Yesterday I encouraged you to take the time to count your blessings. Today I want to encourage you to be a blessing.
In the parenting class that I have been taking during Sunday school, the author of our book wrote, “Remember, the greatest danger to your child is not the evil outside them; it’s the sin inside them that is the greatest of all threats to their well-being.”[1]
If you look back to the account of original sin described in Genesis, God addressed Adam and Eve about their sin. Adam responds by saying, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Adam quickly blamed both God and Eve, putting both God and Eve between him and his sin before ever looking at himself. Eve responded by saying, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” This was the original “the Devil made me do it” excuse. This account of original sin highlights a fallen and ingrained propensity to think that the problems are almost always “somewhere out there” rather than “somewhere in here”. We blame, get defensive, divert, and deceive all before we simply and humbly ask God, “Is there something I need to change?”
God invites us to break this fallen pattern ingrained in us that keeps Him at arm’s length and keeps us from His best. He invites us to humbly yield to His transformative work, recognizing that despite our imperfections, when we surrender to Him, He will produce His good, pleasing, and perfect will in us and through us (Rom. 12:1-2). So many blessings from God fill this world and you were created to be one of God’s greatest blessings. Daily surrender to God will produce this God-given purpose in your life.
There may be trouble at work. How can you be a blessing of helpfulness? There may be trouble at home. How can you be a blessing of love? There may be troubles in the world that anger you. How can you be a blessing of grace and truth? There may be suffering in the life of one you know. How can you be a blessing of comfort? Don’t just count your blessings; be a blessing others can count on. This all begins with openness to work what God wants to do in and through you.
[1] Tripp, Paul David. Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family. Crossway Books. Pg. 51.