The Blessings are Coming . . .
I love the ocean. I enjoy the smell of the ocean, the song of the seagulls, and the sound of waves crashing upon the shore. Nothing feeds my soul like the ocean.
Last week it was still warm so I went to the beach.
I watched one wave after another come towards me. Then I would look deep into the sea and watch the waves take form out of the vastness of the water.
Then it came to me, “Waves of Blessing.”
The waves keep coming. They never stop. Even in the distant expanse of the ocean, another wave rises.
The Waves of Blessing come towards us every day!
- The blessing of another day
- The blessing of being alive
- The blessing of your dog, cat (and maybe a hamster)
- The blessing of opportunities
- The blessings of love from your friends
- The blessing of watching your children grow
- The blessing of new friendships
- The blessing of singing, dancing, and a good nap
- The blessing of traveling and seeing new things
- The blessing of serving the world
Wave after wave after wave of blessing comes to you each day but so often they are missed.
Here are a couple of reasons why you might miss the Waves of Blessing.
1. You lose sight of beauty and only focus on the hard things of life.
The hard things in life hit you hard. You can’t deny them. It tears at your heart. Grief is a real thing and commands your focus.
See, I don’t worry about you missing the hard things, but you can miss the blessings.
Hard and terrible things have a way of trumping your ability to see the blessing.
2. You miss the blessing because you are focused on a Wave of Blessing that has passed.
Imagine you are standing in the water with your back towards the ocean. You watch a wave pass and disappear into the sand. You keep staring at the sand. With your back towards the ocean, you can’t see the waves that are coming. This doesn’t change the fact that the waves are there. You just can’t see them because of what you are focusing on.
The wave of grief can be all-consuming.
Examples of this include:
- A divorce.
- A family member passes.
- A season of life changes.
- You lose a job.
- A friendship ends.
3. You stop expecting the Waves of Blessings to come.
If you don’t expect the blessings to come then you won’t look for them.
But what if you really knew, I mean down to your toes knew that the Waves of Blessing are coming towards you?
I believe it would change everything. First of all, you would turn around and start looking for the Waves of Blessing.
When I was in High School I liked to surf. (Maybe that was because the cute guys were in the water) I would sit on my board staring at the ocean. I would look for the big wave. At first, all I would see was a deep blue expanse of water. But if I kept looking I would see it. Out of nowhere, a wave would rise out of the water. Because I was looking for it I was ready. I would start paddling towards the wave. I would put all my energy towards catching the wave.
Start looking for the Waves of Blessing today. Keep looking. Expect it. Anticipate it. Notice it. Get Ready. The waves are coming!
At first, you might not see anything, but keep looking.
If you are breathing then you are blessed. Every day you live on this planet is a blessing. To love is a blessing. Our friends, kids, dogs, and cats are a blessing. A good cup of coffee is a blessing. The hummingbird I saw this morning is a blessing. Even our difficulties and disappointments are blessings in disguise.
Start looking today. There is a wave and another wave and another wave of blessing coming toward you.
Keep a journal. Write down all the treasures that the Waves of Blessing have washed on shore.