Monday, June 03, 2013

cOuNt yoUr bLeSsinGs



3 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved." (Ephesians 1:3-6, ESV)


I have heard these verses recited from memory from my friend Nancy countless times. So that now when I read these verses, I hear Nancy's voice in my head. It is kind of nice since Nancy and her husband Dave just moved to Ohio. Friendship, is it a spiritual blessing? 

What are spiritual blessings? Well, let me take a stab at the question. First I would say that spiritual blessings are eternal. They can not be moved or destroyed. If we are friends and sisters (or brothers and sisters) in Christ then that will be for eternity. The Blessings are "In Christ." What do we have in Christ? Everything we need for life and godliness is how the apostle Peter put it. We have the Love of God, Redemption, Fellowship with the triune God, Forgiven, Peace, Grace, Mercy and the list goes on. The ESV Study Bible says that these a "saving gifts"and that the Holy Spirit guarantees these future Heavenly Blessings.  So, I imagine that if we are both on the Pilgrim Highway making our way to the Celestial City, then it is a blessing to be sharing in these saving gifts. 
This may not be the usual way to count my blessings. In fact, I thought about just quoting some of that Hymn and the history I read about the song said it was based on Ephesians 1:3-6 and that is what got me going in that direction. Hopefully, my gratitude is evident in this post. 

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