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God is sovereign – we cannot manipulate or strong-arm Him into blessing us, neither can we determine when or how He blesses us. But what we can do whilst waiting and trusting in Him, is ensure that we are rightly positioned to receive His blessings when He decides to do so.
Here are 5 different ways we can prepare and position ourselves to be blessed.
1. Surrender to His Sovereignty
Whilst God’s Word is full of promises of blessings for His children, we have to remember that we do not take blessings on our own accord; they are given to us on God’s accord.
“May God give you the dew of heaven and of the fatness of the earth and plenty of grain and wine”
(Genesis 27:28)
This scripture is a great declaration to speak over your life, but not just because it mentions prosperity. Rather, because it starts with “May God give you” and not ‘may you receive’ or ‘obtain’, it reminds us that blessings are not ours to have but are God’s to give. And so we surrender to God’s sovereignty by leaning into His abundant mercy instead of depending on our non-existent entitlement.
2. Always Keep God at the Centre
God must be the starting point, the centre and the end of all things in our lives. This means having direct and intimate contact with God and acknowledging Him in all our ways (Proverbs 3:6): that’s before we receive any blessings and even after we have been blessed.
“And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth”
(Deuteronomy 8:18a)
Because God is the one who makes any of our endeavours successful or even possible, not only must we give Him the glory in these endeavours, but we must seek to have a relationship with Him in the first place. In other words: seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all other things shall be added to you (Matthew 6:33).
3. Don’t Neglect Your Gifts and Talents
Deuteronomy 8:18 also shows us that God desires wealth for us and has given us the power (i.e. gifts, talents, abilities, and resources) to get it. Therefore, we should not neglect or belittle our gifts and talents as they are the manifestation of the grace of God and they all have productive purpose. Wealth doesn’t strictly mean financial wealth but prosperity that encompasses all aspects of life. So no matter how small any gift or talent may seem, remember that God has given it to you to generate some form of wealth.
4. Move out of your Comfort Zone
Sometimes God is ready to bless us, but our environment isn’t conducive for what He has in store for us. Take Abraham for example – before making a covenant with him, God asked Him to take a big step:
“Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you”
(Genesis 12:1-2)
We must be prepared to move outside of our comfort zone in obedience to God. This could be following specific instructions God has given us, or just making changes to our lives to meet the standards God has set in His word. Oftentimes at this stage we won’t have the full picture of what things are going to be like once we take that step or make those changes, but the important thing is that we trust God and obey Him, because usually our blessing is on the other side of our obedience.
5. Honour God and Bless People with what you Already Have
“There is one who scatters, yet increases more; and there is one who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty”
(Provers 11:24)
The Bible makes it clear that there are many blessings tied to being a generous giver. Of course, we cannot self-righteously earn our blessings. However, according to the scriptures there is a limitation in the blessings one can receive if you yourself are not a blessing to others and to God. The principle behind this reminds me of the parable of the unmerciful servant whose master forgave his debts, yet he himself did not forgive his debtor, and ultimately his master came back to take what he was owed (Matthew 18:21-35).
Just as the Lord’s prayer asks God to forgive us as we forgive others, we can expect to be blessed as much as we bless others. Likewise, the Bible tells us to honour the Lord with our possessions so that our barns will be filled with plenty (Proverbs 3:9-10). God doesn’t need our money, but it’s our heart posture when we honour Him with all that we have that matters to Him.
5 Ways To Receive God’s Blessings5 Ways To Receive God’s Blessings67Words by Annette Tony – Fadipe
