Blessed to Bless, Pt. 2

We were not created to be stingy and hoard everything we possibly can. God is not like that, and He made us in His image.

Blessed to Bless, Pt. 2

"And He said to them, 'Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.' So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."

(Luke 12:15, 21)

This week, we are examining what it means to be blessed so we can in turn bless others. It is the most fulfilling way to live. We were not created to be stingy and hoard everything we possibly can. God is not like that, and He made us in His image. He made us to be more like the Jordan River instead of the Dead Sea. Waters from the northern mountains in Israel flow into the Sea of Galilee and then into the famous Jordan River where Jesus was baptized by John. But the waters do not make a home only in the river. Those same waters flow into the Dead Sea. I have been to these bodies of water in Israel, and they are some of my favorite sites.

The life principle "Blessed to be a Blessing" can revolutionize your life. It can change your current mindset of being stingy and miserly to living to bless others with joy. Our lives will be guided by one of two realities: we will either focus on getting or giving. The former are described by Solomon in Proverbs 30:15: "The leech has two daughters—Give [Me] and Give [Me]!" Contrast this way of thinking to Proverbs 11:24-25: "There is one who scatters, yet increases more; And there is one who withholds more than is right, But it leads to poverty. The generous soul will be made rich, And he who waters will also be watered himself."

In Ephesians 4:25-28, the Apostle Paul states, "Therefore, putting away lying, 'Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,' for we are members of one another. 'Be angry, and do not sin': do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil. Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need." The phrase "something to give" jumped out to me. For us to have things to give, we must first place a priority on work. Working and blessing others is a blessed life. Ecclesiastes 2:24 states, "Nothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labor. This also, I saw, was from the hand of God." We work in order to enjoy the good that comes from our labor. But we do not do what the rich fool did in Jesus' parable in Luke 12:13-21. God richly blessed him, but instead of seeking to help and provide for others, he decided to build bigger barns to hoard what he had been given.

I know it sounds illogical, but it is a principle in life: the more you give away and help others, the more blessings come back to you.

Are you a getter or a giver? Does your life resemble more the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan River or the Dead Sea? Ask God to help you develop a new rhythm of life where you seek first to be a blessing instead of being blessed.