#Blessed?
Often I see the hashtag #blessed and I wonder...
It's easy to look at the lives of others through superficial lens and envy what they have, what they look like, who society says they are and resultantly become discontent with your life and your circumstances. Then at other times, we look at those who are doing worse than we are, don't look the way we do or are in some way seemingly less fortunate and suddenly feel quite pleased with ourselves.
Both perspectives
are flawed in that they place our woefully misguided desires at the
centre, believing that blessing can be measured. That more, faster,
bigger, longer, smarter, richer is better. That having what we want is a
sign that we have done something right. That surely we deserve a good
life if we are good people who work hard. So we aim, strive, work, pray,
and dream. Sometimes we get there, sometimes we die before we do,
sometimes in that journey we miss the point altogether.
I think that the reasons why we want what we want give us the wrong understanding of what blessings are and leave us feeling disillusioned in a world that appears to be divided into 'the haves and the have-nots.' I am inspired to dispel some of these myths!
"Blessed" is not working hard so that you can achieve oblivious, self-serving luxury.
"Blessed" is not seeking a status or greatness so that others can envy you or become jealous of you.
"Blessed" is not vanity.
"Blessed" is not a spontaneous alignment of events in your favour by 'the universe' or 'karma.'
"Blessed" is not the relationship goals where you look drop-dead cute together but are not anchored in Godliness.
"Blessed" is not the absence of hardship.
"Blessed" is not simply a feeling.
The true substance of blessing is immaterial. It is neither calculated effort nor chance.
I believe the true definition of blessing comes with the understanding of the Blesser, God Himself. God is the giver of all good gifts, undoubtedly. Good health, a healthy self-image, a loving family and friendships, a devoted spouse, a flourishing career etc are evidence of his overflow of love and provision for you, but even in their absence, you can still be blessed. Yes; even when your health fails you, or a loved one dies, or your business goes broke, you can still be blessed. Conversely, this should also imply that while we are on earth we will live in a time where the wicked prosper, live long and seem to win and win again. What really matters is not what you have but who you have.
God told Solomon, a man whose wisdom will remain unparalleled until the end of time, that he would grant him anything he wished. Won't spoil the ending for you, but do look it up. His answer might surprise you. It's a true story friends.
"Blessed" could be you, right where you are. Unemployed, single, divorced, orphan, heartbroken, lonely, abused whatever you are going through. Blessing is the generosity and favour of God in giving us love in all its forms, wisdom, talents, skill, hard-working ethic, endurance among many others. God blesses us because He loves us and it pleases Him to do so and yet the absence of certain blessings is not the absence of God's love.
Blessing is the undeserved grace that moulds us into better versions of ourselves, into tools God can use. That looks different for everyone, because he knows us uniquely. Isn't that amazing? Blessing is clinging onto Jesus and using all that we are and all that we have to bear fruit for him and in turn enriching (blessing) those around us. Jesus tells us that those especially blessed are they who believe in him yet not having seen him, the long-suffering, the merciful, the peace-makers, the humble, those who mourn, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness and are persecuted for it, the pure in heart. I don't know how pretty a picture they would make on social media, but I bet those are the hearts God is really looking for. Their reward is eternal and greater than what we can see or even begin to comprehend.
To be truly blessed means acknowledging that anything praiseworthy about us is not born of our own merit or effort but granted and enabled by the working of God's abundant grace. It because of him that we "woke up like this." When we recognise this truth, we ought to be grateful for all we have, gracious about all we have and generous with all we have.
When we come before Him as the single-most crucial desire to our existence and ask Him to bless us in the ways that matter most, he will always answer.
My name Ropafadzo, means 'a blessing.' It is a reminder to live in and enjoy God's goodness and respond to this calling faithfully.
In its very essence, "blessed" is the presence of God in us. When you are blessed, people don't just see you, they see God.
It's easy to look at the lives of others through superficial lens and envy what they have, what they look like, who society says they are and resultantly become discontent with your life and your circumstances. Then at other times, we look at those who are doing worse than we are, don't look the way we do or are in some way seemingly less fortunate and suddenly feel quite pleased with ourselves.
I think that the reasons why we want what we want give us the wrong understanding of what blessings are and leave us feeling disillusioned in a world that appears to be divided into 'the haves and the have-nots.' I am inspired to dispel some of these myths!
"Blessed" is not working hard so that you can achieve oblivious, self-serving luxury.
"Blessed" is not seeking a status or greatness so that others can envy you or become jealous of you.
"Blessed" is not vanity.
"Blessed" is not a spontaneous alignment of events in your favour by 'the universe' or 'karma.'
"Blessed" is not the relationship goals where you look drop-dead cute together but are not anchored in Godliness.
"Blessed" is not the absence of hardship.
"Blessed" is not simply a feeling.
The true substance of blessing is immaterial. It is neither calculated effort nor chance.
I believe the true definition of blessing comes with the understanding of the Blesser, God Himself. God is the giver of all good gifts, undoubtedly. Good health, a healthy self-image, a loving family and friendships, a devoted spouse, a flourishing career etc are evidence of his overflow of love and provision for you, but even in their absence, you can still be blessed. Yes; even when your health fails you, or a loved one dies, or your business goes broke, you can still be blessed. Conversely, this should also imply that while we are on earth we will live in a time where the wicked prosper, live long and seem to win and win again. What really matters is not what you have but who you have.
God told Solomon, a man whose wisdom will remain unparalleled until the end of time, that he would grant him anything he wished. Won't spoil the ending for you, but do look it up. His answer might surprise you. It's a true story friends.
"Blessed" could be you, right where you are. Unemployed, single, divorced, orphan, heartbroken, lonely, abused whatever you are going through. Blessing is the generosity and favour of God in giving us love in all its forms, wisdom, talents, skill, hard-working ethic, endurance among many others. God blesses us because He loves us and it pleases Him to do so and yet the absence of certain blessings is not the absence of God's love.
Blessing is the undeserved grace that moulds us into better versions of ourselves, into tools God can use. That looks different for everyone, because he knows us uniquely. Isn't that amazing? Blessing is clinging onto Jesus and using all that we are and all that we have to bear fruit for him and in turn enriching (blessing) those around us. Jesus tells us that those especially blessed are they who believe in him yet not having seen him, the long-suffering, the merciful, the peace-makers, the humble, those who mourn, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness and are persecuted for it, the pure in heart. I don't know how pretty a picture they would make on social media, but I bet those are the hearts God is really looking for. Their reward is eternal and greater than what we can see or even begin to comprehend.
To be truly blessed means acknowledging that anything praiseworthy about us is not born of our own merit or effort but granted and enabled by the working of God's abundant grace. It because of him that we "woke up like this." When we recognise this truth, we ought to be grateful for all we have, gracious about all we have and generous with all we have.
When we come before Him as the single-most crucial desire to our existence and ask Him to bless us in the ways that matter most, he will always answer.
My name Ropafadzo, means 'a blessing.' It is a reminder to live in and enjoy God's goodness and respond to this calling faithfully.
In its very essence, "blessed" is the presence of God in us. When you are blessed, people don't just see you, they see God.
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