(Be) Blessed: Creating a Covenant Lifestyle With Godનમૂનો

We have a kind and generous Father who loves to lavish good gifts upon his kids. The words “blessed” or “blessing” occur in the Bible close to 300 times. Right from the very beginning of creation, the Spirit hovers over the water and God begins to create using His breath and voice. He speaks and light emerges, the heavens separate from the earth, and water gathers to establish landforms. God creates animals of every sort: those that walk on land, swim the seas and take flight to the skies.

He could have stopped there, but there was still an important element needed in His Creation. You. We were created in His image, meaning we were created to be a representation and resemblance of Him. In doing so, God demonstrated that not only did he love us, but also that His intention was to give us access to everything in His creation.

Creation serves as evidence of His desire to extravagantly bless us. Even if we were to close our eyes and imagine the most beautiful place on earth we’ve visited or seen in photographs, it would not compare to the pristine beauty and wholeness that existed in the Garden of Eden.

God placed Adam and Eve in the middle of this paradise and defined the very first covenant with them. They would have the garden and the authority to rule over creation with Him, and in exchange, they would trust God to take care of them. And one more thing: They were not to eat from one tree -- the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

With that directive, God made it clear that He should be the one to bear the weight of that knowledge. He was basically telling us from the beginning of time, "Don't do anything that will cause you to attempt to take my seat or put something else in my seat."

This is the first "Yes, Lord" opportunity we see in the Bible where humanity is presented with a choice to hear and heed God’s Word. Every moment of every day, we have an opportunity to say, “Yes, Lord.” Make a point today to look for opportunities to honor God with your “yes.”