Simplifying… me

It is difficult to sum up in a few paragraphs a thought that has been percolating in my brain and heart for months (and I venture to say that I tend to babble on even more than “a few paragraphs”).  Some thoughts are easy to express; they flow from head to Word document faster than my hands can type.  Other times the topic is so broad and so deeply personal that, as much as I try to keep it simple, it still takes me weeks to put it all together.  (And I’m never quite convinced I’ve conveyed it appropriately.)  So it has been with this current post on being blessed.  Recently I have found the foundations of my beliefs and conceptions of being blessed and receiving blessings shaken to the core.  I’ve questioned my status with God.  “Am I not doing enough for Him?  Have I let Him down and essentially postponed a hard-earned blessing?”  As I’ve been grappling such thoughts, I have sensed that God has been tugging at my heart to look beyond the momentary thrill of the blessing from God, and more intently on what it is to be blessed by God.  I’m not an authority by any means.  What I share is, simply put, a glimpse of where I am in the journey.

 

What does is mean to be blessed?  So often I hear people (myself included) throw out the phrases: “We are so blessed,” or “They live under a special cloud of blessing,” or “God has truly blessed them.”  Coincidentally, the individuals described are usually those who have a beautiful home, a beautiful family and healthy bank account.  Things that most of us secretly wish we had too.  I struggle with the parallel that material blessing somehow stands as a symbol of a blessed life, or more specifically, blessed by God.  Then there’s the perception that receiving those blessings signifies an individual’s rank in God’s hierarchy.  Neither one of these thoughts makes much sense to me, nor do they settle right within my spirit. 

 

I think there is a profound difference between “being blessed” and “receiving blessings”.  A person can have nothing at all- no home, no money, no family- and still be blessed, just as a person can have every blessing in the world and not be blessed.  Being blessed is so much more than having things.  Being blessed is the privilege we have to simply be in the presence of God – to have God when we don’t have anything else.  I am blessed because I know that God is in my life.  God is working all things for my best outcome.  And God’s best for me may not always appear so “blessed”.  God’s best may mean I have to lose something, or a struggle that I am going through, or a very difficult season of life.  God’s best oftentimes contradicts every natural conception of blessing and greatness, but the result is something marvelously supernatural.  A life blessed gives all glory to God because a life blessed comes only from God.  A life blessed is contented in whatever circumstance or challenge it faces because there is a deep seeded faith and hope in that God’s hand is still upon them.

 

Receiving blessings, on the other hand, is something that happens to both the godly and the ungodly.  Blessings are those temporal moments or gifts that give us a glimpse into what heaven might possibly be like.  I count my husband and the births of our three children as four of the most amazing and indescribable blessings in my life.  The miracles that God has worked on our behalf: financial provision when we desperately needed it, having a home to live in, a job to go to every day, a healthy family, are all blessings that I attribute to God’s graciousness towards us.  However, I can’t confuse my being blessed by God with the blessings I have received from God.  Why?  Because I could lose everything today: my husband, my children, my home, and my health.  I could lose every blessing from God, but I would still be blessed by God.  What I have should not be the measuring stick for how blessed I am.

 

Job had everything.  Job was a righteous man.  Job had a life that most people envied.  Then, Job lost it all.  He lost his wealth, his home, his children, and his health.  Had God turned against him?  Was God disappointed in Job and trying to teach him a lesson?  No.  God knew Job’s heart.  God knew that the relationship He shared with Job far surpassed any material blessing he could receive.  And I think it is important to state that God did not take anything away from Job.  However, God did allow tragedy, at the hand of Satan, to fall upon Job.  Even still, Job remained righteous and faithful to God.  He was blessed, even at his most lowly state, even in those questioning moments when he cried out for mercy (have we not all been there at some point in our lives?).  God observed this and did not forget, and in the end, poured double the blessings upon Job. 

 

Before David became king, he went through the hell of his life- running from a deranged Saul, hiding out in caves, and sleeping among rocks and wild animals.  As David looked to the heavens and bore his fear, frustration, and anger on God, he continued to be “a man after God’s own heart”.  Amidst the struggle, God’s hand was upon David – David was blessed. 

 

As God is dealing with my heart on this issue, I am challenged to redefine and refocus my view on “being blessed”.  Rather than play the broken record prayer of “Lord bless me, bless me, bless me,” I need to stop and realize that I am, indeed, blessed by God.  And as I cry out for the blessings of God on my life, I should do so with a keen awareness that, whether or not I receive them, I still remain blessed by God.  If I’ve asked God boldly for a blessing or some provision, as we are instructed to do, then I can rest in the assurance that, even if God does not grant my request, He will carry me through the situation.  His hand is upon me and will continue to guide me.  I will come out on the other side reflecting more and more the glory and character of God.

 

Blessings, as wonderful and miraculous as they are, may come and go, but being blessed will carry us through the times when the blessings are few.  And the security in this remains forever.

 

Perfect submission, all is at rest;  I in my Savior am happy and blessed.  Watching and waiting, looking above, filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

- Blessed Assurance, by Fanny J. Crosby

 

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