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Blessed to Be a Blessing
Have you ever stopped to think about how much of your life has been shaped by blessings you never asked for, never earned, and sometimes didn’t even notice?
We often think of God’s blessings in terms of the big things: a home, a job, good health, family, or enough money to pay the bills. And certainly, these are things for which we can be thankful. But some of God’s greatest blessings come in ways we might easily overlook. A friend who calls at just the right time. Someone who offers a word of encouragement when we need it most. A beautiful sunrise on a difficult morning. The strength to get through another day when we weren’t sure we could.
I suspect that if we took the time to count our blessings, we would discover that God has been far more generous to us than we ever realized.
The psalmist writes,”Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits” (Psalm 103:2, KJV).
I find that last part particularly interesting: forget not. Apparently, even the psalmist understood how easily we can forget the goodness of God. We get busy. We become concerned about what we don’t have. We spend so much time thinking about what we need next that we overlook what God has already provided.
And sometimes we begin to think that everything we have is simply the result of our own hard work. Now, there’s certainly nothing wrong with working hard. But even our abilities, opportunities, and strength are gifts from God.
James reminds us, “Every good and perfect gift is from above” (James 1:17, NIV).
As a congregation, we have a particular reason to be thankful right now. We are looking forward to the pending sale of a piece of church property that, when completed, can relieve a significant financial burden we have carried for some time.
For a church, that’s no small thing. Financial obligations can weigh heavily on a congregation. They can affect the decisions we make, the ministries we undertake, and sometimes even our ability to imagine what might be possible.
The prospect of having that burden lifted is certainly something for which we can give thanks. And I hope we will. But I’ve also been thinking about what comes next.
What if this blessing isn’t simply about relieving a burden, but about opening a door?
It would be easy, once the financial pressure is reduced, to breathe a sigh of relief and settle into a comfortable routine. We might even be tempted to think that we’ve accomplished something significant and can now take it easy for a while.
But the work of the church isn’t finished when the bills are paid. In many ways, that’s when new possibilities begin to open.
There are still people in our community who need to know they are loved. There are children and young people who need a place to belong and grow in faith. There are families struggling to make ends meet, neighbors who are lonely, and people searching for hope and meaning in their lives.
There is still much to be done.
And perhaps this opportunity is one way God is making it possible for us to do even more.
When God called Abraham, God promised to bless him. But that wasn’t the end of the promise. God also told Abraham that through him, others would be blessed (Genesis 12:2-3).
In other words, Abraham wasn’t blessed simply so he could enjoy a better life. He was blessed so that God could work through his life to touch the lives of others.
I believe the same is true for us, both individually and as a church.
God’s blessings are not intended to stop with us. They are meant to flow through us.
That doesn’t mean we should be careless with what God has entrusted to our care. Quite the opposite. We have a responsibility to be wise and faithful stewards of our resources. But good stewardship isn’t simply about preserving what we have. It’s also about using what we’ve been given to accomplish the work God has called us to do.
The Apostle Peter wrote, “Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received” (1 Peter 4:10, NRSV).
I love that description. We are stewards of God’s grace. What we have received has been entrusted to our care, not simply for our own benefit, but for God’s purposes.
And that includes more than money or property.
God has blessed our congregation with people who have remarkable gifts. Some are wonderful teachers. Others know how to organize and lead. Some can build or repair almost anything. Others have the ability to sit quietly with someone who is hurting and make them feel that they aren’t alone.
And we have those faithful people who simply show up whenever something needs to be done. Every church needs a few more of those!
Imagine what might happen if we brought all those gifts together, along with the opportunities that could come from greater financial freedom, and asked a simple question: What more could God do through us?
Perhaps we could strengthen existing ministries. Perhaps we could reach families and children who aren’t currently connected to a church. Perhaps we could find new ways to serve our neighbors and share the love of Christ throughout our community.
I don’t pretend to know exactly what all those opportunities will look like. Some will require planning, prayer, and careful decisions. Others may come along when we least expect them.
But I do believe this: A blessing that gives us greater freedom also gives us greater opportunity to serve.
And we shouldn’t forget that the mission of the church has never depended entirely on its financial resources. It depends on the grace of God working through faithful people who are willing to respond.
So, as we anticipate what may be a significant blessing for our congregation, I hope we will receive it with gratitude, humility, and a renewed sense of purpose.
Let’s give thanks for the possibility of having a financial burden lifted. Let’s be wise in how we use the resources entrusted to us. But let’s not mistake financial relief for the completion of our calling.
Jesus didn’t call the church simply to maintain buildings, balance budgets, or preserve what previous generations built. He called us to make disciples, love our neighbors, care for those in need, and share the good news of God’s grace.
That work continues.
And perhaps, with this blessing, we will have an opportunity to do more than we thought possible just a short time ago.
As we look toward the future, I hope we’ll spend less time asking what we can afford to do and more time prayerfully discerning what God is calling us to do.
Because the greatest blessing may not be what this opportunity allows us to leave behind, but what it makes possible for us to do next.
And I wonder, when we look back on this moment several years from now, will we simply remember it as the time a financial burden was lifted?
Or will we remember it as the time we recognized a new opportunity, stepped forward in faith, and discovered what more God could do through us?
In Christ, |
