Blessings for Your Family (Psalm 128:1-6) Mission Blessings

Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in obedience to him. Psalm 128:1-6 1 Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in obedience to him. 2 You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours. 3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table. 4 Yes, this will be the blessing for the man who fears the Lord. 5 May the Lord bless you from Zion; may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life. 6 May you live to see your children’s children— peace be on Israel. Today’s title is “Blessings for Your Family” Every family wats to be happy, especially in new year. Is your family happy? The realistic answer for the question is yes and no. Yes, our family is happy because we are filled with new hope with the new year. We hope the new year will be better than previous year in all the areas of life. We hope to be healthier, happier and richer in new year. We want to be better spiritually as well as physically. We have a plan to improve relationships within family, with other people, and with God. At the same time, we have serious concerns with the new year. The global and national atmospheres that surround us are not so favorable in many ways. We are still facing the pandemic that troubled the whole world for years. What is even worse is that we don’t know when it will be over yet. Every family is worried and scared if any of their family members get infected. It could easily spread to the rest of the family. Each family has financial concern which were negatively affected by the pandemic. Parents always have worries about the children but more so with the pandemic. Today’s psalm which is often called family hymn touches upon most of such concerns of a family. The it shows how our family could receive God’s blessings on those family concerns. The psalm declares “ You will eat the fruit of your labor blessings and prosperity will be yours.”. In other words, it says that your family will be financially secure and even prosperous. It also says , “ Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table.” This is a picture of lovely relationship between husband and wife, and between parents and children. It declares the blessings and peace of the community and the nations we live in. Without the peace and security of the community we live in, our family life will also be restless. In this way, this psalm shows that God knows all the various needs of our family. But how can we actually enjoy all these blessings and prosperities? The answer is rather simple and clear. “Fear the Lord and walk in obedience to Him”. Whoever fears the Lord as He should be feared and walks in obedience to Him will see such blessings and provisions of the Lord poured upon their family. I pray that all of your family have such a blessed year. Amen!