What Blessings Look Like

G-d encouraged my heart with another song that struck a chord within me because I've had thoughts and questions much like the composer's in this song.  The song, "Blessings" by Laura Story was birthed out of struggles and questions she and her husband have dealt with during his illness.  I think we can all relate.  Psalm 23:4 says that "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death..." - The psalmist did not say "IF" I walk through  - he said "EVEN THOUGH" I walk through..... This verse tells me that all of us will endure difficult things in this life but the good news is and the "blessing" is we will not walk through them alone.  And notice how verse 4 refers to the death as "the shadow of death."  I haven't studied this passage at length to see what the Hebrew implies but I do know that death from this life is simply entrance to our eternal life with Messiah if we believe.  There aren't enough blog postings available for me to exhaust the number of promises G-d has for those that believe. 

Blessings come in many different ways and not always the way we expect.  Most of the time our perspective is too limited and our flesh longs for something different than what we have.  You can listen to this song on YouTube - here are the lyrics.

 Blessings - by Laura Story
We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You're near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
And we cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe

Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You're near
And what if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know the pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home
It's not our home

Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You're near
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can't satisfy
And what if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are Your mercies in disguise