blessing God

 Thursday, May 4, 2023 (5:24 a.m.)

Holy God,

Bless You.

(5:48 a.m.)

Thank You for the opportunity of looking into the idea of blessing You. An “expression of praising thankfulness.” Yes! Exactly what I meant it to be.

Father, I am confessing a long standing, overall feeling of ennui [world weariness]. I keep waiting for it to lift. Change. Magically disappear. 

Instead, I am looking to You! And now singing Your Truth.

♪O soul, are you weary and troubled [ennui!]? No light in the darkness you see? There’s light for a look at the Savior, And life more abundant and free! Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus Look full in His wonderful face, And the things of earth will grow strangely dim In the light of His glory and grace♪ Oh yes Dear Lord! I look to You.

Hebrews 12:2 ("Let us look to Jesus...") falls under the title Discipline in Illustrated Bible Handbook. And God’s Discipline Proves His Love in The Life Recovery Bible. Father, I long to be obedient to Your leading.

Reading John Piper’s writing on what it means to bless You, I am heartened to learn that it is an “exclamation of gratitude and admiration.” And that it “is not at all a strange semantic phenomenon.”

Blessed God, so often I judge myself as strange. Odd. Different. Thank You for the many times You show me others who have similar leanings.

The practice of blessing You can be a ‘recognition and joyful exclamation of Your blessedness’ which is indeed what I mean it to be. Recognizing Your ‘great richness, strength, and gracious bounty and express[ing] our gratitude and delight in seeing and experiencing it.’

The article goes on listing Biblical Support of the act of blessing You. ‘Thanking or gratefully recognizing [You] as the Giver of blessing.’

Deuteronomy 8:10

Psalm 96:2-3; 100:4; 103:2; 145:10

Reading further I learn “Here bless probably means joyfully announcing all these good things about God.” Oh, You are so good Dear Lord!

New Living Translation says, “Let all that I am praise the LORD” (Psalm 104:1a, 35c) while King James Version has it as “Bless the Lord, O my soul!” Yes Father. Bless You.

Amplified Bible, Classic Edition describes blessing You as ‘affectionate, grateful praise.’ This is the prayer of my heart Dear Lord. To “affectionately, gratefully praise” You!

Use me today Dear God. In complete opposition to this “gripping listlessness caused by boredom.” I am asking (Matthew 7:7) for the ’strength of [Your] mighty power’ (Ephesians 6:10) to fight “the lack of interest, enthusiasm, or concern” that has come upon me.

I’m smiling Dear Lord as I consider Your Truth. Here I almost laugh out loud for having to turn to an internet search to show me where to find the verse that just came to mind. Two down from where I am currently holding my Bible open. Again, The Whole Armor of God.

“For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).

Mm yes. Your Word is Truth! How desperately I need the strength of Your mighty power! The importance of Your armor (vs. 13-18) is spelled out in The Message. “Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on Your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare.

(9:53 a.m.)

[Continuing…] “Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.” Oh yes Dearest Lord!

Keep my eyes open. Keep my spirit’s up. This is NOT a flesh-and-blood battle!

Again, The Message says this, “A Fight to the Finish 10-12 And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and He wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the devil throws your way. This is no weekend war that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the devil and all his angels.”

Thank You for reminding me dear Lord. I must stay on guard. Even especially against every symptom of weariness and becoming worn down. All our strength comes from You.

According to Ephesians 3:16 it is Your ‘glorious, unlimited resources that will empower us with inner strength through Your Spirit.’ I am asking Jesus to make His home in my heart as I trust in Him. Growing my roots down into Your love, keeping me strong (v.17). With power to understand how wide, long, high and deep Your love is (18). That I may experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then I will “be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”

Yes please Father. I bless You with thankfulness and praise because You have blessed me repeatedly with Your presence. Use me this day, which You have made (Psalm 118:24a). Exactly as You know is best. Rejoicing and being glad (24b).

I want to love You, others and myself with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength (Mark 12:30-31) as You would have me. Glorifying and enjoying You as I go. Thank You. Praise You. Bless You. Amen.

(1,000 words ~ 10:31 a.m.)