Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfil his promises to her!
Luke 1:45
“God bless you”, “Have a blessed day,” “Blessed to be a blessing,” the list goes on! You’ve probably heard one of those blessing-related words today, this week or sometime this year. Quite possibly, the most frequently used word in the Christian’s vocabulary is blessed. It’s even common among unbelievers to describe themselves as “blessed.” Some people think of blessed as a spiritual term for “good fortune,” like when we receive something good, the desired outcome, or an exceptional comfort. But what does it really mean to be blessed?
The Greek word often translated as “blessed” is makarios, which means “fortunate,” “happy,” “enlarged,” or “lengthy.” Makarios is used in the Septuagint (a translation of the Old Testament into the Greek language), and the New Testament to define the kind of happiness that comes from receiving favour from God. Consequently, the word can also be translated as “favoured.” In the New Testament, it usually carries the meaning of being “blessed by God.” Mary, the mother of Jesus, was “blessed among women” (Luke 1:42–45, 48), it was the Lord God who had blessed and favoured her.
Although Mary was blessed, the direction and trajectory of her life probably suggested otherwise. For instance, she became pregnant at a very young age without any logical explanation, thereby aborting her dream marriage, being subject to ridicule and worst still facing the possibility of a public execution according to the Mosaic law. The child would later be delivered in the lowest of places and his life being under threat leaving Mary to constantly be on the run- That’s too much trouble for a life declared as blessed, don’t you think?
We are likely to think this way because as humans, we have a faulty perspective of what it means to be blessed, for us to be blessed is to be materially endowed! While material blessings are certainly included in God’s favour, the Bible ascribes a much fuller meaning to the word blessed and Elizabeth simplified it in one sentence “Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfil his promises to her!” A blessed life is a life of faith! It is the same reason Abraham is considered blessed because he believed God against all odds.
The one who is blessed trusts in God’s love, no matter what. Blessed speaks of our inner state of well-being, the prosperity of our souls in Christ. Blessedness comes from unhindered fellowship with God the Father through our Lord Jesus. To be blessed is to experience the full impact of God’s presence in our lives now and for all eternity.
It doesn’t matter what you are going through today, you are still blessed.
PRAYER
Dear Lord, thank you for your grace and mercy on me. You called me blessed and that is what I am. I refuse to let my circumstance convince me otherwise. Help me Lord to truly obey your word in my life so that I can be truly blessed in my generation.
