What comes to mind when you hear the word "blessing"? God's definition of blessing and how he delivers it to his people is quite likely very different from what you may expect. We all desire to be blessed, but the path to receiving the Lord's blessing is not always pleasureable - and sin is its greatest obstacle. But God uses the consequence of sin, the trials and the storms in our lives to bring us to our knees in brokenness and repentance. That's when we seek him with genuine, surrendered hearts and that's what He loves. As we draw near to him, we find mercy, grace and his presence and therein is the blessing - God himself.
Hebrews 13:7 teaches us to ‘remember your leaders...imitate their faith'. The call to leadership in the church is one of great responsibility. Leaders are...