People have poured far more blessings on us over these last few months than I have ever given over my entire lifetime. In fact, I don't think I ever understood what a true blessing was until I received them myself. The blessings I have given to others have usually been convenient, affordable and easy. I tried hard and did my best, but I now understand how much more I could have done and for so many more people. I am so fortunate that I can start now. When we get back on our feet I will not only pour blessings on other people, but I will do them in honor of all the people who have been blessings us when we were down. I will never treat our money the same way as I did before and there will always be enough to bless someone with. The generosity we have been shown will be passed forward for as long as I live.
Just a few weeks ago I read an inspiring true-story book called What Difference Do It Make: Stories of Hope and Healing. This book was the successor to another great book Same Kind of Different As Me. Both of these books are amazing (read them if you can) and they touch upon homelessness (as well as a bunch of other issues). I loved a few quotes that I found about blessings:
"Helping someone is when you find out how to help them move toward wholeness and then you hang with them until they make the change."
"I was sho'enough happy to hear that story 'cause it shows that even if you bless some needy person just a little bit, God might use other folks down the line to weave your little gift into a bigger blessin. And if you bless folks, you gon' get the blessin back, no matter what they does with the money. So you give the gift with no strings attached, and let God take care a'business on the other end."
"But after the homeless began to bless me much more than I blessed them, after my heart started to warm to the task, I realized that God didn't command us to love only for the sake of others but for our own sakes as well."
These books really opened my eyes to the fact that we often decided if or how we will bless someone based on what we think they will do with the money. It was really life changing for me to read that in fact maybe it isn't our business what someone does with the blessing that we give them; it is our job to give it and let God do the rest. That we need to give gifts with no strings attached. That maybe the homeless man we give $20 to will take it to the bar, but (as in the example in the book), maybe something at that bar will change his life. I think about this every time someone blesses us with something. I am shocked that they trust me enough with their blessing, but then again maybe they already practice what I am learning. It's all just so eye opening and humbling.
And so, to all of the people who have blessed us with love and generosity, I promise that I will live a life blessing others because of you. You have taught me what true blessings are. In my own words they are acts of love, sacrifice and generosity that are done with nothing expected in return. And, for the belief that you cannot out-give God, our story of His fruitful blessings is the perfect example of that.
(We have received two extraordinary blessings over the last few days, and for those acts of love and to those who gave them to us, we are forever grateful).
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