Walking on a sidewalk
in the winter a stranger passed me with all the obvious signs of a cold. When
he sneezed I said, “God bless you.” Then I added, “Have you prayed for that?”
He replied, “I don’t need to pray for it, I already have it.”
At first I thought he
was being smart but then I realized that his cold had made him irritable. I
also thought later how we often say things without thinking what they truly
mean.
“God bless you!” It
seems like we are too often either saying it or hearing it this winter. Whether
it is for a sneeze or a cough we say it without thinking. We say it as a
blessing like a prayer for quick healing. We might even think we are saying it
as a shield to keep from getting whatever is going around at the moment.
There are viruses and
the flu making the rounds this winter. Some families are getting it all at
once. Others pass the virus from person to person until the unhappy parents
feel like they are having an unending season of sickness. No one likes to be sick
or wants to constantly take care of someone who is. But, because we love each
other we show up with care, prayer, and say “God bless you,” a lot.
To bless someone is
to pray for their happiness. Only God can truly bless because only God has the
power to insure that what He says will happen. When we say, “Bless the Lord,”
as we see in the Bible, we are offering ourselves for God to use as a blessing
for His service. A blessing is a request for God to do something good for the
person you are blessing. We can be specific, “God bless you with…” and finish
the prayer with the happy desire you have for them. Most of the time we give
the general blessing, “God Bless you,” trusting God for health, in the case of
a sneeze, or happiness as God chooses to bless us.
All of God’s
blessings are good. James said, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from
above, and comes down from the Father…” (James 1:17 NKJV)
God bless you. Have
you blessed anyone today?
Bro. Robin
