God is a loving, merciful being who is full of grace, and those characteristics are seen in His treatment of mankind.  It is amazing to me how kind God is to man, blessing even those who deny His very existence.  Speaking of the love of God, Jesus said, “… For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:45).  Is it not astonishing that even those who say, “there is no God,” survive by breathing the air that He provides for them?  Without question, God deserves to be praised by all (Psalms 117:1-2)

However, while it is true that God blesses everyone, the most important blessings are reserved for those who are Christians.  Paul emphasizes this in the third chapter of Ephesians.

Ephesians 1:3 (ESV)
³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,

This does not mean that God does not bless us physically as Christians for He does.  Do not forget what James says about the gifts of God.  He tells us that every good and perfect gift comes from the Father (James 1:17).  Jesus even promised us, based on God being a faithful Father, that He will give us everything that we need for our living (Matthew 6:33).

Our part, of course, is to seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness first in our lives.  If we do that, we do not have to worry about what we are going to eat and with what we will be clothed.  Just like God takes care of the birds of the air, He will take care of us, and even more so, since we are of more value to Him than the birds (Matthew 6:25-26).

Still, the most important blessings are spiritual, and those blessings can be found in one place alone—in Christ.  In Christ, we are blessed with everything we need to be spiritually alive and to maintain our relationship with God.  In Christ is where we can walk in the light and be in fellowship with God (1 John 1:5-7).  It is in Christ where we live as a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17).  If you are a Christian, I hope you realize what a blessed state you are in tonight.

We have all made mistakes.  Most of us have done things in the past for which we are now ashamed (Romans 6:20-21);  but, we do not have to live in the past.  We do not have to allow our past transgressions to haunt us because we have been set free in Christ (Romans 6:6-7).  The old has passed away and all things have been made new.  All of our failures have been forgotten, our flaws have been fixed, and our faults have been forgiven.  We can now focus on pressing toward the goal for the prize of heaven (Philippians 3:14).  But remember, that prize can only be found in one place—in Christ!  Paul called it “the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

If you are in Christ, that is the trajectory of your journey right now.  You are headed upward.  Thank God every day.  If you are not in Christ, do something about that.  Obey the gospel (Galatians 3:27), and get into the most important place you could ever be.

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.