We want more things than ever in our lives now, prosperity, good health, maintaining our jobs, better relationships with family and friends and overall a better you.
But what is keeping us from having it all?
Let’s take a closer look:
Blessing Blocker 1: Disobedience
When we hear “disobedience” our minds instantly go to the big stuff like getting drunk, sex outside of marriage, partying, drugs etc. I know most of you reading this aren’t doing those sort of things, BUT perhaps the Lord has told you to forgive someone and you haven’t.
Maybe the Lord told you to bless your brother with $200 but you didn’t do it, because that may seem hard to do right now.
Maybe the Lord has told you to go back to college and become a school teacher but you haven’t, you reason that you’re older, or you currently make more money than a teacher does anyway.
In Deuteronomy 28:1-14 God promises us that “If we obey the voice of the Lord” then ALL these blessings will come upon us and overtake us. (Go read it for yourselves, the blessings promised to us are huge!)
But verse 15 tells us that if we DON’T obey the voice of the Lord, then those blessings will NOT come upon us.
One of the blessings God promises for obedience is that, “He will command a blessing on your storehouse!”
Isaiah 48:17-18 is also very interesting: “Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I am the Lord your God, Who teaches you to profit, Who leads you in the way that you should go. Oh, that you had hearkened to My commandments! Then your peace and prosperity would have been like a flowing river…”
The Lord teaches us to profit (that’s a good thing!) and He leads us in the way we should go.
He’s leading you, but are you obeying?
He then tells us that had we listenedto His commands (instructions) THEN our peace and prosperity would have been flowing like a river!
Is your peace and prosperity flowing right now?
Then perhaps He’s given you instructions you haven’t obeyed yet.
Blessing Blocker 2: Covering Your Sins
“Cover your sins” could mean you are cheating on your spouse and you keep it hidden. I think we’d all agree that if you’re doing that you are obviously not going to prosper.
However, we often cover our sins in our own minds and hearts by not owning up to them and taking responsibility for them.
Like in Genesis 3:12 when Adam ate the fruit after God told them not too. He covered his sin by saying, “The woman, whom You gave me, she gave me the fruit from the tree and I ate it.”
See how Adam passed the blame onto God? The woman whom YOU gave me Lord…like it was God’s fault for giving him that woman!
Don’t cover up your sin, don’t justify your actions or your situation, just repent.
Own up to it, take the blame, change, and live free!
Blessing Blocker 3: Your Words
God set before us blessings and the cursing, He said we get to pick what type of life we want to live. So how do we choose the blessing and life?
Proverbs 18:21 tells us that, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” That means we get to choose life, by choosing our words.
Whoa.
There is a consequence to my words.
Whether good or evil. My choice.
Think about it, do you go around speaking death and cursing over your finances?
Flip your vocabulary towards life and blessing.
There will be a consequence to your words. Let’s make sure it’s a good consequence.
When it comes to your money, find out what God said about your situation, and then say those things.
Blessing Blocker 4: Offense
Are you offended often?
I know I’ve had hundreds of opportunities to be offended, especially in the church world, but I’ve learned over the years that this can be one of the most dangerous grounds to walk on.
Being offended is rooted in pride. You get offended when YOU are passed over for something.
Carrying this offense around is an indication your pride is running the show. Now you’re mad, you don’t want to help anymore, you think, “Why should I? They never use my ideas anyway.”
You then begin to isolate yourself, a root of bitterness begins to grow, you murmur and complain, you start to infect others to try to get them to see things from your filter…it’s a downward spiral.
And it will block your blessings.
Forgive everyone quickly, do it now, and move on.
Blessing Blocker 5: Being Stingy
“Give freely and become more wealthy; be stingy and lose everything.
The generous will prosper…”
The generous will prosper…”
Another translation puts it this way:
“Some give freely and still get richer, while others are stingy but grow still poorer.
The person who blesses others will prosper…”
The person who blesses others will prosper…”
He literally tells us the decision making process that will make you wealthy and prosperous: Give freely and be generous.
Giving freely and generously = Blessings unlocked.
So how do we lose everything and grow poor?
Be stingy.
But stingy doesn’t mean what you think it means. Most of us would say that we’re not stingy. We often think stingy people are greedy people rubbing their hands together with an evil, money hoarding plot…
But then I looked up the definition,
The definition of stingy is “unwilling to give, unwilling to spend, ungenerous.”
Can you see that?
If you are unwilling to give, unwilling to spend, or if you’re ungenerous = #blessingsblocked!
Check yo’self.
Unlock Your Blessing
You can say, “Oh those don’t apply to me, the reason I’m broke right now is __________.” And fill in that blank with some justified excuse…
OR, you can take 20 minutes on your drive to work today and examine yourself.
Say, “God I ask you to show me if there is anything in my life that is blocking my blessing. I want to own up to it, I take full responsibility. Show me the areas I need to improve in so we can weed them out.”
Then be silent.
Listen to what He tells you.
Then do it. Repent. Fix it. And move forward.
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