PRAYER + PRAISE
A Father's Blessing
- Adam Cole // June 20, 2010
By the God of your father who will help you, And by the Almighty who will bless you with blessings of heaven above, Blessings of the deep that lies beneath, Blessings of the breasts and of the womb. May the blessings of your father surpass the blessings of the ancient mountains, reaching to the heights of the eternal hills. —Genesis 49:25-26
The act of ‘passing on a blessing’ is a special rite of passage for fathers and their sons in the Old Testament. Abraham passed his blessing to Isaac, who in turn passed it to Jacob (after he had deceived his brother Esau), and then Jacob spreads that blessing to his 12 sons and the two sons of Joseph as well. This act of passing on a blessing, symbolizes an intimate bond between father and son, one sealed and brought to complete fruition in the blessing moment just before a father’s death (as we see in Genesis).
Though each one received a different blessing, Jacob ensured that each of his 12 son’s was given something, that each came into his presence in order for him to foretell what was to come of their lives. Joseph, who was noted as Jacob’s favorite early on (and drew the scorn of his brothers to the point where they sold him into slavery because of it), is said to have been the benefactor of the greatest blessing; his blessing is one that includes all the wonders of the world. In light of Joseph’s blessing and all blessings of Jacob’s children, it is amazing to realize the blessing of our Heavenly Father can instill in each of us in the same way—and how He uses our earthly fathers to put us on a path to fulfill the reality of that blessing.
In the Old Testament, the process of passing on a blessing was like a supernatural act of sorts, but blessing children should be something that all fathers should do for their kids, not just at the end of life but periodically. It is as simple as recognizing when they do something good, recognizing their talents and skills and encouraging them in that pursuit. Kids want to see that their Dad cares. Put simply: to care is to bless.
Praise: That He empowers and inspires father’s to be conduits of His great blessings.
Prayer: That the fathers of this world embody their role and grant blessings to their children, to love and to cherish them as God loves each of us.
Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father, we celebrate you on this day, as we seek to celebrate you each day, more and more. The earthly relationships that you have created for us are complex and intricate; you have given us Father-Son/Daughter relationships, and asked us to follow Your example. While we can never match Your great love, may we seek to display that love and Your inherent blessings as much as we can. Work in each of us, Lord, so that we may be great earthly fathers, as You are to us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.