Watchman Nee

HOPE FOR GOD'S BLESSING

Lately I have been constantly thinking that in work everything depends on God's blessing. Often we are faithful, but despite our faithfulness there is no blessing and no fruit. Often we are diligent, but despite our diligence, there is no blessing and no fruit. Often we exercise faith; we really believe that God can do something; we also pray that He will work. But when God does not bless us, everything is in vain. We who serve God must sooner or later come to the realization that we need to hope for God's blessing. Without God's blessing, neither faithfulness, nor diligence, nor faith, nor prayers will bring results. With God's blessing, even if we think we are wrong, we will have fruit. Even if it seems to us that everything is hopeless, we will have fruit. Thus, all problems are related to God's blessing.

FIRST

In connection with the blessing, I would like to recall the incident of the multiplication of the loaves (Mark 6:35-44; 8:1-9). The point is not whether we have a lot of loaves in our hands, but whether the Lord has blessed them. Even if we had more loaves, it would not be enough to feed four thousand or five thousand people. Even if we had, not five loaves, but ten or a hundred times more, it would still not be enough to feed four thousand or five thousand people. It's not a matter of how much we have. Sooner or later we must come to understand: the point is not how much we can get from our reserves, how many gifts we have, or how great our strength is. The day must come when we say to the Lord: “Lord, everything depends on Your blessing. When I come to You with loaves, no matter how many there are: one or two or a hundred, Lord, everything depends on Your blessing.” This main question. How much has God really blessed us? Doesn't have of great importance, do we have a lot of bread? People receive nourishment and life from the Lord's blessing.

One question troubles my heart: Do we truly treasure God's blessing? This is the main issue in work. Perhaps today we do not even have five or seven loaves of bread, and we need food for more than three or five thousand people. I am afraid that all our supplies are less than those in the time of the apostles, and we need more food than in the time of the apostles. The day will come when we realize that our own supplies, our own source, our own strength, our own labor and our own loyalty do not matter. Brethren, there will be great disappointment in the future because we will see that there is nothing we can do.

We must think about why in the Gospels the Lord performed two miracles almost identical in nature and content? I'm afraid the reason is that this lesson is not easy to learn. Why did He first multiply the loaves for five thousand people, and then for four thousand? There are two miracles of almost identical nature in the Gospels because this necessary lesson is not easy to learn. Many still hope not for God's blessing, but for a few loaves of bread in their own hands! The bread in our hands is negligible, but we still count on it. However, the more we rely on them, the more difficult the job becomes. Sometimes it becomes impossible. But I am partly consoled by the words spoken by one brother a hundred years ago. He said: “When God wants to do small miracle, He puts me in a difficult position. When God wants to do a big miracle, He puts me in a position where I can’t do anything.” Our situation is difficult and there seems to be nothing we can do. Often our situation is truly difficult, and we are like a boy who has only a few loaves of bread. We hope for a miracle, and this miracle is that the Lord Himself takes them and blesses them.

Brothers and sisters. The Lord's blessing works wonders. When the Lord gives a blessing, the loaves multiply. When the Lord gives a blessing, even if we see nothing, even if we have no confidence, even if we cannot do anything, the loaves multiply. This miracle is based on the blessing of the Lord. If there is a blessing, then you can feed four thousand or five thousand. If there is no blessing, then even bread bought for two or five hundred denarii will not be enough to satisfy so many people. The Lord taught the disciples, leading them to hope for God's blessing.

Often we are unable to do anything; We can't do anything. The situation seems difficult; it seems like there's nothing we can do. If you look at your circumstances, it will be impossible to find a way out. However, the Lord finds a way out again and again. This way out is the blessing of the Lord. When we have a blessing, everything works out and nothing is difficult. When there is no Lord's blessing, nothing works out and everything becomes difficult. The Lord wants to bring us to an experience we have never had before—to put His blessing first. If the Lord leads us to this, He will have an opportunity to work. If the Lord does not lead us to this, we will have to say that even the bread bought for two hundred denarii is not enough. The difficulty today is that we ourselves cannot meet the need. All our money is not enough. All of us are not enough. But the Lord has a way out. In God's work, the main thing is blessing; nothing else matters.

SECOND

Brethren, if God leads us to understand that everything in God's work depends on God's blessing, our work for God will be radically changed. We will not think about whether we have a lot of people, money, bread. We will say that we do not have enough, but the blessing is enough. We cannot meet the need, but blessing can meet the need. We cannot meet the need fully, completely, but the blessing exceeds anything we lack. When we see this, work will change radically. In any circumstance, we should give more attention to the blessing than to the circumstances. Methods, considerations, human wisdom, Clever words- all this is useless. In God's work, we must believe in and hope for God's blessing. Often we are careless and damage the work, but this is not a problem. If the Lord blesses us even a little, we can cope with any circumstances.

We sincerely hope that we will not make mistakes in our work and will not speak or act loosely. However, if we have God's blessing, sometimes it seems that even though we make mistakes, we cannot make mistakes. Sometimes it seems that we have made a serious mistake, but if we have God's blessing, then in fact it turns out to be not a mistake. So one day I told Brother Witness that if we have God's blessing, everything we do right will be right, and everything we do wrong will also be right; nothing can spoil the blessings.

THIRD

The main thing today is to learn not to create obstacles to God's blessing. Some of our tendencies prevent God from blessing us, and we need to get rid of them. There are some traits in our character that prevent God from blessing us and need to be gotten rid of. We must learn to believe in God's blessing, rely on it, and at the same time remove all obstacles to God's blessing.

Let's take the situation in Xi'an as an example. When the brothers split into two factions, this clearly became an obstacle to God's blessing. If this problem had not been resolved, God's blessing would not have come. Here's another example. Recently, difficulties have arisen in Sichuan. Therefore, one should not expect that Sichuan will receive any special blessing. I mention this only as an example.

You must see that the Lord never spares anything good for you. If the work does not go well, if the condition of the brothers and sisters is bad, if the number of saved ones does not increase, we should not blame the external environment or some people. You can't blame the brothers for this. I'm afraid that the real reason is that there are some obstacles within us to the blessing. If the Lord can achieve His purpose in us, then God will bless us “to the point of abundance.” One day God said to the Israelites: “Test Me... if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour out blessings upon you until there is abundance?” (Mal. 3:10). God says the same thing today. Normal life a Christian is a life of blessing. Normal operation for a Christian is work that receives blessing. If we do not receive a blessing, we should say, “Lord, perhaps I am the problem.”

Over the years, it has become more and more obvious that God may bless some brothers and not others. We ourselves cannot judge this, but over the years this fact becomes so obvious that we seem to know in advance: if one brother goes, then there will be no problems and he will certainly have a blessing, and if another goes, then he will have a blessing. there will certainly be no blessing and no fruit. We can kind of predict the outcome.

FOURTH

To receive a blessing, you must fulfill certain requirements. Receiving a blessing is not a matter of chance or luck. God's ways and works are in accordance with His principles. Some situations please God and some do not. Esau was very good, but God didn't like him. Jacob was not good, but God liked him. God has His reasons for everything. If a person does not receive God's blessing, there is always some reason for this. If we do not receive a blessing, we should not blame it on our environment or circumstances. If we do not receive blessings, there must be some reason for this. If we would come to the point in the Lord to learn to hope with all our hearts for God's blessing and to ask God with all our hearts to show us why we cannot be blessed, there would be a great future for God's work. Otherwise, the work will not be effective and will not bring results. I really wish we could live on earth hoping for God's blessing. There is nothing more important than God's blessing, because the results of work depend on blessing.

I understand that each of us has our weaknesses. It seems that God does not notice some of them, while He is intolerant of others. If you have these weaknesses, you cannot have a blessing. God seems to overlook some weaknesses. It doesn't bother him that you make these mistakes over and over again. But other weaknesses bother God very much. Therefore, we must be attentive to those weaknesses that may cause us to lose God's blessing. We may not be able to get rid of all our weaknesses, but we must ask God to be merciful to us so that we can be people who can be blessed. We must say to the Lord, “Lord, I may be a weak vessel, but do not let this vessel be so shallow and so small that it cannot receive the blessing.” We may be small and small, but we can still receive blessings. God's blessings and gifts are His work. Therefore, we hope that God will be merciful to us.

FIFTH

May blessing come from us just as it came from Abraham! I believe there will soon be a great turnaround in the work of evangelism. May the Lord bless us and be merciful to us! Let's consider blessing as something we should receive constantly. We should not stop God from giving us great blessings. Saving a thousand people can become an obstacle to saving tens of thousands. Perhaps the rescue of several dozen people in one place became an obstacle to the rescue of several thousand other people. Every time we receive one blessing, we should expect a second blessing. We must continually receive greater and greater blessings from God. Each of our fellow workers must hope that God will do a work among us that He has never done before. Ten, a hundred times more boats await us ahead. Is a few people saved or a meeting hall built the limit of blessing? In the past we had constant growth, but now we have stopped it. Our blessings in the past have become obstacles for us in the present. This is very sad.

When we come to God, we should always behave as if we were going out to work for the first time. Some people started working twenty years ago, but it seems like they just started working. Some started working thirty years ago, but it seems like they have just started working. We must put aside everything that happened in the past. IN difficult situations God will do more if we have high expectations, high hopes, great desires. You can never measure God by your own standards. A few loaves of bread can feed four or five thousand people. If the measure of blessing is great, then nothing can hinder it. If we as God's servants come together and desperately hope for God's blessing, the future results will exceed anything we can ask or imagine.

SIXTH

God's blessing can be compared to a bird that can fly from the street into a room only voluntarily. When it is outside the window, it cannot be forced to fly inside. If she flies inside, she is very easy to scare away. God Himself will bless what He wants to bless; we cannot force Him. Blessing, like a bird, is difficult to lure and easy to scare away. The slightest carelessness can “scare off” the blessing.

For the past two or three years I have watched our brother co-workers engage in different things. One co-worker said something to another co-worker, and an argument ensued between them. This co-worker was absolutely right in his words and actions, but inside I kept wanting to tell him: “Brother, even though you are right, do we really have to act based on whether it is right? Or should we act based on whether it will bring God's blessing?” We may often do the right thing. But if God doesn't bless us when we do the right thing, what can we do? For every action we take, we should ask ourselves not whether it is right, but whether we have God's blessing. We don't want to argue about what is right and what is wrong; we want to ask for blessings. If we ask for blessings for our work, we will be very limited in our words and in our daily lives. We may be right, but will God bless us? We can very easily deprive ourselves of blessings as well as other brothers. We do not base our actions on whether it is right or wrong. We must hope for God's blessing. You may be completely right, but can God bless your general work? Our lives should be guided by God's blessing.

In His work, God does not bless not only the wrong, but also the right. Blessing comes when we stand together in one accord. So I want us to know that when brothers argue among themselves, it is very serious. We may be completely right about something, but the blessing will disappear! Brethren, I solemnly warn you: you must not speak loosely, and you must not think that it is enough to be right. May the Lord be merciful to us. Brothers should be careful about talking to each other and criticizing each other. Whether we are right or wrong, it doesn't matter. If we are right, but God does not bless us, then what is the use of being right? The work is not built on our abilities, not on our gifts, not on our faithfulness, and not on our work. If we miss God's blessing, then everything is in vain.

SEVENTH

What is a blessing? The blessing is that God works without any reason. From a logical point of view, one penny can buy one penny worth of goods. But sometimes we don’t spend a single penny, and God gives us thousands of times more “goods.” In other words, what we receive cannot be counted. God's blessing is a work He does without any reason that goes beyond what we are entitled to. Five thousand people were fed with five loaves of bread, and there were still twelve full boxes left! That's what a blessing is. Some people were not supposed to get a certain result. They should have had little, but, strangely enough, they have much. All our work is based on God's blessing. Blessing is a result that we receive undeservedly. If we get results regardless of our gift, then that is a blessing. If the result exceeds what we can achieve with our strength, then this is a blessing. It can be said more bluntly:

if, due to our failures and weaknesses, we do not deserve any results, but, oddly enough, we get something, then this is a blessing. If we seek God's blessing, God will give us unexpected results. Do we hope in our ministry that God will give us great results? Many brothers and sisters only expect results that they themselves can expect. Blessing means that the result exceeds expectations.

If we expect only those results that suit us, if we expect only small results and not expect big ones, then we risk losing God's blessing. Since we pay attention only to the fact that we work all night long, God cannot do anything beyond our expectations. We must place ourselves in a position where God can bless us. We must say to the Lord, “In ourselves we do not deserve any results, but we expect, Lord, that for the sake of Your name, Your church, and Your way, You will give us something.” Having faith in work means believing in and hoping for God's blessing. To have faith in God's work is to believe that the result will not correspond to the cause, will not correspond to us. I believe that as we put this into practice, God will bless us on our journey. I hope that when the brothers discuss the issue of migrations, we will have the blessing of the Lord and it will exceed what we deserve.

Sometimes it seems that God not only does not give us blessings, but deliberately withholds blessings from us. When God withholds a blessing, it is more serious than when He does not give a blessing. If we look at our strength and our gifts, our results should be better, but we are not getting them. We work all night long and should get some results, but if God denies us the blessing, we will get less than we should get. We work for a long time, but do not receive any fruit. We are diligent, but we do not receive any fruit. This happens because God denies us blessing.

I'm not sure you feel the gravity of this. You should never argue about what is right and wrong in our work. Right or wrong, it doesn't matter. You must pay attention to whether God is blessing you. Often we are completely right, but God does not bless us. Fishing all night long is right, but God does not bless us. We are on earth not to do the right thing, but to experience God's blessing. David and Abraham made mistakes, Isaac was not very helpful, and Jacob was cunning, but God blessed them all. Therefore, it is not a matter of whether we are right or wrong, but whether God blesses us. We may be much better than Jacob today, but if God does not bless us, we will fail. We must be people whom God can bless. We can argue, we can be right, but if God does not bless us, then we will not succeed.

The entire future of work depends on God's blessing, not on whether we are right or wrong. If God blesses us, many sinners will be saved. If God blesses us, we will be able to send people to remote areas. If there is no blessing, people will not be saved. If there is no blessing, the workers will not appear. If there is no blessing, no one will want to devote themselves. If there is no blessing, no one will want to migrate. If there is a blessing, even what appears to be a mistake turns out not to be a mistake. When God blesses us, then even if we make mistakes, we cannot make mistakes. One day in a meeting we sang what seemed to be the wrong hymn, but because God blessed us, we had good result. Sometimes we preach and it seems like we are saying the wrong words to the wrong people, but God still blesses some of the listeners. The next time we speak, we may say the wrong words again, but God again blesses some other group of people. I don't mean to say that we can be deliberately careless. What I want to say is that when we have God's blessing, we can't go wrong. It seems that our mistakes should hinder us, but nothing hinders Him. God said, “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated” (Rom. 9:13). God blesses those whom He pleases. It is very serious. We should never think that blessing is a small thing. Blessing is souls and dedications. Perhaps behind the word “blessing” there are fifty souls and a hundred initiations. The words, attitudes, and opinions of some people can cause the Lord's blessing to cease. We must ask the Lord to push us within until we receive His blessing. Otherwise, having lost the blessing of the Lord, we will commit the greatest sin. Perhaps the blessing is hundreds or thousands of souls. We must hope for God's blessing and not let it pass us by. We must ask God for grace.

EIGHTH

Brothers! We must learn to live in God's blessing. If we work, if we do something, that’s good, but our measure must grow. In our work, in our affairs, we must ask God to keep us in His blessing. If we do not resolve this problem, our work will be greatly damaged. In 1945, Brother Witness was in Shanghai. One day he said that the congregation of brothers had received God's blessing. I believe that Brother Witness has made progress on this matter. We must see before God that we do not expect results from our work, but God's blessing. Sometimes our work has results, but these results are meager and insignificant. If we wait for God's blessing, many things will happen beyond our expectations. If we wait for God's blessing, many things will happen beyond our measure. In our work we must constantly expect miracles and unexpected events. We should not constantly expect that we ourselves will be able to bear some fruit. By constantly expecting these small results, we limit God. If we do not hope for God's blessing, we have nothing to look forward to in the future. We will have difficulties with finances; we will have difficulty moving forward. Therefore, we should rely on God's blessing, and not on the fruits of our labors. If we rely only on the fruits of our labors, there is no telling how many years it will take for many people to believe in the Lord. We must always count on God to do something unexpected. We must pray that God will give us vision and show us what blessing is.

Some make sure that young people do everything correctly, as expected. Instead, we must ensure that they receive God's blessing. If God can bless a person, there is no telling how many times his fruit will exceed his gifts and abilities. Otherwise, he may be very diligent and work very hard, but all this will be useless.

God can bless someone, but He does not give blessing to someone. He denies blessing to someone. Our character may be better than the other brother's, and our gift greater than his, but he bears fruit in his work, and we do not in ours. We often look down on people because we are better than them, but God blesses them. This is not to say that God is wrong. We must understand that in God's eyes we are people whom He refuses to bless.

We shouldn't get angry or jealous because of this. Instead, we must judge ourselves harshly. We have many excuses, but our brothers also have many excuses. We are right, but they are also right. If God denies us a blessing, what can we do? We are right, but we cannot gain souls. We are right, but we cannot build the church. We are right, but there is no benefit from this. Therefore, we must remove everything that delays and hinders the blessing. Henceforth we must not be people who stubbornly argue about what is right and what is wrong; we must be people who receive great blessings from God.

We talk about blessing, we ask for blessing in prayer, we read about blessing in the Bible, but have you ever wondered what that really means? When is everything going well, in the right direction? Prosperity – health, wealth, and much more? God's favor? What exactly is this? We can easily agree that this is something very positive, but when we try to attach some definition to the concept of blessing, it suddenly seems amazingly dubious. As believers, we talk about blessing all the time, but is it possible that we don't know exactly what we're talking about?

The first time we encounter blessing in the Bible is in the very first chapter, and it helps us understand the essence of this amazing mystery;

And God blessed them, saying: Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters of the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth. (Genesis 1:22)

This scripture is consistent with the idea of ​​prosperity—fruitfulness and multiplication. Then we see in verse 28:

And God blessed them, and God said to them: Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.

God blesses creation, and then he blesses Adam and Eve. But blessing is a little different... Yes, in blessing there is fruitfulness and multiplication, but also permission and power, to subdue and have dominion over creatures. At the very end of the creation process, God creates the Shabbat. In the Hebrew Bible this is also the first chapter because it is part of creation. And God blesses Shabbat:

And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, for on it He rested from all His works, which God had created and created. (Genesis 2:3)

So what is the blessing now? In part, this breaks down the model of blessing as multiplication and fruitfulness—what does it mean that God “blesses” the Shabbat? He blesses him and makes him holy because He is holy. This is His special day of rest, reflecting how God himself rested after creative work.

Definition of blessing

My friend Philip Little, a wonderful Bible teacher, defines blessing this way:

At its core, blessing is God given power for something or someone to do what they were created and intended to do. The creatures had to fill the earth and multiply - so God gave them His blessing - His power - to do this. Human beings also had to multiply numerically, but also take care of the rest of creation. They were also given the power to do this. When it comes to Shabbat, God gives it His power to fully be the day it is meant to be - a holy day of peace and unity with God.

What about when we bless God?

When we bless God (and every Jewish blessing first of all blesses God - BARUCH ATA ADONAI ELOHEINU MELECH HAOLAM - Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the Universe), we simply acknowledge Him as the full and only source of every blessing. It is through His power that we have everything we have and are.

What about blessing others?

When we bless others in God's name, we are actually praying for God to send His blessing upon them. When we bless someone, we ask God for His perfect will and purposes for that person's life. It is also a recognition that we cannot do this without His strength. It is not only a matter of desire, but a matter of creation - to do the best way what we were created and destined for. He tells us what to do in His Word, and His blessing is His power given to us to do it. He gives us His commands, and He is the only one who gives us the ability to be effective in obeying them.

Remember where the blessing comes from

We see this pattern of command and blessing very clearly in Deuteronomy 8:

“Try to keep all the commandments that I command you today, so that you may live and multiply and go and take possession of the land that the Lord promised with an oath to your fathers. And remember all the way that the Lord your God led you through the wilderness for forty years now... For the Lord your God is leading you into a good land... And when you eat and are satisfied, then bless the Lord your God for the good land which He gave you."

Thus God gives a command and a blessing, and warns Israel against forgetting where the blessing came from:

“Take heed that you do not forget the Lord your God, by not keeping His commandments and His judgments and His statutes, which I am commanding you today. When you eat and are satisfied, and build good houses and live in them, and when you have a lot of herds and flocks, and there is a lot of silver and gold, and you have a lot of everything, then take care that your heart is not lifted up and you have not forgotten the Lord your God... and so that you may not say in your heart, “My strength and the strength of my hand have obtained this wealth for me,” but that you remember the Lord your God, for He gives you power to acquire wealth, so that you may fulfill, as now, His covenant which He has sworn by oath. confirmed to your fathers."

It is God who gives us the ability and strength to be fruitful and successful, and we need to make sure that we keep this in our minds. It is certain that it was not our hard work or luck, but God's blessing that equipped us with everything we needed to get to the point of success we are at now.

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Additionally, in this passage we see that the concept of multiplication is repeated several more times. This is an important part of the blessing. Whatever comes from God will always grow and increase. We see this in the multiplication of families, flocks, herds and property. It looks at relationship blessings as well as the economic aspect of blessings. Special attention there is also a focus on blessing the entire community, and this is very important to remember. Blessings are not given to us so that we can accumulate them for ourselves - we must first honor and bless God, the source of all blessing; secondly, remember to be obedient to His commands, and His power to give us everything we need, and also to pass on His blessings to others.

God promised that through Abraham all nations on earth would be blessed. He was blessed to be a blessing as the people of Israel accomplished what God had always wanted to accomplish through this people - to bring light to all nations through the birth of the Messiah. In turn, He intended, in response to His mercy shown to all nations, to be a blessing to Jewish people, also returning God's mercy to them. What did God mean by what Israel's return to Him would be like? His people will reveal themselves as an even greater wealth for the whole world! (Rom. 11:12) And we are very glad that you are joining in blessing the people of Israel!

Not only their own, but also their descendants. Everything that comes from the Creator is good, for God Himself is Good. This is His name. God's blessing is the highest gift a Christian can receive.

In the 21st century, many people go to church, but have no idea what the essence of blessings from the Almighty is, and how important it is for being happy in this hectic life. Living in constant trouble and sorrow, a Christian must deal with generational curses. Knowing the principles of receiving a blessing, a person will try never to lose it.

God's blessing is true happiness

What is a blessing

Divide the word “Blessing” into two, we get “good” and “word”. Theologians know that Good is one of the names of the Lord, God’s word and it is God Himself. The Gospel of John begins with these very words.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The Lord cannot be separated from good, and everything that comes from Him is filled with purity and goodness for man. To bless means to give a gift.

About blessing in Orthodoxy:

• How to correctly ask and receive a blessing from the priest

The word blessing hides Divine help, His approval and mercy, protection and grace.

Often Christians in prayer ask the Almighty to bless them, thus calling the presence of the Creator and Savior into life. Sometimes people say to each other: “God bless you,” thereby wishing a person good luck, a solution to a problem, or recovery.

Calling for help from the Almighty is based on faith in the almighty power of the Savior Jesus Christ, God the Father and the Holy Spirit.

Divine help

Everything in this life comes from God's word, for the Almighty gives blessing to humanity, and there is no end to it.

God's blessing is endless throughout the universe and time, He fills everything he has created:

• truth;
• order;
• gifts;
• laws;
• love and much more.

In search of mercy and compassion, law and mercy, guidance and expression of will, people ask for God's blessing.

Important! God's blessing is a special gift from the Creator for spiritual, mental and physical life a person given through prayer, petition and faith.

Who may or may not receive a blessing

The Lord Himself has determined those upon whom He pours out His special anointing and help. No man has a right to divine benefits because of sinfulness, but God gives them to us upon request with humility. Only a humble heart can be looked upon by the Lord.

The Great and Almighty Creator is open to the depth of His knowledge; during spiritual growth, people are filled with spiritual joy and special values. The Holy Spirit is open to baptism and filling by Him to all who seek the face of God.

Christians gain strength for churching, service in God's field, so that at the end of the journey they receive the greatest reward - eternal life.

Soulful path

When the Lord blesses Christians, there is peace of mind and peace of mind in their hearts. Where can anxiety come from if everything is under the protection of the Creator?

Families blessed by the Almighty live in love, respect, help for each other and mutual understanding. Where God's anointing is sent, there is no worry about tomorrow, food and finance.

The Lord grants blessing to believers

Bodily way

A person filled with spiritual and mental benefits also receives physical support in the form of healing and health. A morally healthy person adapts well to the work team, he quickly rises through the ranks and is treated with respect by management.

The Lord gives the faithful worshipers of wisdom to be enterprising to achieve financial well-being, in which part of the funds is brought into God's house to support it and the servants.

The Almighty blesses the earth and what it produces.

What God's Saints Say

According to Athonite elder Kirika, Christians do not receive answers to their prayers for only one reason: they do not ask with faith, relying only on their own strength and reason. God will never leave anyone in trouble if He is asked to help.

Hieroschemamonk Nikolai, who served as confessor in Kiev-Pechersk Lavra V late XIX century, explains that many troubles and failures befall Christians when they do not rely on God and rarely turn to the Lord with requests to bless any undertaking.

Important! Without God's blessing it is impossible to achieve success, be it prayer, fasting, work, travel or healing.

God Himself said that without His help man cannot do anything on his own (John 15:5)

The Monk Ambrose of Optina calls all human deeds futile if they are not blessed by God. A person will work in vain if he does not ask for the Lord’s help in fervent prayer.

According to Saint Kirik, only a Christian with human pride and self-confidence will start a new business without God’s blessing.

From the teachings of St. Nicholas of Serbia we know that only in indissoluble communion with God can His blessings be found. One family member whom the Lord will bless will bring anointing to the entire family and descendants.

Advice! Summon God's grace for every deed with the words “Bless me, a sinner, and help me, Lord!”

The main work of a priest is confession and preaching, since it is these sacred activities that help penetrate the soul and heart of a Christian and give birth to good changes in souls and hearts. But then the priest begins with a blessing. Whether he hastily blessed or reverently, whether he called on the name of God or just drew a cross in the air - the priest is already visible in all this.

These simple and precise thoughts were read by me in the distant days of seminary studies and belong to the professor of the Kyiv pre-revolutionary Academy Pevnitsky. The priest begins with a blessing.

Everything sacred can degenerate and fizzle out if used incorrectly. The blessing of the clergy on the part of the laity receiving it (or in the mode from the bishop to the priest) can turn into an analogue of “Hello” when a lower person meets a higher one. They saw the Lord, slightly bent at the back and, instead of greeting, “bless.” This is exactly what happens: we say “bless you”, we mean “Hello. We are so glad to see you!” And on the part of the one giving the blessing, this is actually a kind of waving his hand in the air and then allowing him to kiss it. This is especially noticeable where there are many clergy and church people: in seminaries, in diocesan administrations, in church shops, in large monasteries, etc. There, more often than anywhere else, a harmful stylization of Orthodoxy occurs due to haste, jostling and a mixture of familiarity with sycophancy. At the same time, as for blessings, there is no actual “good” + “speech,” that is, no good and sacred words may be pronounced at all. Everything is done at the level of manipulation and imitation of kisses. Meanwhile, Scripture initially presupposes that one of the services of the priesthood is the blessing of the people, and the blessing itself is the utterance of sacred words aloud. "Bless the children of Israel, telling them: May the Lord bless you and keep you!

May the Lord look upon you with His bright face and have mercy on you!

May the Lord turn His face towards you and give you peace!

So let it call on my name upon the children of Israel, and I (the Lord) will bless them” (Num. 6:23-27)

Blessing involves the transfer of real power. It can powerfully influence the lives of those who receive the blessing. Jacob and his mother knew this, having cunningly asked for a blessing, as for the firstborn, from the visually impaired Isaac. When the father gave the youngest a complete blessing, mentioning heaven and earth, bread and wine, the obedience of his brothers to him, and so on, then Esau came - the real firstborn. Having learned about the trick, Isaac “trembled with very great trembling” (Gen. 27:33) and said that the one whom he had just blessed “will be blessed” (!). Obviously, we are not talking here about in simple words, which can be pronounced, then abandoned and repeated again at another address. All participants in the event understand this perfectly well, so not only Isaac trembles, but also Esau “lifted up a loud and very bitter cry” (Gen. 27:34). In response to Esau’s request to bless him too, the father remains silent, as if he had nothing more to say. And then he blesses his eldest son, as if with some remnants of the desired benefits, small crumbs. This whole picture tells us about the power of parental blessing, about the transfer of real power. So today, for example, we live under the shadow of the fulfilled blessing of Noah: “May God extend Japheth and let him dwell in the tents of Shem” (Gen. 9:27). It is obvious that the European became a “worldwide man” and gained access to prayerful communication with the Living God in Christ, not because it is an accident or a fruit technical progress, but because this is the fulfillment of a prediction, which is also a blessing.

An example of multiple blessings that can be pronounced together or separately is found in the rite of giving communion to a sick person at home. It says, among other things:

“May the most merciful Lord God show mercy to you. May the Lord Jesus Christ grant you every good request. May the Lord Almighty deliver you from every misfortune. May the Lord teach you. May the Lord enlighten you. May the Lord help you. May the Lord save you. May the Lord protect you. May the Lord cleanse you. May the Lord God Jesus Christ have mercy on you on the Day of Judgment and bless you all the days of your life.” As we see, these are blessings in spirit and form identical to those set forth in the book of Numbers. It is precisely such invocations of God that befit holy orders.

The evidence of the power of blessing is abundant, for the hand of the Lord is not shortened or weakened to save. I have heard many stories from believers about how powerfully grace worked upon them after wisely taken blessings. People asked for specific blessings for a long trip, for studying foreign language, for maintaining vowed additional posts, for enduring life’s troubles, etc., and the blessing given in response to such a request became a source of strength and help.

The clergy themselves are getting tired of the usual “hand waving”, and this is understandable. Leskov also noted that it is sometimes impossible for our bishops to walk down the street or show themselves in public - they will torture you with blessings and come running from all sides. But if a layman comes up and says: “Bless in the name of the Lord, master,” and in response hears the name of Christ pronounced reverently, then both will feel like participants in a certain Sacrament, namely, the sanctifying action of grace when calling on the Lord.

Lay people can also bless, especially if we're talking about about the relationship between parents and children. And the most touching one in the desert also tells us a lot. He asked her blessing because he saw her as a living vessel of the Holy Spirit, and she asked him for blessing because he was a priest and a man. So they bowed lower and lower to the ground, repeating one thing: “Bless, bless.” Finally, Mary pronounced a blessing, but did not say: “I bless you,” but blessed God, who wants everyone to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.

Finally, let’s say that there is never a priest in the temple, silently does not cross people with a special priestly sign. He always says “Peace to all,” or “The blessing of the Lord be upon you,” or other words, but it’s always just “blessings.” Slovenia”, and not just sacred gestures.

Many years have passed since I came across Pevnitsky’s old book on pastoral theology, with yellowed and fragile pages, in the reading room of the Kyiv Seminary library. And the only thing I remember from it today is that confession and preaching are the most important pastoral activities, and a priest begins with the ability to teach true blessing.

What is Blessing

Blessing is compound word, consisting of two words: “good” + “word”. This word contains the entire universe of God, not excluding God himself. The word “good” is one of the names of the One God. Only God alone has the highest goodness (purity), and He is infinitely, eternally beyond the reach of anyone. God is inseparable from good, and everything comes from Him. He is the beginning of everything that exists. And the second part of the word blessing is “word”, and it can be understood as a creation (action) performed by God himself. The Most High created everything that exists with a word. The Bible says about this: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God,” “And God said: let there be light, and there was light.” And this means that God is inseparable from the word, and that everything appeared, came from His word, He said: let there be light and light appeared. The “Word” can be understood not only as the action of God, but also everything that is the result of His creation (truth, law, gift, order, all the qualities of God, etc.).
If you combine these two parts, it turns out that the word blessing has an all-encompassing, infinite meaning. Blessing is Divine truth and God's law. This is God's mercy and justice, Love and compassion. Blessing is the will of God the Father into the world and the instruction (leading) of man by the Holy Spirit to righteousness. This is God’s response to human prayer, during which the grace of God descends (God is good + gives). Blessing is receiving from God a revelation, message or answer to a question that concerns us. This is a special manifestation from Above of favor or attention to a person, a group of people or some people, for some merits before God. Such people or people in the world are called blessed, charmed from above. We can also understand blessing as approval, permission or permission from God for any actions or intentions.

Why do you need to ask God for blessings?

At all times, people asked God for blessings for every undertaking; they knew a lot about this. People were afraid to deviate from the Will of God, to sin, because apostasy led to disastrous consequences. Nowadays, not many of us understand what blessedness is and what it gives us. In our life it is very important for us and plays a big role in building our happiness. Blessing, like our conscience, redirects us to good deeds. It gives us protection and patronage, clarity in thinking and humility in prayer, helps us to do right choice and gives birth to sincerity in repentance. Asking for a blessing from God is also a prayer or a meeting with God, where we also stand before him one on one, and in this moment intimacy also happens.

With God's blessing, it descends upon the person who spends certain work, depending on what we ask for blessings for.

With closeness to the Spirit of God, the following is felt: lightness appears in the soul, coolness envelops, peace sets in and a quiet, calm joy appears; clarity and silence come to the mind; the body feels a surge of strength, rib cage Unclenches and breathes easily, the heart beats evenly and calmly. All these sensations are a sign that God approves of our endeavor. For everything that does not correspond to His Will and everything that is not good for us, not for our benefit, God does not give us His blessing (does not approve), while the Grace of God does not condescend. In the soul and body of a person there is a feeling: not calm, anxious, tense, unpleasant, heaviness, the chest is compressed, the heart beats unevenly, with a little tension and breathing becomes difficult.

To learn to recognize goodness from badness, you need to open up to His Grace and ask for a blessing on something, sit in silence for 20 - 30 minutes, listening to your feelings. If we do this work more often and regularly, then step by step we will learn to understand the language of vibrations, determine where lies and where the truth is and hear the silent voice of God.

In life, if we ask for a blessing for a meal or pray before a meal, the Holy Spirit descends and carries out such work: it sanctifies the food, calms us, prepares the stomach intestinal tract to work, the stomach contracts and acquires a normal volume, a sense of proportion in food comes, and therefore we do not overeat, food is easily digested, the body is to a small extent polluted, even with an unreasonable approach to nutrition. If we ask for a blessing in prayer, then the Holy Spirit carries out the following work: more peace appears in the soul, our memory awakens to some extent; our indignations manifest themselves, clarity comes; With clarity we understand what we need to ask God for in prayer, what needs have arisen in our soul, where sadness, resentment, irritation are hidden, which burden our soul.