One Gracious Blessing After Another

“From the fullness of His grace we have all received one blessing after another.” (John 1:16 NIV)

This verse has grabbed my attention this morning. I have come across it several times over the last few days, so it must be something I need to pay attention to.

Depending on the translation of the Bible you are reading, the verse might be rendered a little differently. Grace upon grace. Blessing upon blessing. One gracious blessing after another. I especially like the last one, from the New Living Translation. One gracious blessing after another.

That’s so true, isn’t it? We are showered daily with blessings from God. One gracious blessing after another.

Too often we fix our attention on the less-than-we-would-like-them-to-be situations in our lives. And don’t we all have some of those? The bills we are having trouble paying. The pounds we can’t seem to lose. The car that needs repair. The water heater that needs replacing. Illness. Relationships that are in trouble. The frustrations of daily living. The list could go on and on, because life is full of “stuff” that is not exactly how we would like it to be. We don’t all face the same challenges, but we all do face challenges.

Equally true, we are all showered daily with one gracious blessing after another, if we would only take time to notice.

Friendship. Family. Laughter. Sunshine. Rain. The smell of freshly mowed grass. Coffee. Good books. Good conversation. Good food. Strawberries and peaches and watermelon. Summer. The list could go in.

My list would certainly include the weekend with family. Good medical care. The 49 years of marriage we are celebrating next week.

One gracious blessing after another.

How about you? Have you stopped to count your blessings today?

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits,” (Psalm 103:1-2)