Blessed to be a Blessing

June 7, 2026 homily on Psalm 67 by Pastor Galen Zook for Peace with Justice Sunday

May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us…That your way may be known upon earth, your saving power among all nations – Psalm 67:1-2

What is something you use every day that you are thankful for?

Personally, I am grateful for running water. Most of us probably take this luxury for granted on a daily basis. We wake up and go to the kitchen and turn on the faucet to get a drink of cold water or to make our morning coffee. We turn on the hot water in the shower to take a nice hot shower. We flush our toilets with clean water flowing through the pipes. Most of us never give it a second thought, unless your water has ever been shut off for any length of time, or unless you’ve ever gone camping in the woods, or attended a festival where they only had porta-potties.

But the reality is that the luxury of having clean, drinkable water readily available anytime we want is a luxury that most people did not have access to throughout human history. And even today, in many parts of the world, there are people who have to walk long distances to get access to water, which may not even be safe to drink.

And running water is just one of the many luxuries we often take for granted. Many of us can turn the temperature in our houses up or down by simply pushing a button on the wall, without having to go out and chop firewood to make a fire. Many of us carry phones in our pockets that can instantaneously connect us with friends and family anywhere in the world, and which we can use to read the news or check the weather and so all sorts of other things.

Truly, as people living in the 21st century with access to modern medicine and technology, we are blessed.

May God’s Face Shine Upon Us

But Psalm 67 reminds us that the blessings we have been given are not just for ourselves. If we have been blessed, then those blessings are meant to be shared. The psalmist prays to the Lord and asks,

May God be gracious to us and bless us

and make his face to shine upon us, Selah. (Psalm 67:1)

The Hebrew word “selah,” which you often see scattered throughout the psalms, is often understood as a musical notation, perhaps inviting the singers or listeners to pause. You may remember that the psalms were really written as songs, and so perhaps the songwriter is telling the singers to pause here for emphasis. The songwriter wants to encourage the listener or reader to pause and think about what was just sung, to dwell on this phrase for just a minute before going on. The word selah here invites us to think about all of the ways that God has been gracious to us, and the multitude of ways in which God has smiled upon us.

But then the psalmist proceeds, saying,

that your [God’s] way may be known upon earth,
your saving power among all nations. (Psalm 67:2)

The psalmist is recognizing here that the blessings God gives us are not just for ourselves. They are meant to display God’s glory and power throughout the earth. In other words, the blessings we have been given are not ours to keep. We are blessed so that we can be a blessing to others.

Blessed to Be a Blessing

The concept of “blessed to be a blessing” comes from the call of Abraham. In Genesis chapter 12, God called Abraham to leave his homeland and everything that he knew and to travel to a place that God would reveal to him after he started out on his journey. When God called Abraham, God told him that he would make his name great, that God would bless Abraham, and that through him all the families of the earth would be blessed (Gen. 12:3).

This idea is repeated throughout the Hebrew Bible, as the psalmists and the prophets reminded the people of Israel that they had been chosen for a purpose: to carry God’s light to the nations. So often the people of Israel forgot their purpose. They often lost sight of why they had been chosen. They were not chosen just to be God’s special people so that they could keep God’s blessings for themselves. They were chosen to reveal God’s works and saving power to the whole world.

This principle was modeled for us in the life of Jesus, who, according to the book of Acts, “went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him” (Acts 10:38). Even in our Gospel Lesson for today, as Jesus was approaching the end of his time on earth, he was still looking out for his friends and disciples: giving them instructions for what to do when he was gone, sharing God’s peace with them, and promising them and us the presence and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Jesus didn’t just keep God’s blessings to himself. He lived his life as a blessing to others, ultimately giving his life as a sacrifice for us. In Jesus, we see the fullness of God’s blessing poured out for the life of the world.

Time, Talents, and Treasure

Now, I know that we don’t always feel blessed. There are many people in our community, including some of you here today, who struggle on a daily basis to make ends meet. The cost of everything is going up.

True, we live in a day and age when we have the most advanced technology and medical care that has ever existed in human history, and yet many people struggle to afford even the basic necessities of life.

And so often, we look at the rich and the famous, and we wonder why they don’t share more of what they have.

But the reality is that each of us, no matter how much or how little we have, has something that we can share with others.

Even if you don’t have a lot of material possessions, perhaps you have time that you can give to help others who are less fortunate. Perhaps you have wisdom or knowledge that can be shared. All of us have things that we know how to do that perhaps came naturally to us, and we assume that everyone knows how to do them. But most likely there is someone who could benefit from the knowledge or skills that you have.

Resource Mapping

Back in 2012, I had the opportunity to participate in a resource mapping project with a church down in New Orleans. At the time, the city of New Orleans and much of the Gulf Coast were still recovering from Hurricane Katrina, the catastrophic storm that killed 1,392 people and caused $125 billion in damage in 2005.

Of course, in the wake of the hurricane there was an immediate need for relief, such as clean water and flood cleanup. But as the years went on and the resources began to dry up, there was still a massive amount of work that needed to be done in order to rebuild and restore.

And so, rather than doing a needs assessment, where they went around asking everyone what they still needed, the church I was visiting engaged in a community resource mapping project. They asked people not only what they needed, but also what resources or skills they had that could be shared with other people.

For example, maybe one person knew how to do basic plumbing, and someone down the street had electrical skills. Or maybe the skills they had weren’t directly related to the physical rebuilding of the community, but could still be useful for the overall benefit of the community, such as teaching others how to manage basic household finances, offering academic tutoring, or giving driving lessons or sewing lessons.

Truly, this was a very different way of thinking about things. Many people in the community had grown accustomed to outsiders coming in, asking what they needed, and then not always being able to follow through and give them what they needed. But the idea of asking what gifts or skills they had that could be shared with others stopped people in their tracks. They had to think about it for a while, but eventually they were able to identify at least one skill or resource they had that could be shared with others.

And collectively, as this map was drawn, the church could connect people with needs to other people right there in their community who had the gifts and skills to help meet those needs.

Time, Talents, and Treasure

If we were to do a resource map of our congregation, I wonder what our map would look like? Perhaps you may not feel that you have a lot of time or resources. But what wisdom or knowledge might you have that you could share with others? And what wisdom or knowledge might others have that you could benefit from?

Sometimes asking others for help is even more difficult than identifying the gifts and skills that we have to share with others. But the reality is that each of us, no matter how young or old we are, no matter how much or how little we have, has been blessed. And the blessings we have are meant to be shared.

Conclusion

So this week, I want to invite you to take some time to think about the blessings God has given you. Not just the obvious blessings, not just the material blessings, but the wisdom, experiences, skills, relationships, and stories that have shaped who you are.

And then ask yourself: How might God be calling me to share those blessings with others?

Maybe it’s by volunteering, or helping a neighbor, or giving to support ministries of justice and compassion. Maybe it’s by encouraging someone who is going through a difficult time. Maybe it’s by passing along a skill, sharing a story, or simply being willing to listen. And maybe it starts by being willing to receive help from someone else, recognizing that God often blesses us through one another.

Psalm 67 reminds us that God’s face shines upon us so that God’s way may be known upon the earth. Jesus reminds us that he has not left us alone, but has given us his peace and the gift of the Holy Spirit. And so, as people who have received God’s grace, God’s peace, and God’s blessing, may we go forth from this place not holding those blessings tightly for ourselves, but sharing them freely with the world around us.

For we have been blessed to be a blessing. 

Amen.

Questions for Personal Reflection

1. What is something you use every day that you are thankful for, but often take for granted?
2. Psalm 67 reminds us that God blesses us so that God’s way may be known on earth. How might your life help others see God’s goodness?
3. What blessing, resource, skill, or opportunity has God given you that could be shared with someone else?
4. Who has been a blessing to you by sharing their time, wisdom, knowledge, or encouragement?
5. What is one way you could be a blessing to someone in your family, church, neighborhood, or community this week?