Blessed?

READ: EPHESIANS 1:3-14 We see the word blessed thrown around on the internet and t-shirts, but what does it really mean to be blessed? By definition, bless is a verb. It’s an action someone takes to give something to someone else. I could just brag about my awesome family, my best friends, or my new shoes, but saying I’m “blessed” implies that someone, somehow, has given me these things. So what do I expect to be true if I’m “blessed” by God? He has all the power in the universe, and He’s the true Owner of everything. As His kid, I know that He cares for me. Does that mean I’ll have wealth? Health? Loads of amazing friends? Success in my grades and test scores? Early acceptance into my dream school? Not necessarily. In Ephesians 1, Paul tells us that everyone who knows Jesus has been blessed beyond measure! But Paul also describes that these blessings are spiritual— and as it turns out, these are the best kinds of blessings (verse 3). Our heavenly Father loves us so much that He has made it possible for us to be united with Him through Jesus’s death on the cross; it gave Him great pleasure to purchase our freedom and adopt us into His family, pouring out His grace, kindness, wisdom, and understanding on us in abundance (verse 5-7). And God has promised that—no matter what we face in life and no matter what happens in this world—a time will come when “he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ” (verse 10). And even now, He has blessed us with the Holy Spirit—His very own presence living inside us and guaranteeing His promise: that we will be resurrected, just like Jesus was, and we will live with Him forever in renewed creation (verses 13-14). In the meantime, because I’m surrounded by ads and influencers, each promising me their own version of the American dream, it’s hard to see that what I already have in Jesus surpasses it all. But Jesus is eager to remind me of His goodness and turn my attention to the blessings I already have in Him— especially the greatest blessing, Himself. • Mandy Desilets • Can you think of a time you felt like other people were more blessed than you? It’s easy to begin comparing our blessings to other people’s. Consider taking a moment to bring these feelings to Jesus, asking Him to remind you of the blessings He has given you. All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. Ephesians 1:3 (NLT)