Thoughts for Life: BLESSED BY THE BEST

Blessed by the Best

Felicia Dawson-

I started attending a new church when I moved back to my hometown. I noticed a seasoned greeter, short in stature with outstretched arms, who embraced individuals as they entered her door. If asked how she was doing, with the biggest smile, she responded, “Blessed by the Best!”

I nicknamed her the hugger and decided one Sunday to purposely go to her post to be welcomed and receive a warm embrace. My custom was short-lived because COVID-19 became an issue and disrupted our daily lives.

Years passed, and the doors of the church reopened. I found a Bible study class, and God graciously orchestrated our paths crossing again. The hugger and I would finally meet and converse as if we were long-lost friends. When asked how she was doing, her response remained the same: “Blessed by the Best!”

It is wonderful to be blessed by God, to experience His mercy, goodness, and kindness, and to have a joy-filled contentment we cannot explain when faced with trials. As faithful servants of God, He blesses us even in our circumstances. Unfortunately, our situations can consume us so much that we can easily overlook His blessings.

We can testify that God is truly the best because of our relationship with Him and becoming familiar with attributes that define His character, such as knowing He is the Bread of Life and the Bright Morning Star. He is our Everlasting Father and Emmanual, God with us. He is our Shepherd and the Savior of the world. He is the True Vine and the Truth, the BEST.

As Scripture states, we are blessed when we trust in the Lord and keep our hope in Him. Blessings come when we are in His presence, and, unlike presents or gifts, anything God gives will fully satisfy us.

Think of declarations you can make and actions you can take to reflect being blessed by the best.

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord."
Jeremiah 17:7 NKJV

Let's pray-

Father, as prayer is not merely coming to You to ask something from You, it is above all else, fellowship with You and being brought under the power of Your holiness and love, and Your taking possession of us and stamping our entire nature with the lowliness of Christ, which is the secret of all true worship. Help us let this happen in our lives, we pray in Jesus' name, for His glory and our good! Amen.

# 94 Testimony- Gail

"Last winter, I flew to see my daughter’s family in California. I left Watertown to Philadelphia and then on to San Diego. I was gone for 10 days. On my return trip December fifth, I discovered Watertown had received three feet of snow! Rather foolishly, I had not anticipated this. I did not have a scraper or brush or shovel in my car since there was no snow when I left. That was surely a mistake!

When I left the terminal and got to my car it was completely snowed in with the three feet of snow covering everything. In addition there was a thin layer of ice underneath it all! Also, my car was plowed in because they had cleared the lanes for parking, but of course not the cars. All that plowed snow was in front and in back of my car. The situation was pretty hopeless, but I started trying to shove the snow off with my hands. Just as I bemoaned the desperate situation I was in, a young man jumped out of the car right next to me. He said, 'Hey haven’t you got a scraper or brush? ' I told him,

"sorry – no." He simply handed me two scrapers saying, 'you take the good one and I’ll use the broken one.' Then he hopped into my car and turned the defrost on in the front and the back. He jumped out and started to attack all that snow.

In quick order, my car was cleared and defrosted! He then told me how to manage to back out of all that snow without getting stuck. He stood by and made sure I was all set and wished me well! Of course, I thanked him profusely! He said he was a volunteer fireman and always tried to be prepared!

WOW!! He was like an absolute angel to me, and I will always thank the Lord for His provision of such a caring and able young man. I know it had to be God’s provision to have such a capable and willing servant parked right next to me!! I still praise God to this day."

1506-1510 One-line Scriptures for those of you who want to learn some more verses this week- or to review them from when they were first posted-

1506- Ps. 116:4 "Then called I upon the name of the LORD; O LORD,

I beseech thee, deliver my soul."

1507- Luke 18:7,8a "And will not God grant justice to his elect, who cry out to

him day and night . . . will he delay helping them? I tell you that

he will swiftly grant them justice." (CBS)

1508- Pro. 19:2a "The soul without knowledge is not good."

1509- Ps. 74:16 "The day is thine, the night also is thine; thou hast prepared the

light and the sun."

1510- Pro. 3:4 "So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of

God and man."

#94 Hymn- The Solid Rock

The information about this song, is taken from the book by Robert J. Morgan, THEN SINGS MY SOUL (pg. 111)

"Edward Mote was born into poverty on Jan. 21, 1797, in London. His parents, innkeepers, wouldn't allow a Bible in their house, but somehow Edward heard the gospel as a teenager and came to Christ. He eventually became a skilled carpenter and the owner of his own cabinet shop.

"One morning," he recalled, "It came into my mind as I went to labor to write a hymn on the 'Gracious Experience of a Christian.' As I went up to Holborn I had the chorus; On Christ the solid Rock I stand / All other ground is sinking sand. In the day, I had four verses complete, and wrote them off.

On the Sabbath following, I met brother King who informed me that his wife was very ill, and asked me to call and see her. . . he looked for his hymnbook but could find it nowhere. I said, 'I have some verses in my pocket; if he liked, we could sing them.' We did, and his wife enjoyed them so much that after service he asked me, as a favor, to leave a copy of them for his wife.

I went home, and by the fireside composed the last two verses, wrote the whole off, and took them to sister King . . . As these verses so met the dying woman's case, my attention to them was the more arrested, and I had a thousand printed for distribution."

Some encouraging words-

Karen 'Girl' Friday- "God created love and demonstrated love on Calvary’s cross through His Son—a show-and-tell affection. Jesus loved us so much, He died for us. Loving Jesus above all else isn’t radical Christianity or even Jesus freaks. It’s the heart of true disciples."

Church Notes:

If we're captive of our past, Christ can help us see what has held us captive, and then reach down into our lives and free us! If we're obedient to Him, we'll learn how He wants us to live. Let Jesus take care of the past! If we have ears to hear, let's hear His words as we call out to Him to be delivered and healed. He will manifest Himself to us!

Upcoming posts:

7/12- OUR TRUSTWORTHY FATHER- OXCHITL DIXON

19th- NEW LIFE IN JESUS- Amy Boucher

26th- WORTHY OF ALL PRAISE- Bill Chowder