Unlocking God's blessings

In my walk with the Lord over the last 27 years, I have come to understand certain key principles about unlocking God's blessings in our lives. I believe that these key principles, though not exhaustive, are necessary for every believer to know and understand, as we navigate life here on earth. I have often come across Christians who tell me, "I have prayed every kind of prayer but no sign of God's blessings." If you are one of those then come along with me as we review God's word especially in this critical area for the believer. 

Prayer

First, I would like to point out that while prayer is very important in the life of a believer, unlocking God's blessings goes beyond prayer. It is important for the believer in Christ to understand that the keys for unlocking God's blessings can be revealed only when we ask the Holy Spirit to lead us in finding them in the hidden treasures of God's word. I have made it a practice to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal treasures to me, whenever I pick the bible to read. Remember, that in John 16:13, Jesus told his disciples,

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.  (John 16:13)KJV

God's Blessings, what are they?

Before we delve deeper into our topic, let's first examine what God's blessings entail. We read from Deut 28, the types of blessings promised by God to His people:

(2)  And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.  (3)  Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.  (4)  Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.  (5)  Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.  (6)  Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.  (7)  The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.  (8)  The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.  (9)  The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways.  (10)  And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.  (11)  And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee.  (12)  The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.  (13)  And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; Deut 28:2-13a KJV 

It is important to realize from the above scriptures that God's blessings is not only in the area of material wealth but also, and most importantly, in spiritual wealth (see Deut 14:9). Reading from Gen 49:25, we note that God's blessings are encompassing, and they include blessings from heaven above and the deep that lies below, as well as from within us:

Even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb: Gen_49:25  (KJV) 

Moreover, we also read from Prov 10:22 that God's blessings make us rich (in every area of our lives) and He adds no sorrow:

The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it. (Pro 10:22) 

Keys to unlocking God's blessings

Obedience
The first key principle, which the Holy Spirit led me to, is obedience. You will notice in Gen 12:1-4a that God's promise to bless Abram, after He directed him to move out of his father country, was conditional upon Abram's response to God's directive (see vs. 2 below) 

Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:  (2)  And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:  (3)  And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.  (4)  So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. Gen 12:1-4 KJV 

Also, we note that the blessings promised in Deut. 28 is conditional upon the obedience of God’s people:

And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:  (2)  And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God. Deut 28:1-2 KJV 

Beloved in Christ, what is God asking you to do? Sometimes, the Holy Spirit nudges us about areas of our lives that we need to surrender in total obedience to God. It could be God directing you to go into full time ministry, or to change jobs, or to quit a certain habit or to become obedient in the area of tithes and offerings. I could go on and on, but the key point is for us to begin to realize that God's calling upon our lives implies a total submission as well as a commitment to God concerning every area of our lives. To experience a release of God's blessings upon every area of our lives, I encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit to lead you to discover areas of your life for which you need to start being fully obedient to God. Beloved, being obedient is critical for unlocking God's blessings upon our lives. We cannot claim to be born-again Christians when we fail to honor God with total obedience to His word.

Giving

Closely related to obedience is giving. I would like to draw an analogy from “a tale of two seas,” which is in reference to the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. Available evidence shows that the Sea of Galilee, which is located in Northern Israel, receives its water from the north and feeds the Jordan River, which is to the south. In effect, water flows in and out keeping it always fresh for most of the fishes within it. Unlike the Sea of Galilee, however, the Dead Sea receives so much water but none flows out which makes the water stale, with no living organism able to thrive within it. The point from this analogy is that when we only desire to receive and not give, we become like the Dead Sea. However, when we give, our lives can be very much likened to the Sea of Galilee. Dear Christian friend reading this, the word of God is very clear on the blessings that result from giving. When I talk about giving, I am referring to giving to God’s work in the form of tithes and offerings, in addition to reaching out to help the needy as and when the Holy Spirit nudges you.

You will notice in Gen 12:2 that God's blessings is not solely for our benefit but also to become a blessing to others. If you do not have a heart that is committed to helping those in need then ask the Holy Spirit to make you sensitive. Let me point out, that it is also important not to broadcast when we help the needy because when you do, you have received your reward in full already by broadcasting what you did. But if you do your good deeds in obedience to God and not because you want to please people, then just as we read below, God will reward you in the open:

But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. (Mat 6:3-4 KJV)

Concerning tithing, the word of God clearly tells us that when we are honest to God with our tithes, He will bless us. Whenever I have been disobedient in this area, I have encountered problems in the area of my finances, health, etc. and these ultimately affect my peace. When you do your part, then as indicated in the word of God, you can hold God to His promises and He is bound by His word to honor them. We read from Mal. 3:10:

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. Mal_3:10  (KJV) 

Faith

Now, when you ask God to honor His word to bless you after you having fulfilled your duties as a believer you must believe that He will do it. Believing that God will honor His word is a demonstration of our faith. In the following scriptures, we read what Jesus told his disciples regarding asking God for something in prayer:

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. (Mat 21:22 KJV)

Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. (Mark 11:24 KJV)

'God loves a cheerful giver'

In Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth, he further points out other important aspects of giving, which is, to give bountifully and cheerfully. We read below in the following scripture:

But this I say, he which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work: (2Co 9:6-8 KJV)

When Paul says, “God loves a cheerful giver,” we know it for a fact because when Cain and Abel made an offering to the Lord with their first fruits, what made Abel stand out was his generous offering which made God very pleased with Abel but displeased with Cain because he failed to make a generous offering to God. We read below:

And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. (Gen 4:3-7 KJV)

Beloved in Christ, you cannot be envious of others and expect God to bless you. You must be thankful when you see God blessing others. It is possible that Cain did knew why God rejected his offering, however, he saw God’s acceptance of Abel’s offering as a reason for him to not only be envious but also a reason to kill him. Each person has his or her own course to run in this life. It is your duty to ask God why you are not experiencing abundance and not waste time being envious of others.

If we follow these key principles and exhibit contentment, showing our gratitude to God for what we have, no matter our current status in life, I am confident that God will bring us to a place of abundance that we have yet to experience.

I will end with Aaron's blessings, which God directed him to pray upon His people:

The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. (Num 6:24-26 KJV)

Stay blest!