APPROPRIATE
Today's reading: Genesis 48-50
"These are the twelve tribes of Israel, and these are the blessings with which Jacob blessed his twelve sons. Each received a blessing that was appropriate to him." Genesis 49:28 NLT
The camera pans to a dying man laying on his death bed.
Surrounding him are his twelve grown sons who have been raised in a culture where blessings are bestowed from generation to generation.
Chapter 49 fills us in on the blessings, and the predictions, Joseph makes in regards to each and every one of his boys.
Specific.
Individual.
Significant.
Distinct.
Each spoken word imparting wisdom, hope and recognition of personality traits and characteristics.
This father knew his boys. He knew their bents. He knew what the future could hold for each and every one of them. He grasped the potential held in each varying personality.
Like our Father does.
God does not bless us with a 'one size fits all' blessing.
How He chooses to bless each and every one of us varies according to our personalities, our abilities and our strengths.
God's blessing is not about competition. It's not about any one person gaining a more favored status. His gifts poured out on each and every one of us should be celebrated, not used in comparison games.
If you know the Lord, you have been blessed in a specific and God-ordained way. Don't bother yourself by sizing up what you have with the Lord against another believer's blessings.
Our Father knows his children well--and gifts blessings according to His loving knowledge.
