Observations:
I asked myself after the salutation, what does Paul  do?
Paul does four things:
1. Paul writes, 'Grace to you from God our Father.'
2. Paul, writes, 'Grace to you from the Lord Jesus Christ.'
3. Paul writes, 'Peace to you from God our Father.'
4. Paul writes, 'Peace to you from the Lord Jesus Christ.'

Interpretations:
I asked myself the significance of what Paul did?
Paul could have begun his letter right away after the salutation to the Philippians but instead he wants to bless them with grace and peace from the One He has a personal relationship with who is also the Creator of the Universe. He wants the Philippians to know that the blessing of grace and peace is available to them too just as it is available to Him from God who He refers to as 'God our Father' emphasizing a son-Father personal relationship. He also acknowledges the Lordship of Christ where the grace and peace come from.

Implications:
I asked myself what are the implications for my own life?
Just as Paul blessed the Philippians in the Name of the Father and the Son, as He was led by the Holy Spirit, I too need to bless others whom God puts in my way. In this world of curses and sadness, it will be refreshing for others to be blessed by words and deeds as I depend on God, our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

When my focus is on the Lord Jesus and my desire is to bless others through words or deeds, He does provide a way. Everyone needs compassion & blessings and it is awesome that God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ can choose us through the Holy Spirit to bless others just as He chose Paul. I want to always be a blessing to others as my Lord and Savior provides me an opportunity. I hope you can be a blessing to others too.

I ask you now dear friend, when do you bless others in life?
Dear friend, if you bless others in your life when it is only convenient to you, you are missing out on blessing them when they need that blessing. We are not called to bless others at our convenience. Paul did not even do that. Paul blessed the Philippians with words of GRACE and PEACE while he was still in chains. We to  should take every opportunity to bless others that the Lord puts in our paths as we depend on God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ for those opportunities. You need not be a leader to bless others. You however need to be content with where the Lord Jesus placed you to bless others. If you are not content where you are then, you will be coveting what others have and you won't be in a mood to bless others.

Yesterday night, my sweetheart wife Chandra shared with me about how a sister in the Lord called her from India to acknowledge how much she was blessed by Chandra through her prayers and sharing of God's Word that had started when they were both in nursing school together. After that call, she was so overwhelmed with praise that the Lord would use her to bless others. In her own words, she said she is nothing without the Lord and all praise and glory should go to the Lord for her sister in Christ to experience a blessing through her. That call motivated her not to waste away the gifts that the Lord Jesus has empowered her with so she could be a blessing to others as the Lord uses her. Then my wife shared a testimony from her college years regarding this  friend. Hearing my wife share a testimony from her college years motivated me so much too to use the gifts the Lord Jesus has given me to bless others without giving up. Thank you Jesus.

She also shared that her desire and hearts longing was to be married to a pastor and said that she felt married to a pastor and was so thankful for the online ministry that the Lord Jesus has given me. I was really touched by my wife's words and exhortation because at that moment she was blessing me so much with encouragement and exhortation to continue to do what I was doing. She also expressed to me how happy she would be if we could do direct ministry again being involved in the lives of others by praying for them in a group, by sharing God's Word in a group, and encouraging them to pray and study God's Word.

That reminded me of what Brian, David, and I did last summer with the Pittsburgh Standard Investigates Jesus series. We became a blessing to an elder gentleman called Al who would come every week to be prayed for and be fed God's Word. Thank you Jesus.

I used to think that if I am in a leadership position then I will have opportunities to bless others because I will be facilitating the agenda. So, when I was removed from different leadership positions at different times in my life, I became very discouraged and wallowed in my misery. Sometimes I still thread that path but the Lord Jesus has used Pastor Hugo, Edwin, Marie, Kristen  (my small group leader at the time), and Calvin (my current small group leader) to remind me that blessing others can be done where we are at.

Marie told me a story about how her mom would pray for every single student that crossed her path everyday blessing them with prayers reaching Father God and that I can do the same when it comes to the students I come across in my job.

Blessing others does take a sacrifice and if we are not willing to sacrifice our time then we cannot bless others. Though Paul was shackled in chains in jail, he took every opportunity to share God's grace and peace with others to bless them. You can do that to where you are at.

Friend, you may not know who you will touch with the love of Christ until you  have a F.A.C.T check: Faithful, Available, Compatible, and Teachable to the Lord's calling to bless others as Pastor Hugo likes to say. This counseling advice was given to me when I was going through a hard time in my life. Regardless of what we go through, we can bless others. The most important way you can bless others is through your prayers and helping them to learn to pray to the Lord Jesus and receive His Word.

For that to happen, we need to know Jesus Christ as our Lord and Personal Savior first so we can bless others in the Name of Jesus Christ. It starts with Jesus Christ and not with us. Paul had a relationship with God, the Father, God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit before he started blessing others.

We too need that relationship if we do not already have it. When we have that blessed relationship with Christ, we can bless others leading them to the blessed Lord everyday, saving souls.

I love what Daniel & Amy  have done in the past. They made it a choice to have a guest room in their place to bless others who pass by.  To bless others does not have to be gigantic but can even be simple. Either way when it is done in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ for His honor and glory, ripple effects in the lives of others can be seen!

We live in a world filled with curses. Now is the moment to take time to send others a blessing in the Name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior whether it is through writing a letter, speaking over the phone, texting someone, or even personally meeting with them as the Lord Jesus provides opportunities.

He may want to use you to bless someone and save them. Take that opportunity friend just as my wife's friends life changed because my wife had taken the opportunity years ago in college to get up at 5:00 a.m. at the time to pray and study God's Word. Then, she would gather her friends in college together to have a prayer group encouraging each one to pray after she shared God's Word. One friend was hesitant to pray because she did not know how so my wife had written a prayer for her to pray during prayer time. That act years ago paid off in one friend's life who called to share with her yesterday what the Lord had begun in her life. Praise the Lord!

You may never know, at what point in time, what your act done in the Lord's Name can bring about in a person's life where they can feel blessed because you answered the call of the Lord to bless others in the Name of the Lord.

So, use the opportunities the Lord Jesus has given you to bless others for His Name's sake and you will be touching lives and souls for His Kingdom's sake.

May you come to bless others as our blessed Lord everyday saves souls! Amen!

"Blessed Lord Everyday Saves Souls! (B.L.E.S.S)"/"When do you B.L.E.S.S. in life?"  

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, thank you so much for loving us and dying for our sin. Thank you so much for coming back to life to save us, covering us in your precious cleansing blood. Oh Lord thanks for blessing us by your grace and peace. Help us to bless others as we depend on you Jesus. Lord, you have given us the greatest blessing in the Salvation you bestowed upon us by your grace. Help us to always receive your grace by acknowledging our sins before you who alone can redeem us and restore us showering upon us your blessings of Eternal life and Abundant life. Thank you so much Jesus. We ask thee to be our Lord and Personal Savior so when God looks at us, He sees you covering over our sin so His judgment will passover us. Please give us opportunities to bless others where you have placed us using your empowerment no matter how difficult and hurtful it may even be. Thanks Jesus. Thanks so much again Jesus. I want to be a blessing to others throughout the week. Help me Lord to do that. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!