord, and on His law, he meditates day and night. Psalm
1:1-2
Where did it all begin, this Goodness of God? In the beginning, out of nowhere,
time, space God speaks the universe into existence. In the beginning,
God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and
void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was
hovering over the face of the waters. Genesis 1:1-2.
Blessings come to us, and when we love
God, and He, in return, is blessed. Our daily headlines screech with fear,
innuendos of lies and deceit. These are the weapons of Satan. Why doesn’t
someone do something? We hear this plea from every corner of the earth.
The someone is you and it’s me, through the way we treat others in the Name of
The One who loves us.
God, and He, in return, is blessed. Our daily headlines screech with fear,
innuendos of lies and deceit. These are the weapons of Satan. Why doesn’t
someone do something? We hear this plea from every corner of the earth.
The someone is you and it’s me, through the way we treat others in the Name of
The One who loves us.
When we know in our hearts the greatness
and goodness of God, we find joy in His Word. We observe the tiniest creature
God created, and it fills us with wonder. We know His Power, Wisdom, and
Goodness.
and goodness of God, we find joy in His Word. We observe the tiniest creature
God created, and it fills us with wonder. We know His Power, Wisdom, and
Goodness.
David, the King, began as a Shepherd and
trusted God, even when he fell from God’s way. He recognized his sin and asked
for forgiveness. He was known as a man after God’s own heart. He learned to
trust God and declared His goodness. Psalm 23 begins, The Lord is my
Shepherd, I shall not want. David lived in contentment knowing his
needs would be met.
trusted God, even when he fell from God’s way. He recognized his sin and asked
for forgiveness. He was known as a man after God’s own heart. He learned to
trust God and declared His goodness. Psalm 23 begins, The Lord is my
Shepherd, I shall not want. David lived in contentment knowing his
needs would be met.
How does God bless us? He teaches us His
commandments. Blessed are you, O Lord; teach me your statutes! With my
lips, I declare all the rules of your mouth. Psalm 119:12-13. He
teaches us the WAY to live in this life and we bless Him when we follow. He
shows us how to Love by loving us before we loved Him. He has capsulized
all the early commandments into two, through Jesus, His Son.
commandments. Blessed are you, O Lord; teach me your statutes! With my
lips, I declare all the rules of your mouth. Psalm 119:12-13. He
teaches us the WAY to live in this life and we bless Him when we follow. He
shows us how to Love by loving us before we loved Him. He has capsulized
all the early commandments into two, through Jesus, His Son.
And Jesus said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your
heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and
first commandment. And a second is like
it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On
these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew
22:37-40.
Every thought, spoken word, and action matters to God. Is it in anger or
love? We choose this to be so. When we love someone dearly, we want to please
them in any way we can. This is true with God, Himself. How can we please
God? For years, the beatitudes puzzled me. Then I realized this is
a two-way Blessing-Trail of Joy. God gives us a pattern to live by and
says we are blessed if we in this way. Matthew 5:2-12 reveals how we can
truly bless God with our lives and our choices. Jesus, our Lord, taught
these beatitudes, seated on a mountain. After each instruction comes the
reward, but the first reward is the Joy of the Lord in being called His Child.
The first, Blessed are the poor in spirit, or spiritually poor.
The second, Blessed are those who mourn, or sad.
The third, Blessed are the meek, or gentle.
The fourth, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.
The fifth, Blessed are the merciful,
The sixth, Blessed are the pure in heart,
The seventh, Blessed are the peacemakers,
The eighth, Blessed are those persecuted for righteousness’ sake
The ninth, Blessed are you when others revile you or persecute you,
And utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.
Rewards for each one follows. 1. For theirs is the kingdom of heaven; 2. For
they shall be comforted; 3. For they shall inherit the earth; 4. For they shall
be satisfied; 5. For they shall receive mercy; 6. For they shall see God; 7.
For they shall be called sons of God; 8, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
9. Rejoice and be glad, your reward is great in heaven.
This is not a choice of one or a multiple choice. By man’s standards, some
of these qualities may be considered weak in a man. The third is meek or
gentle. Yet, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 tells a different story. In the power
of Christ, He makes it possible to live close to Him. But he said to
me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in
weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses,
so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ,
then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and
calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
As
we go through different seasons and the challenges, we remember God has made the Way for us to travel, and we can, we are, and we will find joy in being His
alone. We praise the Lord God for His Goodness, in sending His Son
Jesus to make our Way complete.
Statements of blessing are a
wish for God to restore His favor on others or a declaration of His inherent
goodness. The ultimate blessing that God has given is the new life and
forgiveness that comes through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.
Blessed
is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in
the Lord his God who made heaven and
earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever. Psalm 146:5-6
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