Being a blessing

"To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted,

and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil or insult for insult,

but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose

 that you might inherit a blessing. 1 Peter 3:8 & 9

This past week at ladies bible study we were discussing the idea of being a blessing. This is something that has seemed a little obscure to me. I am quite familiar with God blessing me. I see it happen over and over and over again! He gives to me abundantly in so many ways: love, salvation, family and friends, beauty around me, health, all that I need physically (plus way more!) and so much more.

 The idea of me being a blessing to others is not one that I have thought about as much however. I thought it might help if I looked up the word in the dictionary. Here is some of what is said under "blessing":  Approval, encouragement. A thing conducive to happiness or welfare. So I am getting the idea of bringing happiness, encouragement and help to others.

   The next step is to think about how I can practically do that. And who I really need to work at blessing. So on to the practical steps:

I can be a blessing by:

• My attitude. A good, sweet and loving attitude is certainly going to be a blessing to others especially compared to being grumpy, uptight or angry.
• My actions. I can bless others by helping them in however they need to be helped. I want to be on the lookout for little or big ways that I can serve others. This can be done for my husband, for my kids or even just opening a door for somebody at a store that has their hands full.
• My words. Our words have a lot of strength in them. With them we can easily tear down or buildup. Encourage or discourage. I want to have words that bring others a blessing.

Who do I need to bless?

• My husband. Ken has high priority in one that I need to bless.
• My children.
• My church family.
• Friends and family.
• Strangers.

Sometimes it can be just a smile or a kind word. Other times it can be a bit more involved and sometimes it is a life long project. But one thing I know it is a "project" that I want to work on. I truly do want to be a blessing in others lives. How about you?