Blessed

The Scripture reading for today kind of speaks for itself.  

It comes from 1 Peter 3:

8-12 Summing up: Be agreeable, be sympathetic, be loving, be compassionate, be humble. That goes for all of you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that’s your job, to bless. You’ll be a blessing and also get a blessing.

Whoever wants to embrace life

    and see the day fill up with good,

Here’s what you do:

    Say nothing evil or hurtful;

Snub evil and cultivate good;

    run after peace for all you’re worth.

God looks on all this with approval,

    listening and responding well to what he’s asked;

But he turns his back

    on those who do evil things.

13-18 If with heart and soul you’re doing good, do you think you can be stopped? Even if you suffer for it, you’re still better off. Don’t give the opposition a second thought. Through thick and thin, keep your hearts at attention, in adoration before Christ, your Master. Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy. Keep a clear conscience before God so that when people throw mud at you, none of it will stick. They’ll end up realizing that they’re the ones who need a bath. It’s better to suffer for doing good, if that’s what God wants, than to be punished for doing bad. That’s what Christ did definitively: suffered because of others’ sins, the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones. He went through it all—was put to death and then made alive—to bring us to God.

Ouch.  I have read this many times today and know that I have a lot of work to do in some of these areas.  That piece about sarcasm may have been written specifically for me.  How about you? It is hard to control our tongues, though we know that words can often cut deeply.  The Scripture encourages us to look at the good our words can do - saying that the opposite of that biting sarcasm is actually blessing.  We are called to bless others and in the process we too receive blessings.  

It is easy to speak in generalities about being blessed.  If you got specific, what would you list as your greatest blessings?  Think back over the last 12 hours, how have you been a blessing? What has blessed you?

In my life these days I am blessed by the joy and laughter, jokes and deep conversations that seem to happen as students gather at the Wesley House.  Today in the midst of preparing tacos for Taco Tuesday lunch one of the students got really excited about orange Koolaid.  When she realized there was Sunny D it was even more exciting.  Then others joined in with joy over this $2 bottle of OJ.  It's moments like that one that cause me to remember that no matter how much there is to get done, or how cold and nasty it is outside, we really do live surrounded by joy and blessings.  

How are you living these days?  Are you blessing others? Are you finding joy?  Running after peace?  Embracing life?

One of the most beautiful people I have ever known is a woman named Elaine.  Elaine played the piano at my first church and she was in her 80's.  She introduced me to this great old hymn, Count Your Blessings.  The first verse and chorus are simple: 

When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

Count your blessings, name them one by one,

Count your blessings, see what God has done!

Count your blessings, name them one by one,

Count your many blessings, see what God has done.  

If you're reading this today it would be awesome if you'd share what it is that has blessed you.  Sometimes I think it helps us not take things for granted when we share in the joy of others. 

As they say in Africa:

BE BLESSED!