Blessed

Blessings all around

EireneLeave a comment

Genesis 30:25-27 And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to my country. Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service which I have done for you.” And Laban said to him, “Please stay if I have found favor in your eyes, for I have learned by experience that the LORD has blessed me for your sake.”

God had promised Jacob that “in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Gen 28:14). And even though most of that promise was centuries away from fulfillment, Jacob experienced a taste of it now. The blessing of God was upon his life and it spilled over into the lives of those around him. And it was so obvious to Laban that he couldn’t help but admit that the Lord has blessed him because of Jacob.

This same blessing moved through his father Isaac’s life. The king of a nation came and sought peace with Isaac because “you are now the blessed of the Lord.” (Gen 26:29)

They said this of Isaac before he was in possession of all that God had promised. But he was a man in covenant with God and the favor that accompanied this covenant relationship was apparent to those around him.

Isn’t that how our lives should be as we walk with Jesus….blessed and blessing others? Our presence in a work environment should bring the blessing of God. Our presence in a classroom should bring the blessing of God. We may not yet be in possession of all that God has promised us, but we are in covenant with Him. The blessing of God is your inheritance and whether you are aware of it or not, that blessing is affecting others around you.

The satisfied man

EireneLeave a comment

Psalms 65:4 Blessed is the man You choose, and cause to approach You, that he may dwell in Your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house, of Your holy temple.

Many of us can look back on our lives as believers and remember the early days of our salvation when we lived in the joy of being forgiven. But far too many of us have let the blood of Jesus mean nothing more than the forgiveness of sins. I thank God that my sins are forgiven, for they have been many. But I believe there is far more that is offered to us then we have even begun to walk in.

The man who has his sins forgiven is indeed a blessed man. But the blessing of the Lord has only begun with the forgiveness of sin, for now we have been reconciled to God and brought into a relationship of intimacy with Him. So the blessed man is the man who not only is forgiven but who, through that forgiveness can approach God. I don’t mean that we approach Him like we would an earthly monarch who has so many subjects making demands on his time that he must rush through each encounter. But our verse tells us that He causes us to approach so that we can dwell…remain…abide. The only reason we don’t dwell in His presence is because we won’t. He has already made His mind about it very clear. He wants us to draw near.

But we busy ourselves trying to find fulfillment in jobs, relationships and leisure while true satisfaction will only be found in His Presence. The blessed man, the one who draws near and dwells in His presence, this will be the satisfied man.