As a kid, I would always hear my mother and grandparents say, “If you want it, you need to pray and ask God to bless you.” I often thought, “Is it really that easy?” As a kid looking into the lives of adults, I kinda thought it was that easy. Prayer was the answer to everything, so I started praying as a child asking for things that kids ask for: bikes, clothes, money, to avoid a whipping for something I did that I knew was wrong, for a sibling my age (that’s another blog) and the list goes on. Honestly, some of the things I prayed for actually happened so I thought prayer was pretty easy.

Now as an adult who faces real life issues, I discovered there is a step missing before I actually get to the prayer request. So many times we ask God to bless us with money, a new job, a spouse/partner, a new car, a stress free life, and more. But one day I thought to myself, if God actually blessed me with everything that I felt I wanted or needed, would I be able to handle it? Because with blessings comes responsibility. We just don’t receive and not have to give something back.

Think about it: with new blessings comes new ways to live. We CANNOT do things the same way and take full advantage of our new blessings. Combining new blessings with old ways can result in major life confusion and imbalance. What are we willing to reorganize, reconfigure, or refocus to make sure we are ready for our blessing? Are we really prepared for our new journey?

We cannot ask for a partner/soulmate if we don’t know how to be a partner ourselves or understand what it takes to make a relationship work; we cannot ask to meet new people but hang around the same people, doing the same thing and be scared to try something new; we cannot ask for a new job but don’t know what we want or what we are passionate about; we cannot ask to relocate but not do the research necessary to make the best decision (cost of living, weather, etc.)

I’ve learned over the years that I must do my part before I can ask God to do his part. HE must know that I am capable and ready to handle my new blessings. It’s usually us that stands in the way of our blessings!

Are you prepared?