Hey all.

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I apologize for the huge gap since my last batch of postings... But i'm trying to get back to the habit of posting my daily devotionals,

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#Blessed seems to be the word nowadays...

We come across money -> #Blessed

Someone wins at something -> #Blessed

Our kid gets accepted into college -> #Blessed

We got the job of our dreams -> #Blessed

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Don't get me wrong - i'm not knocking any of this... Being blessed is subjective and is left to the interpretation of it's declarer... but this kinda' sounds like the "lighter side" of Christianity. Yes, we serve an incredible God, and He loves/protects/guides/corrects (and blesses) us more than we could even imagine! But we also know that the life of a christian is not a life of ease.

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I'm not knocking any of these #Blessed examples (they apply to me, and i am truly grateful...), but these can be taken away as quickly as they showed up. "Yes", they are all from God, but what was the cost? What did you struggle through to obtain these blessings from God? I mean, as great as these are, they're not much different than

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True blessing s comes from difficult moments in our lives, that raise our faith at the cost of ourselves... Through our difficult times, God blesses us with a stronger reliance upon Him... where our gratitude flows even stronger.

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If you look at other scriptures about blessings, you can notice a common theme:

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There is no hint of material prosperity or perfect circumstances in any New Testament reference. On the contrary, blessing is typically connected with either poverty and trial or the spiritual benefits of being joined by faith to Jesus. Scripture shows that blessing is anything God gives that makes us fully satisfied in him. Anything that draws us closer to Jesus. Anything that helps us relinquish the temporal and hold on more tightly to the eternal. And often it is the struggles and trials, the aching disappointments and the unfulfilled longings that best enable us to do that.

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Pain and loss transform us. While they sometimes unravel us, they can also push us to a deeper life with God than we ever thought possible. They make us rest in God alone. Not what we can do or achieve for him. And not what he can do or achieve for us.

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In pain and loss, we long for Presence. We long to know that God is for us and with us and in us. Great families, financial wealth, and good health are all wonderful gifts we can thank God for, but they are not his greatest blessings. They may make us delight, not in God, but in his gifts.

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God’s greatest blessing always rests in God himself. When we have that, we are truly #Blessed.