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December 10, 2005

fluidity of blessing

Over Thanksgiving, Andy and I spent some time with friends in Lincoln. On Saturday night we were sitting around the Tredway's living room sipping on our beverages of choice, when the discussion turned to blessings. What does it mean to be blessed? Why are some people blessed in ways that others aren't? How have we traditionally viewed blessing?

Throughout the course of the conversation my thoughts were shaped and molded by the insights of others, especially one that came from Nathaniel (our trusty RUF intern!) who took my "self" out of the center of the discussion and put God in it. He defined a blessing as something that draws you closer to God and away from sin.

I think my definition of blessing has always had "me" at the center of it, as I've tried to reconcile why some people are blessed with wealth and others with health, and others with neither. The problem being that blessings aren't necessarily a quantafiable list, rather it's fluid for different people at different times.

The example given in our conversation was why some people have jobs they love and others have jobs they hate, assuming that loving your job was a blessing and hating it was not. Previously, my response would be that we are all blessed and that God gives certain blessings to some people and other blessings to other people. In some sense I still believe that, but what was underlying that sentiment was the belief that there are a list of blessings that you can receive. For example, though you may not have blessings 1-4, you do have blessing 5-20. But as I think about if further, it seems there you can't make a list proclaiming that 1, 2, and 3 are a blessing and A, B, and C are not. Going back to the previous example, someone may love their job, but to the point that it's not a blessing, like when it becomes an idol.

In this way, it seems easier to understand how suffering could be a blessing. It may not be the kind of blessing we would prefer, but if we are called to know God and to love Him with our whole hearts and suffering brings us along in that process, who am I to complain? (sidebar: This is not to say that we shouldn't grieve or lament over suffering...that's another conversation!)

All of that to say, I'm learning more what it means to "Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ." Amen.

processing | By charity | 10:41 AM

Comments

Posted by: Jenna at December 12, 2005 06:21 PM

Posted by: sarah at December 23, 2005 10:26 AM

Posted by: sarah at December 23, 2005 10:27 AM

Email "fluidity of blessing" to a friend!