Have we been blessed in these days? There have been some challenges but also lots of new things to experience and learn. Let's think about some of the ways God blesses
Num 6
22 The Lord said to Moses, 23 ‘Tell Aaron and his sons, “This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:
24 ‘“‘The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn his face towards you and give you peace.’”
27 ‘So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.’
Last time we wrote about the blessing of words, but God blesses us in actions too.
In the OT the Aaronic blessing was given to rest upon the people as they prepared for their march to the promised land. this prayer that came to be used at end of morning worship in the temple and synagogues. Grammatically no need to repeat God's name 3 times but it is done to emphasize who it is that is the source of our blessing
each line has two verbs the second fills out the first, as an example let's take
v24 bless - keep
this implies protection, covering. On their journey the Israelites knew fire at night and the cloud by day, they had the provision of food, water, clothing. They found strength and help in their battles.
In God we have a father who watches over us, promises to care for all our needs, to guide and lead us.
In Psalm 23:1–3 David tells us that the shepherd meets the sheep’s every need: food, water, rest, safety, and direction. He goes on to show that God’s care reaches beyond this life carries us all the way through to the next
Even though I walk through the darkest valley,[a] I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
And again his confidence is echoed in the last verse:
6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
We may not be able to bless people on the other side of the great divide but we can bless people practically in this life, share the blessing we have. We can also point people to the God who is Lord of the living and the dead, to him there is no barrier and we have an assurance that the God who cared for us in this life will see us all the way to our heavenly home
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