Be Blessed Be A Blessing

I’m so thankful to be here this evening to share with you.  I originally was to share my testimony but as I shared that a few Sunday’s ago I thought I would share a short devotional.  This evenings theme is “Be Blessed, Be A Blessing”.  

To start, I would like to share a few verses from the Word: 

 “All of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous, not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing.” 1 Peter 3: 9

The Word is very clear that we are blessed and that we are to be a blessing!

As I shared in my testimony, my child and adolescent years were years of much chaos and illness.  I suffered much loss in my early years followed by years of struggling with severe depression and anxiety.  My circumstances were bleak and difficult but even in the midst of that, as I look back and remember there, were many blessings. 

 My grandparents were a great blessing to me and I would like to tell you about them.  I was very close to my mother’s parents and they to me.  As the second oldest of 16 grandchildren I was a bit spoiled   Coming along first is always an advantage when you are a grandchild.  My grandmother and I were especially close.  She was a woman of God, kind, gentle, loving and known by everyone.  Even now, 30 years after she went home to glory, when you mention her name at home everyone knows who you are talking about.

In thinking about it now I believe she was such a blessing in my life for a few reasons:

1) She taught me the things I needed to know about life

2) She taught me responsibility

3) She taught me to be kind and to serve others

4) She loved me unconditionally.

My grandmother taught me to cook and bake.  She took me with her for her annual Blueberry picking day (I mean a full day) in the blueberry barrens – with the bears) and then taught me how to clean them and make blueberry bannock.  By the time I was 8 I could make a full meat and potatoes meal on my own.  

When my grandmother went away to Halifax for her medical appointments she left me home with my grandfather to help make his supper, do his dishes and sweep the floor (for which I was rewarded with my grandfathers undivided attention, a pocket full of change and a “well done” when grandma got home).

My grandmother introduced me to people in the community who were different.  Like the lady in the grocery store who had no nose, just two little holes where her nose should have been.  Being a child you would have thought I would have thought that odd – but because my grandmother took the time to introduce me to her and obviously cared for her, all I remember about her was her lovely smile.

My grandmother took me on adventures and taught me to trust people.  She didn’t drive and there was no car while my Papa was away working.  So we hitchhiked to town to get groceries….not that we ever got far before someone stopped and picked us up.  That was in the days when the Co-op delivered your groceries so we always got a drive home.

After school I came home and curled up on the couch behind her while she watched her afternoon TV. shows – in the evenings after my Papa fed me headcheese and green sherbet ice cream, she taught me how to soak his feet and cut his nails and rub his back.

I never heard her speak a harsh or angry word.  

Papa had a great big lap that was good for cuddles and to this day (he will be 90 in April and I’ll be 40 in May) there is still room on his lap for me to curl up and snuggle.

When my grandma went home to be with the Lord when I was 9 I was heartbroken. But the Lord is faithful and over the years he placed many older women in my life to take on those roles of encouraging and blessing and mentoring as I grew into a young lady and began to grow in my spiritual walk. 

So why am I sharing this with you?  If I hadn’t had that love and encouragement in my life, from my grandparents and then from others that God placed in my path, I most certainly would have been lost in my dark and difficult circumstances.  But because they took that time and energy to bless me and invest in my life, I am alive today and being used by God in turn.

So when I was thinking about how we can be a blessing to others and how that translates in being blessed I thought about it this way:

You must believe that you are blessed and that you have the ability to bless others

        You need to understand who Christ is and who you are in Christ

 “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light, who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.” 1 Peter 2:9-10

We are called to love each other

And the young lawyer tested him and asked “Who is my neighbour” at which Jesus told the story of the good Samaritan.  Both the Priest and the Levite passed by the man on the side of the road, beaten and robbed, but the Samaritan had compassion on him, bound his wounds, put him on his donkey, found him lodging and paid for his care

Jesus didn’t say love those who love you, love those you are like, love those who are powerful, love those who go to your Church, love those who are like you……He said love your NEIGHBOR.

How many times have you been having a tough day and a stranger holds the door for you, makes eye contact from across the room and smiles, or you get a timely call or email or snail mail, or something you are doing just turns out right.  You smile, breath and begin to relax.  Don’t underestimate the power in a smile, a handshake, a hug, a please or thank you or a simple compliment.  God is Large and in Charge and uses all these things to encourage His people.   Our God is concerned about the little details as well as the big details and often He is calling us to be the vessels of those little details.  

Have you been impressed to speak to someone – do it. 

Have you been impressed to make a call or send a note – do it.

Have you been impressed to share your blessings (whether time or finances or words of encouragement) with another – do it.  

God moves through His vessels.

As you surrender yourself to God as a Holy vessel for His use; you will become more in tune with the movement of the Holy Spirit and His promptings in your life.

S Serve

We are called to serve others.  Jesus gives us the clearest example of serving.  

Jesus knew He would be betrayed and deserted by the ones that He was closest to and yet, in the moments before His arrest and crucifixion and death, He took the time to lead by example in serving His disciples by washing their feet.  If the Son of God, the Beloved Lamb, can humble Himself to wash the feet of those who would betray Him, how can we do any less for each other and for those around us?

How can we be blessed and be a blessing?

As we understand the Father‘s deep and unconditional love for us and we understand who we are and whose we are….

As we surrender ourselves to Jesus and allow Him to have all of us – He wants to move in not just have a room in the basement…..

As we allow the Holy Spirit to move in and through us and are obedient to His promptings……

We will open ourselves up to loving one another and serving one another….

Our spiritual eyes will begin to open up and see the blessings all around us – the little things, the big things, the simple things, the WOW things……they are all blessings

THEN we will become a blessing to one another – we won’t be able to help it- we won’t have to plan it – we will be walking in a lifestyle of love and surrender and service and the blessings of the Lord will flow through us and onto others.

Paul and Silas are a wonderful example of Praise and Thanksgiving and Blessing in the midst of their circumstances.  They were in prison, chained, having been beaten.  It was dark, wet and cold and they were in pain.  But in Acts 16:25, in the midst of their circumstances we read:

This verse in so rich!  In the midst of their pain and suffering and chains we find them praying and praising the Lord and we note that others were listening – those around us watch us when we are in the midst of our circumstances, to see how we will act/react.  We are a witness!

Then God showed up: “Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.”

Now Paul and Silas could have made a bee line for the door –they were free – but they weren’t in a hurry to leave their circumstances behind.  Because they were in an attitude of prayer and thanksgiving, they were looking for a way to glorify God in the midst of their circumstances.  The jailer was about to take his life – but Paul cried out “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here!”  And the jailer’s heart was opened and he said “Sirs, what must I do to be saved.”  

Paul and Silas shared the gospel and the jailer and his whole family believed on the Name of the Lord that night.

And it all began because Paul and Silas KNEW who they were and whose they were!  

They understood that they were blessed regardless of what their circumstances looked like and they knew that they were to be a blessing.

So in their pain, they began to sing – their chains were loosed and they were free.

I pray God’s Hand of Blessing upon each one of you this evening.  I pray that God will water the seed that has been planted.  I pray that you will take the time to bless those around you – especially the youth.  There is a special connection between your generation and our youth – you have much to share with them and they have much to teach you. 

 It doesn’t matter if their hair is blue, they have tattoos, they sing different music and they are attached to their phones……they love the Lord! And you are mature in the Lord and are called to be a blessing and encouragement to them that the Lord’s plan for their life will come to fruition and the plans of the enemy (that how up as a distraction in their circumstances) will be defeated!  In the mighty Name of Jesus! AMEN.