It's Wednesday and I am sitting in my basement. Not at work. Ahhh, it's wonderful. I was in Raleigh, NC last week for work (Monday - Sunday AM) so I get 2 days off. I slept in a litte, watched Ellen and The View, cleaned a bit, and now I am catching up on e-mail and blogging.
Things have been busy, with traveling for work and working out the house. We're getting estimates right now to rip out some concrete steps that hold our deck up, putting in a couple new windows, and roughing-in a bathroom in the basement. I can't wait for the basement to be done!!! Then I will feel settled!!!
So, I realized that most of what I blog about is fluff. Really, it is. So, I am going to pose a question - it's something that I've been thinking about. What do you think about "blessing"? I hear often "We are so blessed to live in America" or "God has really blessed us with this house (insert whatever)". Sometimes I have a hard time with this. I see people across the ocean and in my own community, who love the Lord, but are suffering: cancer, AIDS, hunger, persecution...you name it. And I think "Am I more blessed than these people whose faith is 10x stronger than mine? WHY?" I don't know - maybe it's one of the age-old questions, but I've been thinking about it a lot. What do you think?
Side note: Just read "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" LOVED IT!
6 comments:
Hey Becky, I finally decided to blog today and checked out yours...so we are both slacking off today! Haha..
Good question about being "blessed". I don't know how I feel about that... I think we are blessed but maybe others who are suffering are too just in ways that we cannot see. They may even be more blessed eternally...I don't know...:)
"Blessed"-wonderful subject! Jes had a great point. Yes what we all have here in America is such a blessing food, housing and yes even healthcare! Yet people even here can be worse off than you or I, let alone people across the ocean. Blessing is beyond material things. I am trying to keep this short! Anyways a few examples: those people we know that if we just see them there personality seems to lift your spirits, a smile, a hello a kind jesture are all blessings I believe. Then there is the blessing of knowing God's faithfulness (maybe through a hard time) knowing he is there for you to talk to and even listen to. Knowing God and discovering Him even beyond the salvation point is the greatest blessing.-Kimberly
things that make you go hmmm...I agree with both girls on this one. I think God blesses everyone in His own way. As long as we continue to see His blessings in the smallest ways, He will continue to Bless us in ways we can't imagine. I don't think it makes us less of a Christian here in the US than someone of another country. Good subject Becky...
Great question Beck, and one I've pondered myself. I think God blesses us in all sorts of ways. And sometimes His blessings for us don't look like blessings at all. Maybe as you crawl into bed at night you're thanking God for the blessing of a roof, a warm bed, a full tummy and freedom. But somewhere a world away someone may be laying out under the open stars thanking God for the view an open roof provides, for a grumbling tummy that reminds them to strive for the Bread of Life and the constant reminder that earth is not their home, but their residence is in heaven. I think all these things are blessings. The important thing is to praise God for every blessing he provides. However and whenever you preceve them.
Thanks for the comments, ladies. I guess another question that I have is, do we tell ourselves these things are blessings to feel better about our situation, or are they really blessings?
Blessing... You know, I think that we all look at blessings differently. What we don't realize half the time is that everything is a blessing if we choose to find the good in it. I know that people who have less and face more trials feel more blessed than those who have much, like all of us. And even the trials are a blessing, for they bring us closer to God if we let them. They make our faith stronger. And they make us appreciate the simpler things more.
I don't think there's anything wrong with consciously choosing to see things as blessings. To me, that's just looking on the bright side. For example, Nigel and I can't even dream about buying a house right now, and we live in an apartment. Instead of feeling sad and frustrated about it, we see this place as a true blessing from God. Or some of the trials I've faced - if it weren't for them, I wouldn't have the faith I do.
I'm rambling. And this is something I've been thinking about a lot lately. But yes, I think blessings are a matter of perspective, and that there is nothing wrong with or bad about that.
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