Be Still - February 7, 2023

James 1: 17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. (NIV)

All the good things of life are God’s to give or withhold.*

In a blog entitled, “The One Thing Christians Should Stop Saying,” the author proposes that our material blessings are not what make us blessed. I agree that it is wrong to think of God as a “wish-granting fairy who spends his days randomly bestowing cars and cash upon his followers.”* Does God not love the wretchedly poor people in Third World Countries or the parents whose children are sick or rebellious? Of course he does. But is it wrong for me to be thankful for the luxuries and comforts I have? Am I just lucky? 

The writer of the article points to the Beatitudes (Matthew 5: 3-12) for Jesus’ viewpoint on what it means to be blessed. I believe Jesus was introducing a revolutionary new worldview, not scolding us for being happy when we have stuff and things are going our way. 

So what are we to make of James’ pronouncement that every good and perfect gift is from the Father? Perhaps we need to define “good” and “perfect.” Maybe we don’t understand what James means by “gift.” He may be speaking of spiritual gifts and not referring to earthly “blessings” at all. 

I may scratch my head over these concepts for awhile longer, but here is some food for thought: 

• “The ultimate goodness of any gift must be measured on an eternal scale. Something that may seem to be only good (such as winning money in a lottery) may in fact be turned to our destruction.”* 
• “Every good and perfect gift” may not be things. 
• Blessings often come disguised as troubles – refer to the Beatitudes. And consider these words of a Chinese Christian: “Jesus loved me so much that he sent me to prison.”* 
• We should view our earthly blessings as opportunities to practice benevolence.* 

Finally, whether you consider yourself blessed, lucky, or neither, remember this: “Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 5: 19, 20)

Luck is not as random as you think. Before that lottery ticket won the jackpot, someone had to buy it.*