“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places…”
(Ephesians 1:3, ESV)
We know that we are blessed. We are here today, living and breathing and reading these truths. We have the Word of God before us, fellow believers [virtually] by our side, cheering us on in our quest to grow in the knowledge and love of Christ.
We are blessed. Today let us consider, how deep does this blessing go?
We wear many labels. We are daughters, sisters, mothers, grandmothers, aunts, friends, wives, mentors, and the list continues. We live in a world that defines us by who we are to others, by our relationships and the roles we fill. We follow suit, creating in our mind’s eye the life we think we ought to have. The type of work or spouse we need, a certain number of children to fill a certain home, the timeline in which we would have it all play out. Christ Himself taught us to pray for daily bread, yet we feast on our best efforts. We strive in vain for false perfection.
Sisters, this anxious toil is not what He has for us. The bread God offers is the bread of peace, of blessing, of life. Christ died, the curse of law and sin on His back, to free us from our shoulds and oughts. He took our burdens and gave us blessing.
We toil and stress and feel the pressure of countless to-do’s. Yet He says to us, “Sleep. Rest in Me and what I’ve done.” Can you picture Him now, stretching out His hand of blessing and peace to you?
You who have a quiver full of arrows, a home filled with tiny feet running and little voices crying… You are blessed with the fullness of Christ today.
You whose day is filled with endless meetings and daunting tasks and uncertain outcomes… You are blessed with the fullness of Christ today.
You who long to be fully known, to find a partner for the dreams God has planted in your heart… You are blessed with the fullness of Christ today.
You whose home has grown quiet, who nervously wonders what will come next… You are blessed with the fullness of Christ today.
It is God who builds your house. It is God who gives you bread. It is God who takes your shame and lavishes on you love and freedom and blessing.
May we live in light of this blessing today. Amen.
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54 thoughts on "blessing"
This devotional has truly blessed me. I have been in a dark season these past months and I struggle sometimes trying to understand why God allowed it to happen to me. I have read this Psalm many times but never understood its meaning. It is humbling to realise that it is God who is truly The One holding the strings of mh life. I can ask why, how, when will it end, but it is Him who builds me up…
Today I have seen a new aspect of who God is…
Amen a thousand times
I so needed this today. All of my plans are in His hands and I’m not blessed because of some label, I’m blessed because He loves to bless me. I take great comfort in this. I love that he word of God is relevant to every moment of my life. Thank you Lord for your living word!
Thank you for your message today! I’m at a place in my life where, amidst my various and turbulent storms, I still feel a joy that I can’t be robbed of! I’m seeing the blessing in every circumstance, and feel peace in my soul. I can certainly testify to the power of drinking the Living Water!
Falling in love with JESUS
ladies do you think we could ever meet in person? like in our respective cities once a month or quarter? Idk I think it would be awesome to have a gathering or conference for SRT ladies. has anyone thought or suggested this before and I’m just late? lol
I’m so blessed by these devotionals. I praise God for his truth and encouragement,
I have been rendered speechless!!! WHAT A DEVOTION!!! I'm full of Christ's love today. Selah.
Last summer I was contemplating a job change. The job I had was WONDERFUL and I was feeling very blessed in it. I knew that the other job I was considering would be incredibly stressful. Then one day I heard a teaching on Christian radio challenging believers not to only consider how much we have been blessed by God but to think about how our lives can bless Him in return. I believe that was God nudging me to accept the new job, and I did. It has been difficult to say the least. I have felt more discouraged and incapable in this job than I have in any job I’ve had the last 30 years. I have “felt” anything but blessed but have prayed day after day that I would be a blessing to God and honor Him in spite of my overwhelming circumstances. I have questioned if I heard God correctly. I have questioned if I should look for another job. How has God answered? He has assured me that I AM BLESSED! Not because of any external curcumstances or because I feel like it. But because God’s word says I am! This devotion confirms all that He is teaching me and is a great reminder of the truth of His undeserved, overwhelming blessings in my life.
God is so good. I'm typing this with tears in my eyes because I am SO KEYED UP AND STRESSED OUT TODAY. Really, this whole week. Endless stuff to do, so much tension at home, worries over a sick mother with Alzheimer's, annoying CRAP at work…. I really, REALLY needed this post today. And He knew it. Even getting to today's reading was another item on my list today, when really it should be my moment of peace, my time to breathe. Not just another thing to get done. As I logged on, I knew it would be so hard to concentrate with a million other worries, a million other things on my mind. Then I read the devotional and felt… whoa girl, settle down. God is so good. I need to breathe. Amen.
The devotions in this reading plan have been amazing- it's like they've been written just for me! I realize they are resonating with many other as well, and provides me great comfort to know that these struggles aren't mine alone. I've been reading long with SRT for a year now, and it's been helping me through some difficult things and helping me put the right perspective on things.
It's so easy to get wrapped up in the consequences of daily life and let the insignificant things take over while I fool myself into trying to control it all. I really need the reminders provided by daily Bible reading to keep myself focused on the things that really matter and to keep myself from getting overly anxious about the things that don't.
Thank you for the tremendous gift of this community and the beautifully insightful devotions that are so perfect for women.
Wow. I wouldn’t have thought it true, but during our trials He really does reveal Himself and we CAN see His blessings! I have had a very tough time with my son amongst other issues, and I’ve really felt the hand of God at work in EVERYTHING.
I would normally be so absorbed in problems and trying to force “solutions”, that in my impatience I wouldn’t hear God’s voice directing me, or speaking to me. I’m so thankful that I can see and hear all the blessings and understanding He’s been revealing to me! This study and all of you Ladies, have definitely been the key to my understanding. If not, I wouldn’t have been open to the beliefs and possibilities that Christ brings in my life! Normally I would be frustrated and not getting it at all, especially all the layered meaning in His word . Now I can see what it means in my situation, to me. How it can be applied to someone else and the same verse can have a whole different meaning to them. That’s the beauty of His word- it speaks to all of us! Praise God!
“It is God who takes your shame and lavishes on you love and freedom and blessing.”
I AM blessed with the fullness of Christ today!!!
I am THANKFUL!!
Praying you all have a Blessed day in Christ Jesus, and praying for strength for my Sisters who may be struggling today! He hears you.
:)
This day started on a low note, so I am thankful for today's verses. I love that no matter who or what or how… we are all blessed with the fullness of Christ today. I need to place that as a banner above my bed so I can read it daily.
Galatians 3:13-14 Jesus was cursed for ME!! He hung on that cross to redeem ME so that I could receive all of the BLESSINGS that God had promised through Abraham!! WOW! That verse says so much! Can we even comprehend what EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING IN CHRIST means?? (Ephesians 1:3) I am reminded of Laura Story's song, Blessing. We can't comprehend what that means to us. Because frankly, sometimes in order to bless us, God has to take us through the hard stuff! And even that is a blessing because it shows we are alive! Only HE knows all the ways I am truly blessed but one day I will know to because all will be revealed.
If you've never heard Laura's song, here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mmgV6mPvb0
We pray for blessings, we pray for peace.
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity.
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while You hear each spoken need
Yet love is way too much to give us lesser things
'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears?
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You're near?
What if trials of this life
Are Your mercies in disguise?
We pray for wisdom, Your voice to hear
We cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
And all the while You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe
'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears?
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You're near?
And what if trials of this life
Are Your mercies in disguise?
When friends betray us, when darkness seems to win
We know that pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home
It's not our home
'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears?
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You're near?
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst
This world can't satisfy?
And what if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are Your mercies in disguise?
Ladybug1016, I love that song!
Ingrid, I agree He’s doing a great work in and thru all of us!! And the best part? It’s all for HIS glory! Amen! :)
What an amazing journey God’s been taking me on, ladies i am so bless and encouraged by all your wonderful comments and the scriptures on this community. God is doing something supernatural through us as women and sisters in Christ, we r so bless to have this freedom in Christ let’s cherish it with every fiber in our being. Thank you Jesus for gift of salvation.
What a beautiful reminder to start this weekend with this beautiful devotional. This morning I am brainstorming ways to expand my blog into a potential home business. So good to be reminded that it is The Lord who builds it & blesses my life in the way HE sees fit.
I like to read the scriptures first and then the devotional, and I was wondering where SRTwould lead us, because so many options popped thru my mind. I just loved how all those loose ends were tied together into that one, beautiful word — BLESSINGS. How truly easy does God allow life to be, if only we bow our heads and give those worries and anxieties over to him. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again,. Quite frankly, I don’t want it on my shoulders any longer. This is why I cried out to God in the first place. I would much rather receive his blessins, and go about my day with the full realization tbat He’s always had it planned out. I thank Him for that. And I will look to him for blessings in his most High places! (Love that!
Standing in the blessing of God. No need to toil in vain, to lose sleep over worries. He has taken care of them. And even when we go through tough times these are blessings as well. I am sharing this devo that I received this morning from DaySpring:
—-
Would You?
Would you cherish loving arms, if you’d never shed a tear?
Would you welcome going home, if you’d never been away?
Would you treasure guiding hands if you’d never been alone?
I don’t think so, I don’t think so, I really don’t think so.
Would you value having hope, if you’d never known despair?
Would you treasure being safe, if you’d never lost your way?
Would you cherish gentle words, if you’d never been afraid?
I don’t think so, I don’t think so, I really don’t think so.
-Grace Hawthorne and Buryl Red
My suffering was good for me, for it taught me to pay attention to your decrees. Your instructions are more valuable to me than millions in gold and silver. Psalm 119:71-72 NLT
—-
Have a BLESSED day, sisters!
Beautiful!
Christ Himself taught us to pray for daily bread, yet we feast on our best efforts. We strive in vain for false perfection.
These sentences really spoke to me today. I have been living by my own means. The recent sequestration is hurting my current employer's business,I have become nervous about how to continue to "feast on my own efforts". With talks of cutting hours as our business has slowed, I'm learning more and more to trust God for my daily bread. How much more blessed would my family be, if we quit living on our own efforts alone and begin to really pray and trust God for what we need?
Very appropriate. I thought at this point my grandmas box, that i had made 25 years ago, would be a source of joy for my children to see all their favorite toys I had saved for their children. Instead it holds the bird feeders my husband and I make for the craft shows we do. I poured myself into the craft show circut lat fall, to make new friends….only feeling a little lost as I missed my friends. (When our son died we moved back home to be closer to family). But yesterday I walked into another craft show, and guess what…the new and possibly scary faces, are now familiar. I felt comforted. And even made some new friends. The difference between expectations and reality can kill ya. This is where I am supposed to be. :)
Amen, sister! What God has in store for us is always greater than what we can imagine! Have a blessed day!
I am blessed!! God has blessed me with encourages, who are praying with me for our son, who has had a seizure, & is now waiting for an MRI & a Neurologist appt. to determine the cause. I known that God is with him & his wife as they walk this road. I can be at peace b/c God is in control. I continue to pray & trust in my God!
Praying for God’s abundant grace for your son and your’s.
I can’t say how much this SRT group means to me and how much I enjoy starting my day here! Yesterday was really tough! I had to pray for my heart to be at peace through a doctors appt. I was overwhelmed by His Love, Mercy, and Goodness!! He is Faithful to supply all my needs of Peace when we lean on Him!
Nicole, we don’t deserve anything, but because of his overflowing love for us He has lavished His blessings on us! Sometimes we don’t see them all because we don’t take the time to stop and look. He gave us breath to wake up this morning! He gave us strength to get out of bed! He. Have us sight to see the sunshine today! He LOVES YOU!
Wow,"….my cup runneth over! Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever!"
What a glorious comfort to face every day "blessed with the fullness of Christ"! I am convinced we do not even begin to tap in to what He has for us on a daily basis! He doesn't intend for our every day lives to be such a struggle, for us to carry the same burdens over and over again. It really is so difficult for us to truly GIVE our burdens to the Lord and let Him carry them for us but He longs to do it! That is part of living in that fullness! Lord, help me to surrender to you so that I may experience that bread of peace, blessing and life!
Carolynmimi, praying for you today! You are a mighty woman of God!
Thanks for the prayers. REALLY appreciated.
“I am blessed with the fullness of Christ today!”
I am going through an incredibly tough season in my life. This series has been really challenging to wrap my head (or maybe my heart!) around. I wrestle with how to trust God in the midst of my trials, I question his unfailing love at times, and I certainly wouldn't have thought to call myself "blessed" right now. BUT, first and foremost, Jesus came to earth and died to pay for my sins and now I can be in right relationship with God. If he did nothing else ever again, I could still call myself blessed just for this. "It is God who takes your shame and lavishes on you love and freedom and blessing." Amen, amen, amen.
Praying that you will experience the fullness of Christ, where you least expect it today, Nicole.
Praying for you Nicole, that God would lavish on you His love. That you would sense Hs love in a very real way today.
Zephaniah 3:17. "The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you, in His love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing!"
I pray you will hear Him singing over you today.
Nicole,
I read a tweet from Beth Moore yesterday. She said it is in wrestling with God that we are the closest to Him. Limb to limb, face to face. May you come out like Jacob did – with a new name.
I needed this study today and this thought is a blessing. All the comments, every day here, are a blessing. Praying for you all sisters! Let us remember that God will fight for us in EVERY situation—we need only to be still.
Being still has been very hard for me in the last few days. Thanks for this reminder.
Nicole,
I feel for you. Life is tough…it just is. We have all experienced those different seasons of life. But I promise you, it is through those difficult seasons where our faith and trust in The Lord is deepened. I've done prayer journaling at different times, as well as gratitude journaling. What I have found, is during the hardest of times, the gratitude journaling helped me to focus on all of the blessings in my life; they by far outweighed the difficulties.
Romans 5:3-4
3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.
Be encouraged and have a blessed day!
Nicole,
I'm feeling like an unusually heavy load has been coming my way for the past year as well. It's so hard not to feel frustrated about it. Quite often I'm asking, "why me?". I've been trying to focus on a reading from the other day that tells us to rejoice in our struggles. I'm certainly not there yet, but it also tells us that our trials create character and endurance. He will give you strength to get through these times.
Sitting here waiting for my coffee this caught me off guard. M house is growing quiet: by the end if the month I’ll be alone. Today is filled with meetings and more meetings plus some daunting challenges. How I need to rest in His fullness. Thank you!
Christ
Himself taught us to pray for daily bread, yet we feast on our best efforts. We strive in vain for false perfection.
Sisters, this anxious toil is not what He has for us. The bread God offers is the bread of peace, of blessing, of life. Christ died, the curse of law and
sin on His back, to free us from our shoulds and oughts. wow! how wonderful! Even during my job, I don't have to strive on my own. just rest in jesus. help me remember this today, o Lord!
So feeling the pressure today, so needing the reminder that I am "blessed with the fullness of Christ", because my best efforts are really dragging. My brother has lived in our home for over 3 years since he had a brain bleed that left him somewhat cognitively impaired. In the year after he came, my husband was diagnosed with stage IV cancer at the base of his tongue. He is thankfully cancer free following chemo and then chemo-radiation. PTL. Until this past year when I retired, I was working a full time job as well.
To say I am thoroughly depleted of "Myself" is an understatement. Daily there are new challenges, but God has never left me. Oh, I have pushed him aside, "I've got this, Lord.", but He waits for me, longs to hold me, bestow blessings on me, guide me until I throw up my hands and cry "help!".
I cannot say how often I follow this pattern, when all the while I am "blessed with the fullness of Christ".
Have a blessed Full day, Sisters.
Carolyn,
Oh, how some days can feel so overwhelming. You have had a lot going on! Praise to God for your husband's full recovery from cancer. God bless you for the love and care you are providing to your brother as well.
Caretaking can be incredibly exhausting; rewarding, fulfilling, challenging…truly one-day-at-a-time. The Lord will give you the strength and guidance you need. Both my parents are still living in the house I grew up in. Dad is 96 and Mom 86! We are so blessed to still have them in our lives. They are still living at home, but they rely on myself and siblings for most things. Sometimes I feel guilty because I don't want to have to check up on them or I have other pressing issues that take precedence. I guess that is in part of our humanness. Hang in their sister! Here is what The Lord recommends:
Matthew 11: 28-29 Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
Lifting you up with prayers during this difficult season.xx
Grateful for the prayers, Sue.
Margie, you are so blessed to still have your parents. In 2011 my husband's Dad 93 and my Mom 89 entered the courts of heaven. As old as they were and as old as we are, we both experienced the feeling of being orphaned. We both found comfort knowing Christ will not allow us to stay that way. Still there are times when I really want to ask my Mom something and cannot. Draining as care giving can be it is a blessing you can hold for a long time.
How wonderful you are to be caring for your loved ones through their struggles. It is surely a deeply emotional, draining and difficult thing for you. You aren't alone. Blessings to you and yours for continued faith, strength and health.
Thank you, Michelle. SRT sisters are the best. Gifts from God.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places…”
(Ephesians 1:3, ESV)
EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING! Wow! That hit me this morning! Our God is so amazingly wonderful and generous!!!
Love coming here to the SRT community first thing in the a.m. What a Geat way to start the day–sharing God’s Word with all you lovely ladies! Then, lately, I’ve been coming back at night before bed to read all the posts that were made through out the rest if the morning/day. Great way to end the day as well! Have a blessed day, sisters!
Me too, Leah. I love reading all the posts before bed. It finishes my day reflecting on our Heavenly Father.
Leah, I agree! I love the SRT community as well! I also love coming back to it in the evening to review the posts through out the day. Hope your day has been richly blessed!
Thanks for such an encouraging devotional and reminder!
This was a wonderful way to start my day!! Thank you for reminding me that I am blessed with the fullness of Christ today… That is easy to forget deep within the hussle and bussle of the everyday and the mundane. Thank you, Lord, for never leaving my side; for uplifting me and giving me strength; and for giving me peace and rest at the end of a day bogged down by the world! And thank you for sisters who share with me throughout the journey… Love you guys!
I needed every verse and every life word of encouragement here today. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you ladies.
Amen.
Amen. Amen! AMEN!
Such encouragement to begin the day on. I don’t want to get out of this bed and face the day, BUT I am blessed with the fullness of Christ today. I have my sisters standing with me, praying for me. Jesus, Himself, is at God’s right hand making intercession for me. With that kind of life-giving truth rising up in me to encourage me, I can say, “If God be for me who can be against me?”, I can (and will) get out of this bed and face the day the Lord has made, rejoicing in it!