HOW TO HAVE A BLESSED LIFE?

This is still the doubt of many people who have already had a true encounter with God.

Several men in the Bible were called GOOD OR JUST, for having practiced justice, for having feared God, for having loved God and for having been faithful to God.

Deuteronomy 10:12 And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

And the reward for these attitudes has always been God's abundant blessing.

Deuteronomy 11:
13 So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today — to love the Lord your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul —
14 then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil.
15 I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.

See some examples, among many, of righteous and blessed men, who were mentioned in the Bible:

JOB:

Job 1:1 In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil.

Job 42:10 After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.

ENOCH:

Genesis 5:24 Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.

ZECHARIAH AND ISABEL:

Luke 1:
5 In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron.
6 Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly.

Luke 1:
13 But the angel said to him: Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.
14 He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth.

CORNELIUS:

Acts of the Apostles 10:
1 At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment.
2 He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly.
3 One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, “Cornelius!”
4 Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked. The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.

Acts of the Apostles 11:
13 He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter.
14 He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.
15 As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning.

As you can see, God has always honored just and faithful men and answered their prayers and if God answered their prayers, it is because these men prayed and God heard them.

The power of God and the power of his Word are unquestionable, because the Word of God is the truth and if we follow it, God's promises of blessings will also follow us.

Read the verses below carefully:

Psalms 37:
23 The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him;
24 though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.
25 I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.

The verses above from Psalm 37 show what will happen to you, if you carefully observe God's will:

• Your plans and projects will be confirmed by God.

• You will be supported by the strong hand of the Lord and even if you have to fight a lot and run out of strength at some point, the Lord will not leave you prostrate, rather He will lift you up and make you stand, being supported by his hand.

• You will not be destitute and will never need to beg for your needs.

Therefore, if you are fair and faithful, you do not have depression, you do not prostrate yourself in the face of difficulties and struggles, rather you get up and remain standing always and all your needs are met by God, for the Lord God will always be the your supplier.

Be careful, because there are many ways that lead to perdition and few walk the paths that lead to salvation.

Matthew 7:
13 Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

The Lord bless you and keep you.

Pastor Val Martins