It is possible to be very close to God’s blessing, maybe close to those who are under God’s amazing grace, and yet to miss it completely. We are wise to be attentive to where God’s blessing is and to reach out to take it for ourselves.
The Bible has many examples of people who were close to those who had God’s hand on their lives, yet who did not connect with the blessing.
I also like the example of some of the Canaanites living in the Promised Land, who were to be destroyed by Israel, but who recognised God’s blessing was on the Israelites so they went and made a treaty with them. They did it deceptively, in the fear of God.
However, let me focus today on those who were very close to God’s blessing and yet who missed it.
I found it interesting to look at the family of Abraham over several generations and to see that several people missed God’s blessing despite being very close to it.
Abraham had two brothers, Haran and Nahor, yet they were not called to follow God or given the Promised Land. Haran’s son, Lot, travelled with Abraham and walked through the Promised Land, yet did not get any of the blessing.
Abraham’s first-born son, Ishmael, also missed the blessing, not being born by God’s promise but by man’s planning.
Haran’s great-granddaughter Rebekah married Isaac, Abraham’s son, and so became part of God’s chosen family line. Yet Rebekah’s brother, Laban, despite being ‘close to the action’ missed out on that blessing.
Laban’s daughters, Leah and Rachel, married into Abraham’s father, by marrying Jacob, but Laban and his sons missed the blessing.
So we see that over several generations there were people close to Abraham and his family line, where God’s blessing was settled, who did not become part of that stream of blessing.
Similarly there may be people around you who are walking in God’s grace, enjoying His blessings, while you feel you life is a mess and you are in turmoil. Don’t miss out on the grace that God has for you. Let the experience of others prove to you that there is grace to be enjoyed and it is available to you in this day and age.
I once heard a preacher use the expression, “get under the spout where the glory comes out”, to prompt people to seek God’s blessing and go where it can be found.
On another occasion I heard someone lament that the church they were attending seemed completely dead and they were getting nothing out of going there. My question was, “then why are you still going there?” Sometimes we don’t have a choice, due to family connections and the like, but we can still find other places to connect with people who are enjoying God’s blessing.
Back in the late 1960’s my parents became aware of the power of God available today. Their church had taught them that God doesn’t do anything today like He did in Bible days. When my dad’s friends began to be powerfully touched by God my parents began a tentative search to find out what God would do in today’s world.
That led them to St Andrews Cathedral in Sydney for their midweek healing meeting, led by Canon Jim Glennon. The services were more formal than we were used to in our evangelical background, but there was a lovely sense of God being present.
From there mum and dad, and the rest of us, began attending a Pentecostal church for midweek meetings, while still attending our regular Sunday services. We delighted in those midweek meetings, where there was a real sense of God’s presence and blessing.
Eventually my dad was forced to leave our original Sunday church connection if my dad did not give up his ideas that God still moved in our world today.
Along the way there were several of our family friends who also attended various meetings where we enjoyed God’s blessing. Several of them were wonderfully touched with miracle healing and delight. However quite a few of them never pressed on to find more of what God had for them and their lives reverted to spiritual coldness.
God’s blessing is around you. There are people in your area who are being touched by God. You too can press in for the fulness of what God has for you. But, sadly, you can also miss the blessing too.
Don’t be like Lot or Laban who came so close to the stream of God’s blessing and yet missed it altogether. Press in to God. Find fellowship with people who are experiencing the power and presence of God. Keep pressing in until you have received the fulness of what God has for you.
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