blessed and kept

Friday, October 23, 2015 (5:52 a.m.)

Blessed God,

Thank You for loving us. Thank You for blessing us. And keeping us (Numbers 6:24). Thank You that You constantly give us choices.

I can go on here with the benediction You told Moses to give to Aaron and his sons for blessing Your people of Israel all those years ago. Or I can stop and really think about what is still being said. All these years later.

Hmm. What does it really mean to be blessed and kept by You? I see evidences of it all around me. The New Life Version of Your Word uses the phrase, “bring good to you” instead of “bless you”.

Other translations have the words “protect, sustain, guard, watch over, take good care of” rather than “keep”. Blessed God, how I thank You for the great care You take with each of us.

Continuing with the verses that follow, I breath in deeply and contemplate what it would truly mean to experience Your face shining upon me. So many times I've attempted grasping the idea of You smiling down on me (Easy-to-Read Version). In my head that translates to You being happy with me. Blessed God, I would love nothing more than to make You happy with me.

Be with me here this morning as I toss all these wonderful phrases around. I am leaning toward a very childlike wonder of what it all means. And in the midst feeling extremely emotional.

Tears are just beneath the surface of my soul. I want to hold them in because I don't understand them.