“To bless is to strap people into God’s love. People only dare greatly when they feel like they’re ultimately safe. And they only feel safe when they are unconditionally loved. . . . We need to bless others so they’ll know that they’re strapped into God’s love and ours.”- Alan Wright
“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”- 1 John 4:18 (ESV)
In Chapter 4 (“Blessed to Be Secure”) of The Power to Bless, Alan Wright tells about the time his local Christian station, Joy FM, asked him to represent their radio network. The event? The ‘Faster Pastor’ Race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.
However, the pastors raced school buses, not cars. In addition, as Pastor Wright approached his bus, he noticed all the scrapes and dents. And then a race official strapped Alan into a five-point harness under a roll bar. So, at that point, Pastor Wright figured he’d survive. Thus, feeling secure, he put the petal to the metal.
Therefore, the first gift of the Ephraim and Manasseh blessing involves imparting a sense of permanent belonging. The assurance of full acceptance. No pretense necessary. Hence, Pastor Wright explains:
“When we pretend to be what others want us to be in order to feel accepted, we settle for a stolen blessing like Jacob. But God longs for us to feel the exhilaration of being wanted regardless of our performance. That’s what makes blessing so countercultural and so freeing — when we bless others we’re letting them know that they don’t have to posture or pretend anymore.”
The world, Alan counsels, only wants wants you if you perform. But God wants you – period! And when you bless others, you adopt them into your heart. You strap them into God’s love and yours.
Finally, in blessing others you help them envision how much God’s always wanted them. Also, you remind them how far God’s traveled to claim them.
Today’s question: How do you strap people into God’s love? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “Spiritual orphans in need of blessing”
