Always Joyful



Blessings in Disguise


There are many phrases we use loosely every day without even thinking about what the words really mean. Way down here in the deep south in Mississippi we have a lot of strange language that most of "you guy's" from up north would never understand. "I declare to my time,” "For goodness sake,” I'm freezing to death", "I'm burning up", "Hold your taters", "Don't hold your breath,” and the ever popular, "It'll make you fight your mama.” These are just a few that come to mind that I know have come from my mouth. When it's cold I'm not really going to freeze to death, I hope. When it's hot, I'm not really going to burn up. When I tell my grand baby to hold his taters, he doesn't usually have any to hold. When I tell my husband, "don't hold your breath until I clean up your mess,” I really hope he doesn't hold his breath. I'll keep him around I guess to make a few more messes. When something is really good like sweet "tater" pie, it doesn't really make me want to "fight my mama.” I usually hug her neck for baking it for me. "I'll declare to my time,” I would never have enough time to figure out what that means. What kind of "sake" goodness has I will never know.

There are other phrases used loosely by some that they really shouldn't say. I declare to the good Lord, as God as my witness, and for heaven's sake are some that I have heard pretty often. The worst one of all that I have heard many say is, may God strike me dead. When people say any of the above, they don't realize they are indeed talking about God in heaven, who is good, who witnesses all that we say, who is perfectly capable of striking someone dead. The words just come from their mouth and they don't even twinge. Those of us who do know God in heaven usually cringe.

There is another phrase we use quite often and don't really think about the meaning. How many times have you heard someone say, "That was just a blessing in disguise"? Do blessings really come in disguise? Are they really covered, so that we cannot even recognize them? The Bible has much to say about blessings. The actual phrase “blessing in disguise" is not, however, in the Bible. In Genesis, we see Jacob disguise himself to deceive his blind father, Isaac, and to steal his brother, Esau's blessing.

Genesis 27:12 My father peradventure will feel me and I shall seem to him a deceiver and I shall bring a curse upon me and not a blessing.

Genesis 27:35 And he (Isaac) said thy brother came with subtlety and hath taken away thy blessing.


Today people are still being deceitful to take their “brother’s blessing,” or whatever someone has that they may want. We do not have to be deceitful to obtain blessing from God. We are promised blessings if we listen to God.

Deuteronomy 28:2 And all these blessings shall come on thee and overtake thee if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God.

I have even found that it is ok to ask for blessings. I do so quite often and do not feel at all guilty about asking.

Joshua 15:19 Give me a blessing; for thou hast given me a southland; give me also springs of water.

What I found surprising was that after we get those blessings that we are promised and that we ask for, they can be cursed.

Malachi 2:2 I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings.

I tried to think of an example of how this could happen to anyone today. Perhaps you are given a gift, a blessing, of a new car. If you should have an accident in this car and receive serious injury, it could, indeed become a curse. Therefore, your blessing was cursed. I found all this information on blessings, how some deceive to get them, how we are promised blessings, how it is ok to ask for blessing, and how a blessing can become a curse. But remember, I am looking for something about "blessings in disguise.” Something that doesn't appear to be a blessing is what the phrase is all about.

After a little looking, I finally found what I was looking for. Curses can become blessings; therefore, the blessing comes in disguise as a curse.

Deuteronomy 23:5 but the Lord God turned the curse into a blessing unto thee because the Lord thy God loved thee.

God can put someone, or circumstance, or situation in your life that you just don't understand. You might have sung the old song for years, "Why me Lord?'. You sang the next line as "What did I ever do (to deserve this curse in my life)?” God one day, when He gets ready, or when you are ready to accept it, answers by turning the curse into a blessing. He uses that person, that circumstance, your situation, to give you unimaginable, unexplainable blessings. Then you can say, "Well alright God, now I see what you were doing". "Now I see why me". "Thanks God for that blessing in disguise."

The next time a phrase pops out of your mouth, think about the meaning. Make sure God in heaven would approve of the words coming out of your mouth.

James 3:10 Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing, my brethren these things ought not to be.

Psalm 109:17 As he loved cursing so let it come unto him, as he delighted not in blessing let it be far from him.

By Judy Parker
November 28, 2003




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