The Blessing by John Trent and Gary Smalley

The Blessing is amazing! Where do I even begin to tell you about all the goodness that is contained within its texts? There is a blessing waiting for you and God desires to pour it out upon your head, and better still, God wants to use you to share His blessing with others.

John Trent and Gary Smalley have created a book that shares the biblical understanding of blessing and how that blessing can be shared in the lives of those around you. Using the story of Jacob and Esau from Genesis, the basic understanding of a blessing is laid out and then the individual parts are explained in further detail. But one of the best parts about The Blessing is that it does not just encourage you to bless others, it also encourages you to look at your own life and whether or not you have received that blessing and what to do if you have not. Chapters have insightful questions that help you get to the heart of your personal blessing.

The book is filled with stories of how the blessing has been lived out; as well as numerous helps in what you can do to achieve the blessing so that you can share it with others.

One of the things I love about this is that it is not some magical ritual, but a simple choice that we can make to proclaim the goodness of God. There are five components to the blessing that are easily adapted to your gifts and abilities. The components of The Blessing are meaningful touch, a spoken (and written) message, attaching high value, picturing a special future, and having an active commitment. These five different things will lead to a lifetime of influence.

I really enjoyed reading this book in the e-reader format, because it allowed me to easily take notes along the way as well as have access to the websites that are referenced at the end of the chapters. But I enjoyed even more working through my own blessing and being able to share blessings with those around me.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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