I wish I understood more about blessings before I married. In fact when I was doing my baptismal studies. Because I have come to understand that God speaks blessings to us, His children. And Jesus did the same, in fact he taught us to bless in beautitudes of Matthew. To bless and seek the good in others instead of saying they are "being naughty". Perhaps the stigma against Christians from the world's perspective would be different and I believe there would be less contentious issues in the church too. Thus I see that everyone with or without children of their own, young and old should be more focused on blessing others than to look at the correcting angle of people in close association.... in fact it's very easy to bless a shop assistant for great service than it is to stop and do a formal prayer over them... both actions have the same out come. The person feels loved and cherished. What if we looked for good in the person we find hard to get along with whom we meet each week in church....and bless them for it and do this regularly.. over time what do you think will happen...so I conclude. We are all God's children.

What did Jesus do.... He had no children of His own flesh and blood....

You are very welcome Nanette. Enjoy your time with your grandchildren, and children too. Leave them a great blessing...

Yes, Cathy, society does seem to swing back and forth sometimes and it's not always easy to adapt. But the good thing about the Bible is that it conveys the same information century after century. Different generations may emphasize one principle or another more, but the Bible's true balance never changes.

I don't have children to bless... except my nieces and nephew which I don't see real often - but I think these principles could be used on others I come in contact with. Everyone can benefit from encouragement - letting them know you believe in them, etc...

I think as a child I mostly just deflected compliments or minimized them because I thought it was proud to just accept them with thanks or that we were supposed to give God the glory and not take it to ourselves. I think sometimes parents think they will foster pride in their children if they affirm them too much. I know I remember hearing that you don't want to let a child know how cute you think their antics are because it will make them proud or make them try to be cute to get attention.

When I first read this post the verses you quoted ( Numbers 6:23-2723 Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them, 24 The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: 25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: 26 The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. 27 And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them. ) complimented a verse I had recently memorized ( Psalms 42:11Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God. ) or rather more specifically its near cousin ( Psalms 42:5Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance. ) and started a train of thought that led to a wonderful scripture meditation session with many great connections to other verses - it was hard to stop and go to bed! Thanks for sharing God's word - God's word is blessing!

One question Dan : I'm a little confused on where to find the old/former Monday memos after the new site reorganization... is there an easy way to find them that I have overlooked?

Glad this was a blessing Lisa! Always good to hear from you.

Praise God for great Grandma's, Jackie! One of the main reasons I'm a believer today is a praying grandma. :)

So many great testimonies. And for those that had more difficult experiences, it is encouraging to know others stepped in to provide that support we needed. Truly God takes us up when mother and father are not there for us. Psalms 27:10When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up..

I love your post Deanna, about your child saying he felt you saw him as a saint, even though he wasn't quite there yet. So important to see our children through God's eyes, isn't it? And your quote about gentle loving drawing our children, vs harshness chasing them away--so true. Would love the actual quote if anyone stumbles across it.

My parents were not affectionate at all. My mother grew up without affectionate love from her parents as well as my Dad. I always knew that my parents loved me, I just wanted to feel loved!

I grew up without much love, nor encouragement, but my Granny was very dear to me. Her words of wisdom and encouragement helped me to move forward and upward in life.
One of the great blessings I got from my mother is that she taught me that tithes was the most important financial thing in life. It did not matter how much money you make, tithes had to come first. That was then and still is a blessing to me today.

My aunt was the one who showed such interest in me, as well as my
children. I knew when I talked to her, she really cared and loved to hear all the stories. We became so close, and I miss her, like a Mother.
I try and spend time each week with my grandchildren. We simply play
together each week, and we are there for the special events.

Carole

My father did not like contact and complained that when we kissed his cheek we were kissing his ear, but we were never close to his ear. He never showed love during or after disciplineing us. He treated us like the enemy. He didn't tell me he loved me until I was 37 years old. My mother, on the other hand, always kissed us, hugged us, and frequently told us she loved us.

When I had children of my own, I made sure to show them love through expression, encouragement, and through telling them I loved them, especially after disciplining them...I would always express love and forgiveness. I poured blessings of encouragement upon them that they could become any profession they desired, and that I would support them, as long as the profession did not degrade them as a human being and child of God. I also passed a blessing of them not engaging in my battles and treat others poorly, nor to be angry with them. I always told them that my battles are not their battles, thus freeing them from a potential bondage of hatred and evil surmising.

All three of my children became what they love - a hairdresser, a fireman, and a school teacher, and they are all caring, compassionate individuals with forgiving hearts.
For this, I praise my Heavenly Father.