Today's Reading:
Jeremiah 48,49; Psalms 67; 1 John 1
Scripture
May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us, that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. (Psalm 67:1)
Observation
The first verse of Psalm 67 asks God to be gracious, and bless us, to make His face to shine upon His people (that’s the top line of the promise). Verse 2 says, “That Your way may be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations.” (That’s the bottom line of the promise).
The point is that God blesses His people so that in return, they can bless those who have yet to be blessed. His blessings flow into us, in return, it should flow back out. What was given to me as a blessing, that by faith, I share with others. If I don’t, I become dry and dead.
lt’s sort of like this:
I can be like Israel in the Old Testament. I can begin to turn everything I am blessed with inward. I can lose my desire to share my faith. And, I know from experience, that when I stop sharing my faith, I tend to turn inward and become dry.
Did you know that - In the north of Israel lies the Sea of Galilee? It overflows with life. But in the south, there is another body of water: the Dead Sea. There’s no life there. Why? In the Sea of Galilee, there is inflow and outflow. The Jordan River comes in and flows through.
In the Dead Sea, however, although there is an inflow, there is no outflow. Consequently, because of the high content of salt in the water, nothing can grow.
Application
The same thing can be true of us spiritually. If you feel like the Dead Sea, it could very well be because there is not an outflow in your life. If I’m not looking for people to reach out to, I miss my calling, my purpose and suddenly, my walk is dry. My Bible study group will be boring. Prayer will be meaningless. Daily Devotion will be nonexistent. Praise will be an effort.
But when I say, “Lord, bless me so I can go to work and share the gospel, so that I can tell someone he’s loved by You,” suddenly my prayer life will have purpose, the Word will come alive, and praise will overflow once again.
Make sure I am wringing out my sponge of blessing and not just sucking it all in.
Prayer
Father even in this time of difficulty, I find a way I can be a blessing to someone else. I create, imagine, and find new ways to communicate to someone how much they are loved. Help me see Lord, ways I can help people around me in these unprecedented times. In Jesus Name I Pray.
