Blessed are You

Blessed Are You

When Jesus was teaching this message to his disciples and the townspeople, everything was not fantastic in their lives. They were mostly slaves. They were under the thumb of the Romans. They were scrimping to get by, being taxed to death, and taken advantage of, even by their own people. They were beaten down by the rules of the Pharisees that proclaimed them worthy or unworthy. Righteousness was a long list of rules and regulations. I imagine a large number of the Israelite community was disheartened and discouraged as they sat on that mountainside and waited for Jesus to teach them.

Jesus knew his people, and he knew what they needed. Jesus gathered them and gave them the greatest possible gift. He gave them Hope. The feeling of Hope oozes out of every word of the Beatitudes. In Jesus’ words today, we find acceptance, comfort, encouragement, joy, promise, and, most of all Hope. It was a Hope that they would be with and know God. Jesus was telling them that whatever the difficulty or pain that burdened them, God’s love was more prominent. They just needed to believe. They needed to Hope.

The most beautiful part of our scriptures is that they are not stagnant. They are the Living Word of God. The words of those beatitudes are as alive and hope-filled for us today as they were for the Israelites two millennia ago.

Today many of us are also discouraged with an illness that we cannot control that has taken the lives of more than 110,000 of us. We worry about the economic situation in our country. We are frustrated with trying to keep small businesses alive. We watch those we love, struggle to get their families from day-to-day.

In so many ways, we are like the Israelites sitting on the side of a mountain. As my grandmother would say, it feels like life has “slapped us up-side the head.”. As individuals, we need Hope today as much as the Israelites did sitting on that mountainside with Jesus. If we do not personally feel that need, we know people who do. And we can be assured our society craves Hope perhaps more than anything else.

Today let’s accept the gift that Jesus is offering us. I want to encourage you to take a moment with me and silence your heart and hear the words of Hope that Jesus wants to whisper in your ear. Just be still and as you read hear the voice of God.

“Blessed are you when you feel overwhelmed with bills, employment issues, family needs, illness, and uncertainty for yours is the Kingdom of Heaven.

Blessed are you when you mourn, the losses in life, jobs, relationships, friends, and those you count on. You will find comfort, and your tears will flow directly into the loving heart of God.

Blessed are you when you are meek, feeling unable to break out of the pain that keeps you down, fragile, and breakable. God is your strength, place your hand in His.

Blessed are you when you hunger and thirst for righteousness for those who are marginalized. Together you will enter the Kingdom of God.

Blessed are you when you are merciful, not hesitating to embrace those who suffer. You have the compassion of God deep in your soul.

Blessed are you when your heart is pure and open to the Word of God. For you will see God every day in everyone.

Blessed are you when you are a peacemaker in a society where divisions and differences often cause violence in word and deed, for then you will be recognized as a Child of God.

Blessed are you when you are persecuted for standing up for what is right and just, most especially when they cannot stand for themselves. The Kingdom of heaven is yours.”

Be still. Be still in God’s presence and allow Him to soothe your soul and fill you full to overflowing with Hope. God is here for you. God is here for you, personally. Allow Him to shower you with His love today and every day, but most especially today. This is a Beatitudes day.

In God’s Unending Love,

Gwen