“If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth.”

Deuteronomy 28:1

As we start the year, we must turn our attention to receiving God’s blessings and avoiding His curse. We pray and hope 2019 and will be a year full of God’s blessings. Deuteronomy 28 lists all of God’s blessings and curses. Read and reread this chapter. Make it an essential part of your life and remember five points.

1. Our success or failure in the world does not depend on effort or how well or bad we do something.
2. Prosperity and destruction depends on God’s blessing or curse
3. We must focus all our energy into receiving God’s blessing and avoiding His curse.
4. We receive God’s blessings by obeying His word and carefully following all the commands He gives us today.
5. Obeying and following the commands of the day falls into two categories: things to do and things not to do.

When something turns out well, we attribute it to something we have done: effort, planning, or personal skills. When things don’t turn out well, we blame it on something we could’ve done better or mistakes we’ve made. Let us be absolutely clear on this point: success and failure, prosperity and poverty are not the results of some course of action we have taken. We pat ourselves on the back when something goes right, and we’re full of regret when something goes wrong. “If I had only done this” or “I was so unlucky!”

Whether we succeed or fail in life depends entirely on whether God blesses or curses us. That’s it. Thriving in life depends on God’s blessings. Let’s make this clear as we confront obstacles and forks in the road. Yes, we have to work hard and make the right choices, but ultimately, God’s blessings decide whether we are successful or not. Are you failing in life? Are things not going your way? Examine your relationship to God and ask yourself, “Is God blessing or cursing me?”

If God is the One who determines prosperity or poverty, success or failure, what should we focus on the most? We should pour our energy into receiving God’s blessings and avoiding His curse. Don’t focus on the thing that is giving you grief. For example, if your boss is making your life miserable, your boss is not the key to making your life better. Instead of looking for ways to appease your boss, pour your energy into receiving God’s blessing and everything else falls into place!

How do we receive His blessings and avoid His curse? Two things: obey His word and follow the commands of the day. We must listen carefully to the word of God and obey. God gives us different situations in life. God’s will exists in every situation we encounter. It’s our job to find His will and execute. If we seek His will in every situation we encounter and act accordingly, He will bless us.

Finally, we must obey His word and follow His commands. Obeying God and His commands fall into two basic categories: things to do and things not to do. In every situation we encounter, there are things we must do and things we must absolutely not do. If we do what God says to do and avoid what He says not to do, God’s blessings will shower down on us.

How do we stop worrying? How do we overcome hardships? How do we lead happy and fruitful lives? Focus on God’s blessings and curses. If we turn our attention to blessings and curses, make the right decision, and act accordingly, we can live worry-free lives full of joy!

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