God bless...

Have you ever heard a little kid pray, " God bless Mommy and bless Daddy and bless my Sunday School teacher and bless our dog Sparky..."

I've heard myself, and lots of other people pray for God to bless us, or someone else, and I've come to believe that's a silly prayer. Actually, a prayer prayed in ignorance, and maybe even in sin at times.

Did you see the movie "Twister" with Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton? Toward the end they're in a small shed as a very large tornado passes over. The special effects of the movie were great; the shed is sucked up from around them and then the wind builds until their bodies are pulled up off the ground- they're barely hanging on to some pipe and it looks like they're going to follow the shed up into the sky.

Praying for God to bless me is like standing in a tornado, or a hurricane, and asking for wind, or rain- there's already more there than I could possibly imagine or understand- more power, more of His Glory- and I am in the midst of God's blessing every moment of my life!

God blesses me from the moment of conception until I am in His eternal presence- actually long before my conception- "...In Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them."

So why do I ask God to bless me? Because I forget, and because my spiritual vision is so very weak. I don't need to ask God to bless me, I need to ask Him to show me what He's already done, and what He's doing even now. If I knew the fullness of God's blessing on my life I would be overwhelmed, stunned to silence, in awe.

Paul's prayer in Ephesians says it best: "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe."

That hope, those riches, and that power, are here in my life, for my use, now!

I know you bless me every day Father, every moment I live. Open the eyes of my heart, so I may recognize and join in what You are doing, and give You glory.