Mensa Otabil - The Lord's Blessings
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God blesses us in many ways. In Ezekiel chapter 34:26, He says, «I’ll make them and the places all around my hill a blessing, and I will call showers to come down in their season; there shall be showers of blessing.» Many of us are familiar with the last phrase: «there shall be showers of blessing.» There is a whole hymn with that chorus repeated many times.
Now, ancient Israel was an agrarian society, which means that they lived on the land, taking care of their animals and flocks. The imagery of a farmer with his crops and a shepherd with his sheep appears very often in the Bible, as that was how people related to life. God presents Himself with these images to remind them of things they can relate to and work with. Here, God says that He will make them a blessing. But how is He going to make them a blessing? He says He will send them showers of blessing.
Showers of blessing-rain comes in many ways. It can come as a thunderstorm, which is what we experience much in this part of the world, and sometimes it creates floods. What is supposed to be a blessing can cause so much havoc, and people can lose their homes. But showers come very softly; they still make the plants grow, but they don’t disturb the soil or uproot trees and destroy people’s homes. God says, «I’m going to bless you,» but in this blessing, there will be showers. In other words, the blessing of God is going to come softly, gently, and targeted to specific areas of your life.
So when He says that He’s going to give you showers, don’t expect that there will be abundance all of a sudden, that your barns will be overflowing. There are blessings from God like that, but many times, the blessings of God are like showers. He sends you a soft reminder of His presence, His goodness, His love, and His mercy. It just falls gently on you and gives you the opportunity to grow and blossom. All of a sudden, things begin to work in your life; there is nothing violent happening, but a gentle outpouring of God’s mercy.
May the Lord send you showers of blessing. May His blessings fall softly upon you, and may His goodness fall softly upon you, drenching you without you knowing that you are saturated with blessing. The second thing God says about the showers of blessing is that they will fall in the right season. You know there is nothing like rain in the wrong season; the rain has to fall at the right time. Otherwise, what was supposed to be a blessing can become a disaster. If it’s harvest time and you want your corn to dry, rain won’t help your corn-it can actually cause it to rot.
So God says, «I’m going to send you those showers of blessing in their right season, at the right time when you need it. I will gently pour my grace upon you. I will gently pour my blessing upon you. I will gently guide you. I’ll lead you.» That is one of the things we have to trust God for: even when we don’t seem to be aware, when there doesn’t seem to be much happening, a lot is happening when we don’t see it. God is doing it in a gentle way, quietly. You may not see it.
As you go about your day, receive the showers of blessing. Receive God’s mercy. Receive God’s love. Receive the showers of guidance. Receive the showers of favor. It may not be somebody giving you something very big at the time, but little by little, here a little, very little, all those blessings add up, and you are soaked in the goodness of the Lord. May the Lord cause you to overflow in the showers of His blessing.
Let us pray. Say with me, «Heavenly Father, I thank You for the showers of blessing You sent to me in the right season. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.» Well, I’ll catch you again tomorrow. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you.