I Am Blessed to Be a Blessing
Believers are blessed not for self-gain, but to bless others—living as instruments of God’s generosity and fulfilling His mission. He gives to us; we give to others. God’s covenant with Abraham reflects a divine pattern: God blessed Abraham so that he would become a blessing to all nations. Pastor D. G. Hargrove describes how gratitude leads to generosity, and generosity creates the flow of God’s love through His people.
God never blesses His people to be the final recipients of His goodness. From the beginning, His intention has been clear: He blesses us so His blessing might flow through us to the world. The church was never meant to be the endpoint of God’s mission—it is the instrument of it.
When we understand that every gift, opportunity, and answered prayer carries a purpose beyond ourselves, we begin to live like true heirs of Abraham—blessed to bless, filled to pour out, saved to serve.
The Misunderstanding of Blessing
In our culture, blessing often gets reduced to personal comfort—success, security, influence, or abundance. We tend to measure blessing by what we can hold. But in Scripture, blessing is never meant to stop with the individual.
Every time God blesses someone, it’s connected to His greater purpose. He gives through us, not just to us.
When we see blessing as a mission, not a medal, we align our lives with the heartbeat of God. His plan has always been that the world would know Him through His blessed people. That was true for Abraham, true for the early church, and true for the believers around the world today.
Abraham: The Original Pattern of Blessing
Key Scriptures: Genesis 12:2–3; 18:18; 22:18; Galatians 3:8
When God called Abraham, He didn’t just give him a promise—He gave him a purpose.
“I will bless you … and you shall be a blessing. And through you, all nations of the earth will be blessed.”
Abraham wasn’t blessed to build a personal empire; he was blessed to become a pipeline for God’s global mission. His blessing was spiritual, generational, and world-reaching.
If we belong to Christ, Galatians 3:29 says we are “Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” That means we inherit not only the blessing of Abraham but also the responsibility.
Blessing is not an endpoint—it’s a pipeline.
Jesus: The Fulfillment of the Blessing
Israel struggled to carry God’s blessing to the nations. But Jesus came as the true Seed of Abraham—the perfect fulfillment of that promise.
Through His death and resurrection, the blessing of Abraham—salvation, reconciliation, and the indwelling Spirit—was made available to all nations.
When you follow Jesus, you step into that same mission. You become part of God’s ongoing plan to bring His blessing to every corner of the earth—from your home to your neighborhood, from North Dallas to the nations.
The Church in Antioch: A Model for a Missional Church
Key Scripture: Acts 11
The church in Antioch became the first model of what it means to live as a “blessed-to-bless” community. It wasn’t a perfect church, but it was a purposeful one.
Here’s what made Antioch remarkable:
1. They Were the First to Give
When famine struck Judea, the believers in Antioch didn’t hoard their resources—they sent financial aid. They understood that generosity is the natural response to grace.
2. They Were the First Multicultural Church
Jews, Greeks, Africans, and Asians worshiped together as one body. Their unity across culture and class became a living testimony of God’s inclusive love.
3. They Were the First Called “Christians”
Their identity wasn’t in race, region, or politics—it was in Christ. They didn’t just believe in Jesus; they reflected Him so clearly that the world gave them a new name.
4. They Were the First to Send Missionaries
Antioch didn’t exist for itself. It existed to reach the world. When the Spirit called Paul and Barnabas to go, they didn’t hesitate—they sent them.
Core Insight: The Antioch church didn’t view blessing as something to keep. They saw it as something to send.
A Word for the North Dallas Church
From Garland to Plano, Richardson to McKinney, the mission hasn’t changed. We are the continuation of the same promise God gave Abraham—and the same Spirit that moved in Antioch is moving in us.
You are blessed to be a blessing. Every talent, testimony, and treasure God has entrusted to you carries Kingdom weight. When the church in Dallas County and Collin County stops asking “How can I be blessed?” and starts asking “How can I be a blessing?”—revival will overflow.
A Simple Prayer
Lord, thank You for every blessing in my life. Help me to see them not as possessions but as purpose. Make me a channel of Your love, a voice of Your hope, and a vessel of Your Spirit. Let my life be a blessing that points the world to You. In Jesus’ name, amen.
