952 Astonishing Blessings

Our God is a good, good father who loves to give his girls good things. His storehouses in heaven have an abundance of all things, and his desire is to share his abundance with us. But can he? Can he share his abundance with you, and still have you? The problem is, we allow our things to replace the God who gave them to us. When we are in need, we’re continually coming to the Father asking for His provisions. But when we have more than we know what to do with, the need to come to the Father is crowded out by all we already have. Why would I ask God for a paycheck when I know there’s a guaranteed one coming my way this week? And when I no longer have to ask him for it, do I also eventually forget to thank him for it? Have you ever had one of those cars that only started sometimes? Sometimes it would run, and sometimes it wouldn’t. It required prayer to get you where you needed to go. And when you would make it there, you would thank God for that hunk of junk holding on for one more trip to town and one more return trip home. Oh, we had one of those cars. Every time you stopped because the engine would just shut down. I’ve never prayed for green lights so much in my life. I would keep one foot on the gas and the other on the break, revving the engine at a rolling stop, praying that engine didn’t die. It’s so dang embarrassing sitting at an intersection trying to start your car again when everyone is honking behind you. Jesus and I had some real conversations in that car. But now there’s a new car. A car with an engine that actually runs when you stop at a red light. An engine that without fail has always gotten me where I need to go without a miraculous act of God. So, I don’t pray as much in my car. It’s not needed. And naturally because I didn’t have to pray my way through the trip to the grocery store, I fail to praise God when I get back. Dang it, do you do it too? You’re over here leveling up in life, but pieces of your close relationship with God got left on the lower levels where you needed him more. Now that the thing that kept you up at night praying has been resolved, you drift right off to sleep without a single prayer. Now that you’re not so worried any longer and you have some of the answers you were seeking, you haven’t opened up your Bible to search for any more answers. Y’all, we can’t be trusted! We have proven when we get things, those things get us. We have allowed the blessing to become the focus and forgotten the blessor in the process. How much more would your God absolutely LOVE to give you, if you could be trusted? How much more would he love to pour out upon you from his heavenly storehouses, if he knew it wouldn’t cause you to stumble? Malachi 3:10 the Lord says “‘I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! ‘ This is God’s heart towards his children. This is his blessing and promise. This is his intention and desire concerning you. He never wants to withhold a single good thing from you. He has full access to ALL things and it brings him great joy to share good things with you. But if he blesses with the new car that is guaranteed to keep running when you stop, would you still pray when you roll up on that red light? Would you still thank him every time it starts? Or is your need the only thing that keeps you coming back to God? If your need is the only thing connecting you with your Creator, honey that need will remain. It is your lifeline to the Almighty, and if that’s all he’s got to keep you coming back to him, then he’s not going to cut that line. The need continues if it’s the only thing bringing you in. But what if you could move past that need, receive God’s blessing here, and stay connected?