COUNT
BLESSINGS NOT TROUBLES
BREAD
16 From
the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. John 1:16 (NIV)
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In
his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and
into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade--kept in heaven for
you, 5 who through faith are
shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be
revealed in the last time. 6 In
this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to
suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 1
Peter 1:3-6 (NIV)
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in
Christ. Ephesians 1:3 (NIV)
12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction,
faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12 (NIV)
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The
Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious
about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,
present your requests to God. 7 And
the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts
and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:4-7 (NIV)
Philippians 4:4-7 (NIV)
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already
been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus
took hold of me. 13 Brothers, I do
not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do:
Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize
for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14 (NIV)
3 You will be a crown of splendor in the LORD's hand, a royal diadem in the hand
of your God. 4 No longer will
they call you Deserted, or name your land Desolate. But you will be called
Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; for the LORD
will take delight in you, and your land will be married. 5 As a young man marries a maiden, so
will your sons marry you; as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your
God rejoice over you. Isaiah 62:3-5
(NIV)
11 You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal
pleasures at your right hand. Psalm
16:11 (NIV)
16 Be joyful always; 17 pray
continually; 18 give thanks in all
circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV)
13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as
you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy
Spirit. Romans 15:13 (NIV)
8 Finally,
brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is
pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or
praiseworthy--think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned
or received or heard from me, or seen in me--put it into practice. And the God
of peace will be with you. Philippians
4:8-9 (NIV)
18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on
what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:18 (NIV)
BUTTER
“To please God . . . to
be a real ingredient in the divine happiness . . . to be loved by God, not
merely pitied, but delighted in as an artist delights in his work or a father
in a son — it seems impossible, a weight or burden of glory which our thoughts
can hardly sustain. But so it is.”
C. S. Lewis
“The Christian is suspended between blessings received and
blessings hoped for, so he should always give thanks.” M. R.
Vincent
“Just as a Momma rushes to the
side of her wailing child, the Lord ever harkens His ear to His lamenting
‘sheep’. He is a ‘with us’ God, staying
by our side as we walk through our valleys of Baca (tears) and never leaves us
nor forsakes us. He will either change
our circumstances or change us in our circumstances – either way the blessings
He bestows as we call out to Him are totally other worldly. He is the Ultimate Healer of the broken and
contrite heart.” BHY
“The height of joy isn’t simply to be blessed — but to become the blessing. The height of joy isn’t to have blessings actualized — but to become the actual blessing. Not to be blessed with stuff — but to become the blessing in service.” Ann Voskamp
“He who takes a review of his blessings, looks upon himself as a person engaged for God… He dedicates Himself to God.” Thomas Watson
“You don’t miss a beat when thankfulness is the beat of your heart.” Ann Voskamp
“God has a multitude of reasons for allowing our troubling situations. Perhaps He is working on some of the people in our lives. Maybe He is working out His timing to reap the maximum harvest when His solution comes in the end. Or He could be proving a point to His enemy about His glory, as He did with Job – and your reaction is the key. Maybe He is even working on us – our character flaws, personality issues, or spiritual growth. Unpruned trees bear less fruit, so He must shape us differently. But we’re surprised – and angry – when His pruning hand is not as gentle as we’d like. The question we need to settle in our hearts is whether we believe God is good. It isn’t hard to hold such a belief when His blessings seem bountiful. But the blessing of hardship? We wonder where His favor has gone. We grow distant, resentful, and bitter over the harshness of His loving hand. Like a child who has just been spanked – or simply told ‘no’ – we pout. God just doesn’t seem fair.” Chris Tiegreen
“If the worst things work for good
to a believer, what shall the best things?
Nothing hurts the godly…all things…shall co-operate for their good, that
their crosses shall be turned into blessings.”
Puritan Thomas Watson
HEART SAVOR
·
If we dwell on our blessings it will elevate our
thoughts and increase our joy.
·
If we focus on our problems it paralyzes us.
·
God is the Giver of every good and perfect
gift – everything that comes to us is from His loving hand is intended for our
ultimate good – whether we perceive this or not. We can trust Him with our lives.
