DISTURBING BLESSINGS

Numbers 21:1-22:20; Luke 1:26-56; Psalm 57:1-11; Proverbs 11:9-11

 “But God told Balaam, ‘Do not go with them. You are not to curse these people, for they have been blessed!’”

 “Gabriel appeared to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!^’ Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. ‘Don’t be afraid, Mary,’ the angel told her, ‘for you have found favor with God!  You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!’”

“For your unfailing love is as high as the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.”

Not all blessings are created equal.  Many cause outright discomfiture! Raises are met with greater tax burdens.  Friends require attention.  Knowledge takes time and, often, unfortunate decisions from which we learn.  Empathy and compassion demand vulnerability.  To summarize, it’s pretty clear God does not necessarily see “blessings” the way we do.  To illustrate, Jesus’ idea of a great time appears to be servanthood.  We need to begin training ourselves to see blessings in terms of the Spirit’s perspective.

Who would think of a job loss, for example, as a blessing?  Sometimes, it isn’t.  Other times, though, it can be a release and an opportunity.  I have had detestable jobs where leaving seemed impossible or, at least, downright stupid under the circumstances.  One time, I actually prayed, “Lord, help me know what to do.”  Within a week or so, I was left with no choice; I was told I had become an “economic casualty.” I felt cursed and abandoned. Yet, I would never have gotten to this point without that adversity. So, blessing or curse?

I suspect that’s what Luke was getting at when he described Mary as confused and disturbed by Gabriel’s news.  A single, pregnant female in that day and age was not highly regarded, especially if her betrothed had nothing to do with it!  Had Joseph abandoned her, she had few options outside stoning or prostitution, hardly the kind of “blessing” one attributes to a loving God. But she was carrying the very Son of God! Still, it was not really until Mary heard Elizabeth’s affirmation that, suddenly, all the trials – past and future – looked different somehow.  Mary could not keep herself from bursting out in one of the most beautiful songs of praise ever recorded anywhere. Finally, she began to grasp the enormity of Jehovah’s ability to make everything work to good for those who love Him.  And the faith born of that experience sustained Mary all the way through the Cross.

What does it mean to be truly blessed?  Based on what the Lord told Balaam, it might even mean wandering forty years in the desert.  I propose a simpler explanation that fits all the circumstance of today’s readings: we are blessed any time we come more fully to depend and rely on the power of the Holy Spirit, however comfortable or uncomfortable that makes us.