Characteristics of a blessed family

We are celebrating Family Month. It is our hope that God will visit every family and bring fresh blessings and breakthrough, in the name of Jesus. God will visit the singles and plant them in their homes, in Jesus name!

Psalm 128:1-6 (AMP), summarises what you find in a blessed family.

BLESSED (HAPPY, fortunate, to be envied) is everyone who fears, reveres, and worships the Lord, who walks in His ways and lives according to His commandments. (1)

[2] For you shall eat [the fruit] of the labour of your hands; happy (blessed, fortunate, enviable) shall you be, and it shall be well with you.

[3] Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the innermost parts of your house; your children shall be like olive plants round about your table.

[4] Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who reverently and worshipfully fears the Lord.

[5] May the Lord bless you out of Zion [His sanctuary], and may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life;

[6] Yes, may you see your children’s children. Peace be upon Israel!

THE family is God’s idea; accurate information about the family must, therefore, come from God. A close look at the Bible reveals God’s recipe for building and enjoying a godly family.

Your family is meant to be a place of hospitality, healing, and security. In 2Kings 4, the woman of Shunem and her family provide a good example of a blessed family.

A blessed family consists of the following:

1. A man and a woman (not women, not two women or two men) brought duly joined together spiritually and legally. There is no place in the Bible for live-in lovers.

2. A union of two mature adults. Marriage is designed to be a union of two adults or matured individuals and not children. God did not create children first; instead, He made two adults and brought them together. “For this cause shall a man” -not a boy, leave his father… Maturity is not just about age but about wisdom, principles, relational and other skills etc. People should develop themselves spiritually, mentally, etc. before entering into marriage. How many books have you read on the subject?

3. A union of two spiritual and God-loving people. Spirituality is simply living according to the Word of God. It says, “…who delights greatly in his commandments.” Psalm 112:1-3. A Christian should not only marry a Christian but ensure they have high regard for the Word of God and run their lives accordingly. They are committed to living by faith in every area of life.

The blessed family honours the presence of God (2 Kings 4:8–10). This unnamed woman was a notable woman. She respected the anointing in Elisha and reached out to bring it into her home.

She and her husband were also willing to spend the time and money ($20,000 in today’s costs) to build a room for Elisha.

The woman was focused on Elisha’s needs, not her own. Our homes should be open to receive those who give and need ministry. We must be delivered from “entertaining” (impressing others) and become interested in “hosting” (ministering to others).

4. Each partner understands his or her role and plays it cheerfully. The husband loves the wife, treats her like a queen and makes sure she’s comfortable, protected and fulfilled. A man who treats his wife with disrespect sabotages his prayer life (1Peter 3:7). The wife, on the other hand, submits to the leadership of the husband, treats him with respect and adores him as a hero. A woman who treats her husband with disrespect is walking contrary to God and in rebellion and sabotages her destiny. We shall look at the roles of the husband and wife in greater detail.

5. Vision, Understanding and Unity. Not necessarily unity of ideas but purpose. Two cannot walk together except they agree (Amos 3:3). There’s no anointing where there is disunity. A couple that is always quarrelling cannot achieve the kind of results described by the Bible. You must have a vision of becoming a successful and prosperous family. Both partners must agree on that and work towards achieving it. The people perish where there is no vision.

6. Fruitfulness. They are fruitful; spiritually and physically. They are committed to winning souls as a priority. They understand that fruitfulness is not just a matter of bearing their biological children; it is about being fruitful spiritually also. Genesis 1:28, “And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth…” They are blessed with anointed children raised in the ways of the Lord. God is attracted to and blesses a family where the father instructs the children in the ways of the Lord. He said that concerning Abraham (Genesis 18: 17-19). What are you teaching your children? The way of the Word or the way of the world? The Shunamite woman was visited by God and her barrenness was taken away.

7. Spiritual, financial and material blessings. Psalm 128:2 says he shall eat the labour of his hands. The man has a job that brings in income. It says wealth and riches shall be in his house.

8. The blessed family experiences the peace of God (2 Kings 4:18–37)

Time passed, and the child grew up. One day he suffered something like a heat stroke and died. The woman laid him upstairs on Elisha’s bed. She left for Mount Carmel and told her husband, “It will be well” (NASB). In Hebrew, it is shalom, which means peace, quiet, tranquillity, and contentment.

Good families may also sometimes pass through storms, trials, and difficulties with their finances, children, jobs, and illnesses. The wonderful thing to know when you are going through a trial is “It will be well!” When she reached Mount Carmel, she said, “It is well.”

It is well with your marriage! It is well with your children! It is well with your finances! Every power of darkness fighting against your matrimonial life is hereby destroyed, in Jesus name!!!

May the Lord heal every troubled relationship and wounded heart! May your union be fruitful, blessed and strong, in Jesus name!

Bishop Dr. Charles Olowojoba is the General Overseer of Dayspring Bible Church Worldwide with HQ in Abuja, Nigeria & President, Dayspring Christian Ministries Int’l.