Are You Blessed Or Cursed?
“Our family must be cursed!”
“Things never go right.”
“I am so tired of the fight.”
“I want the pain to end.”
“I can’t go on like this.”
Have you heard anyone say something similar? Or have you felt that way at times in your life?
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart departs from the Lord. For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when good comes, but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land which is not inhabited” Jeremiah 17:5-6.
The first picture painted in this passage is one of a cursed man. One who looks to his efforts and trusts in himself, which is the basis of New Age reasoning. When I read this, my thoughts immediately turn to tumbleweed aimlessly flying through the desert in old Western movies.
Nothing is appealing or attractive about the picture. If we relate that image to a spiritual walk, we see people who claim to be Christians but are miserable. They are stressed, haggard, tired and look much older than they should – there is no presence of joy in their lives.
Do You Believe You Are Blessed or Cursed?
I often can relate to people who share their stories with me on my podcast, Never Ever Give Up Hope. There were many circumstances in my life where it would have been easier to give up, be miserable, and throw myself a pity party.
I chose to marry the wrong person (the first time around). I was warned. I did not listen.
I chose to go into business with the wrong people and they stole my business.
I chose to trust people I should not have trusted and was arrested.
I chose to walk home that day and was kidnapped, raped, and left for dead.
I chose to adopt two children and lost them both -- does the joy of having them for a little while make up for the pain of losing them?
I chose to try and kill myself because I thought I could not endure the pain any longer.
Yet, I am a victor, more than only a survivor. I learned how to take the pain, the mistakes, and the bad choices and turn them around for good. I choose to laugh despite the pain and encourage those around me in similar circumstances.
My negative world did not reflect what I knew to be true – God’s promises. I had to choose to put my focus on the promises of God.
When you believe, and know that you know, the joy of the Lord is your strength. It is what you concentrate on, and your mindset changes from depressing to expecting something good to come from the pain.
It Is In What You Believe
The next part of the above scripture passage paints a picture of a blessed man. “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose hope is the LORD. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit”
- Jeremiah 17:5-8.
When we dissect that verse and look at our lives, we realize how the world sees us as either blessed or cursed people.
The first step is to see yourself as God sees you. Make this your daily affirmation:
As you get the truth of God’s Word into your heart, you will see yourself as God sees you – not on what you are feeling.
When things go askew and we do not understand why we must realize that God is in control and knows about our situation because we ask for His help. You can trust that He will bless you and get you through the trauma as His Word promises throughout.
Therefore, it is crucial to concentrate on His promises and pray those back to your heavenly Father as a prayer of thanksgiving:
“Father, I do not understand what is going on – but You do. I trust You with all my heart and know You only give good gifts to Your children. I thank you that You are blessing me and giving me the strength I need and will remind me of the promises in Your Word.”
When this is your attitude, the light that is in you will become evident on the ‘outside.’ Your friends will see it and ask you how you can be so positive when your world is falling apart.
Remind them that when God looks at you, He sees you blessed, righteous, pure, and holy because of what Christ did for you. That, in itself, is cause to rejoice.
When we understand how we are planted and grounded, we will not cease yielding fruit of joy.
God's Word Supersedes Everything
Jesus will cause you to be a picture of robust strength and success. See yourself as that tree planted by the water that when the heat comes, you do not fear.
The blessed person will not fear the heat coming. What an amazing part of that scripture. It means that we are not even conscious of the seasons of ‘heat’ but continue to be strong and flourish. Our leaves will continue to be green – like an EVERGREEN!
Knowing that we can enjoy divine health, youthfulness, and vitality. We do not need to be anxious and stressed during lean times or famine.
Fear has gripped our world in a way we have never seen before. Global financial meltdown, the collapse of investment banks, the volatile stock markets, and rising inflation can be of great concern.
Worrying about it will not change it. But God’s Word supersedes everything – famine, plague, loss, or pain.
Amazing Story Of Faith
When my husband was a young boy, a man in his father’s church shared his story of faith. During the dirty 1930s, Ed trusted God above the fear of drought and famine. God sent a cloud regularly over Ed’s farm and the rain fell ONLY on this land. His crops grew and his farm flourished while the neighboring farms produced little and were dying.
Ed saw himself as blessed, not cursed. Years later, when Ed sold his farm, he was offered four times what he was asking because people believed it was the land that was blessed.
DARE we see ourselves as blessed and watch what God will do!