Speaking to the Soul – January 29

I will make you into a great nation

“I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.” Genesis 12:2-3

Never forget that God is in the business of blessing people! That’s what he loves to do and that’s what Abram was just about to discover. At a time of life when most people would be seeking to take things more slowly, God calls him to be the father of a nation. Nothing suggests that this is remotely likely. One practical problem was that Abram and his wife Sarai had no children and were well past childbearing age. But with God around that wasn’t going to be a problem!

In life, we face many challenges but God doesn’t want them to have the last word. Amid the bumps and difficulties, God’s desire is to bless us so that, in turn, we can bless other people. I love seeing that in action. I can think of many friends over the years who have had to face significant problems in life, including severe, life-limiting disabilities. They could have spent their lives moaning about the challenges they had to face every day. But, instead, they chose to thank God for his blessings and then generously to pass them on to others.

Abram and Sarai could easily have reflected on their age and childlessness and spent the rest of their lives stuck at home, being miserable. But they rejected that possibility and chose to trust God, heading off on an incredible adventure in which God’s amazing words of blessing came true. Whatever you do today remember that, before anything else, God wants to bless you and to enable you to be a blessing to others.

QUESTION
In what ways has God blessed your life, and in what ways can you pass on his blessing today?

PRAYER
Dear Lord, help me to become increasingly generous in passing on your blessings to others. Amen