We all like to receive blessings. Most of the time when we think of getting blessed, we think of receiving some tangible item like money, clothes, a big tax refund, a raise on our jobs, and so forth. But that's not the kind of blessing we're referring to here. Those are great, but there's a blessing that's far more valuable than materials things. It's the blessing of words of important people in our lives (see Gen. 18:17-19).

Throughout scripture we see fathers such as Abraham, Isaac, Joseph and others laying their hands on their children and pronouncing blessings over them. They would declare their prosperity and greatness...in some cases before there was any evidence of it in their lives.

There's something very dynamic that takes place in the heart of a child when he or she receives a spoken blessing from their parents, but especially their father.

When Jewish fathers in the Bible pronounced their blessings, it was usually at the time of their death. How terrible to have to wait a whole lifetime to find out what your father thought of you!

My Father's Blessing
I was an only child growing up in a home where I was dearly loved, and yet my father (who was a strong-headed German) more often than not, used stern, and many times harsh commands to motivate me. Because he was raised in the same way, frowns and blunt words were his primary way of communicating.

As a child I got mixed signals about how my dad felt about me. I tried hard to please him and make him proud of me, but I was not always sure how I was scoring, even though I knew I was loved.

When it was time to graduate from high school, I remember talking with my parents about what to do with my future - where I should go to college and what career choices I should make. I'll never forget the words of my father, because it was one of the only times in my young life that I knew for sure how he felt about me. He said, "Becky, you can do anything!"

It wasn't said in the sense that you have the freedom to choose just anything you want to do. Rather it was in the context of "with all the gifts and abilities you have inside of you, you can do anything you put your mind to and be successful!"

Those words rang in my heart for days. My father really believed I had the ability to do anything! I can't tell you what that did to my confidence and self-esteem. From that point on, everything I set my hand to has truly prospered, and that has included a wide variety of things.

There was something about that verbal blessing from my father that propelled me forward.

This article is part 1 of The Power of Blessing Your Children. Part 2 is entitled Grand Saint of God. Part 3 is entitled God Blessed His Son.

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