Showers of Blessing
15 And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven
the second time,
16 And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because
thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son:
17 That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will
multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the
sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;
18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be
blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
(Genesis 22:15-18)
Blessings are sought by most, and
claimed by many, most choosing to perceive blessings through the eyes of
mankind, rather than through the eyes of God.
Today’s title comes once again from
the old hymnbook filled with praise and supplication to our Lord.
Written by El Nathan and James
McGranahan at some point prior, it was copyrighted and renewed in 1912 by Mrs.
Audie McGranahan.
“There shall be showers of blessing,
this is the promise of love;
There shall be seasons refreshing,
Sent from the Savior above.
There shall be showers of blessing,
Precious reviving again;
Over the hills and the valleys, Sound
of abundance of rain.
There shall be showers of blessing,
Send them upon us O Lord;
Grant to us now a refreshing, Come and now honor Thy Word.
There shall be showers of blessing,
O, that today they might fall;
Now as to God we’re confessing Now as
on Jesus we call.
Showers of blessing, Showers of
blessing we need;
Mercy drops round us are falling, but
for the showers we plead.”
Showers of blessing, a wonderfully
simple and honorable prayer, offered through song in just about each and every
church I have ever attended…a very valid request that is responded to
continually and positively by God!
That positive response is quite often
unseen by the ones making the request, not because of any lack of response, but
because of the way in which that response is given.
The list of the blessings given us
begins with the very first breath of life, and continues through to that last
breath that is given as well.
Too often blessings being requested
come, not from that intended list to select from, but from another list offered
in its place that steal all intended blessings as temptations are offered in
their stead.
A wonderful starting place on that
list is given by the One able to deliver on the promise of blessings:
Matthew 5 King James Version (KJV)
5 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain:
and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven.
4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after
righteousness: for they shall be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the
children of God.
10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness'
sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you,
and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in
heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
Blessings take the form of what is
intended for us, and are constantly available to those who seek them, if they
are willing to accept them as they are given.
The most precious blessing given to
any, yet available to all willing to receive it is the Promise of Love spoken
of in that song.
That promise goes unbroken, remaining
equally strong today through the auspices of that LOVE, God himself, Whose
choice of delivery was through the sacrifice of His own Son so that no further
sacrifice would ever be needed, or be sufficient to deliver the promise of
eternal life, as was given through the resurrection of that Son.
In times of trial, and temptation, at
the top of the mountain, and in the deepest crevasse of the valley, the mercy
drops have fallen through the blood given by our Savior, bringing showers of
blessing to all who will only recognize and accept the grace delivered and meet
the requirement of faith to receive the blessing offered us.
There is no other blessing that
compares in any way to that already given, but for the showers we still must
plead continually, in faith, believing the Promise and meeting the requirements
set forth for all other blessings.
Amen and Amen
CMc
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