Title: Two Blessings of Faith
Gospel of John (89) Two blessings of faith (John 15:6-7)
1. It will be a useful life
Through the parable of the ‘vine and branches’, Jesus says, “If you do not abide in Jesus, your life becomes useless; on the contrary, if you abide in Jesus, your life becomes useful” (verse 6). Let your blessing be a blessing to others. If my blessing does not benefit others, it is not a real blessing. How unhappy is it when you succeed, but when others say, “Those people are useless!”? When you receive a blessing, receive the blessing that others will say, “That person is a very useful person!”
Don't be successful with the goal of bragging and show off, succeed with the goal of helping more people. The real blessing lies in “how much did you share?” rather than “what did you get?” A happy life will never come from greed and selfishness. God remembers only what He gave. In the blessing graph recorded in heaven, there is no record of “What did I receive?”, only “How much did I share?” Selfishness makes the rich unhappy, but sharing brings happiness to the poor.
A poor father worked hard and raised three daughters in middle school and one son in middle school. However, I never wore shoes because I was studying children. One day, my third daughter in middle school makes a decision. “I have to give my dad a pair of shoes.” But since I didn't have any money, I walked to school for an hour every day to save money for my car and buy my father's shoes. The strange thing is that even though I walked that long road, it wasn't hard, but my heart was filled with joy.
One day, a boy was walking down the street in front of me. It was his younger brother. my sister asks. “No, why are you walking without a car?” My brother answers. "sister! I want to help buy daddy's shoes too.” So, my brother saved 10,000 won and my sister 40,000 won to buy my dad's shoes. That joy and happiness will never be forgotten.
Life becomes useful when you sacrifice what you have to share. Trust also grows when you take the inconvenience for others. Therefore, always pay close attention to missions and salvation. Faith is not a 'tool to satisfy desire', but a 'tool to distribute blessings'. When you follow the inspiration with such a holy vision and a heart to share what you have for those in need, your spiritual height will increase and your blessing will also increase.
2. Receive answers as you pray
When Jesus promises the blessing of receiving answers as we pray, he says two things as a prerequisite for that. It is “to abide in Jesus” and “to abide in the Word” (verse 7). If there are two of them, even if you say “I want you to win the lottery!”, it will be answered. However, those who love Jesus and are in the Word do not pray at all, “Please let me win the lottery!”.
If you pray for the lottery and you don't win the lottery, the ups and downs give up your faith right away saying, "It's no use praying!" I must not pray like this!” and repented immediately. Prayer is not a means of fulfilling one's will and fulfilling one's desires. You pray like that when you first believe, but as time goes by, you need to think of God's will and pray. Therefore, the content of the prayer is actually more important than the prayer.
One day, someone went to the mountain, dug a tunnel, ate raw food, and prayed for 100 days. So the demon was possessed and he bowed in all directions and acted strangely while holding the broomstick. Then, after a while, my mind came back. So when people asked, “Why did you do that then?” He said that he was trying to make it through. Do not pray with false greed. God gives grace to those who are pure and honest in heart rather than those who are prosperous.
Now, believe in the blessing of answering prayers and pray earnestly according to God's will. Not everyone dies when they fall into the water. Even if the plane goes down, people live. Miracles abound. Such a miracle may happen to you as well. No matter how hard or hurt you are, never be discouraged. Throw away all despair, trust God completely and have courage. God works through faith. In great faith, God appears greatly, and in strong faith, God appears strongly.