“Blessed is everyone that feareth the Lord, and walketh in His ways. When thou eatest the labors of thine hands, thou shalt be blessed, and it shall be well with thee” (Psalm 128:1,2, Geneva Bible).
Carefully note that the blessings for “fearing the Lord” and “walking in His ways” are manifested in the most ordinary means: Work-paycheck-eat.
We give thanks, since we are working for, buying, and eating food “which God hath created to be received with giving thanks of them which believe and know the truth” (1 Timothy 4:3).
Two observations:
• “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). Those in Christ are to give all things a countercultural significance by pointing not to themselves, but to our Father Who is in heaven. This practice is not just doxological (an act focused on openly giving glory to God in a corporate setting), but should be doctrinal and catechetical (teaching): “Prayer, with thanksgiving...must be made in the name of the Son, by the help of the Spirit, and according to His will [it is trinitarian, thus uniquely Christian; see Ephesians 5:18,20]. It must be made with understanding, reverence, humility, fervency, faith, love, and perseverance; and corporate prayer must be made in a known language” (Baptist Confession of Faith 1689, 22.3).
• Don’t let the convenience of quickly-acquired food so streamline the process of eating that this “blessing” (Psalm 128:1,2) just becomes a necessary process in our pointlessly over-busy schedules (where, in our efforts to cram more importance into our day, we marginalize heaven-pointing blessings like sitting down to eat with family in the celebration of the daily blessings of God).
Church, don't get dragged along in the current of the mundane with the world. Instead, may we be those who celebrate, teach, and bring the mundane into the context of heavenly glory even in the work-paycheck-eat cycle. This is blessing.
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