The One Thing Christians Should Stop Saying - By Scott Dannemiller

Found here. My comments in bold.

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There are things we say casually that become a part of our language as Christians. They are not theological treatises, nor are they intended to portray the entirety of every thought on the subject. They are innocent expressions of general thoughts.

The author objects to one of these, on the basis that the expression is misleading and incomplete. He makes it sound like a grave sin or heresy, but it isn't.
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Let’s retire this phrase immediately, and say what we really mean to say instead. (This is surely leading up to some sort of egregious utterance used by Christians, something that is obviously sinful, heretical, or biblically questionable...)

I was on the phone with a good friend the other day. After covering important topics, like disparaging each other’s mothers and retelling semi-factual tales from our college days, our conversation turned to the mundane.

“So, how’s work going?” he asked.

For those of you who don’t know, I make money by teaching leadership skills and helping people learn to get along in corporate America. My wife says it’s all a clever disguise so I can get up in front of large groups and tell stories.

I plead the fifth.

I answered my buddy’s question with, “Definitely feeling blessed. Last year was the best year yet for my business. And it looks like this year will be just as busy.”

The words rolled off my tongue without a second thought. Like reciting the Pledge of Allegiance or placing my usual lunch order at McDonald’s.

But it was a lie. (That is, he apparently is not blessed for having a good year in business.)

Now, before you start taking up a collection for the “Feed the Dannemillers” fund, allow me to explain. Based on last year’s quest to go twelve months without buying anything, you may have the impression that our family is subsisting on Ramen noodles and free chips and salsa at the local Mexican restaurant. Not to worry, we are not in dire straits.

Last year was the best year yet for my business.

But that is not a blessing. (Why not?)

I’ve noticed a trend among Christians, myself included, and it troubles me. Our rote response to material windfalls is to call ourselves blessed. Like the “amen” at the end of a prayer.

“This new car is such a blessing.”

“Finally closed on the house. Feeling blessed.”

“Just got back from a mission trip. Realizing how blessed we are here in this country.” (Why is this bad? In every case the sentences takes the glory from the speaker and directs praise to God.)

On the surface, the phrase seems harmless. Faithful even. Why wouldn’t I want to give God the glory for everything I have? Isn’t that the right thing to do?

No. (The author will never explain why we shouldn't give God the glory for everything.)

As I reflected on my “feeling blessed” comment, two thoughts came to mind. I realize I’m splitting hairs here, creating an argument over semantics. (Indeed, that is exactly what the author is doing.)

But bear with me, because I believe it is critically important. It’s one of those things we can’t see because it’s so culturally engrained (sic) that it has become normal.

But it has to stop. (It's not enough for the author to rein in his own issues. He wants a universal prescription.)

And here’s why.

First, when I say that my material fortune is the result of God’s blessing, it reduces The Almighty to some sort of sky-bound, wish-granting fairy who spends his days randomly bestowing cars and cash upon his followers. (It does no such thing. Acknowledging God's goodness in an area of one's life does not create an exclusive category or change God into a slot machine.)

I can’t help but draw parallels to how I handed out M&M’s to my own kids when they followed my directions and chose to poop in the toilet rather than in their pants. Sure, God wants us to continually seek His will, and it’s for our own good. But positive reinforcement? (The author draws in a concept foreign to the argument.)

God is not a behavioral psychologist. (Then he refutes his straw man with an odd summary denial.)

Second, and more importantly, calling myself blessed because of material good fortune is just plain wrong. (An assertion he does not document.)

For starters, it can be offensive to the hundreds of millions of Christians in the world who live on less than $1 per day. (Whaaa? Are we deciding what we should or should not say, or our doctrines, based on what might be offensive to people thousands of miles away? And who is to say that that dollar isn't a blessing to these distant Christians? And, are we supposed to feel guilty that we are more prosperous than these other people?)

You read that right. Hundreds of millions who receive a single-digit dollar “blessing” per day.

During our year in Guatemala, Gabby and I witnessed first-hand the damage done by the theology of prosperity, where faithful people scraping by to feed their families were simply told they must not be faithful enough. (Ah, we come to the real reason the author is complaining. Supposedly the "prosperity" people are ruining everything. I'm not a prosperity adherent, but I sincerely doubt that it is the problem here. I think the author has an ax to grind with prosperity teachers and this article is looking to affix blame.

Unfortunately, it has nothing at all to do with the topic at hand.)

If they were, God would pull them out of their nightmare. Just try harder, and God will show favor.

The problem? Nowhere in scripture are we promised worldly ease in return for our pledge of faith. (True, but an irrelevant non sequitur.)

In fact, the most devout saints from the Bible usually died penniless, receiving a one-way ticket to prison or death by torture. (Again, true but irrelevant.)

I’ll take door number three, please.

If we’re looking for the definition of blessing, Jesus spells it out clearly (Matthew 5: 1-12).

1 Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him,

2 And He began to teach them, saying:

3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.

12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

I have a sneaking suspicion verses 12a 12b and 12c were omitted from the text. That’s where the disciples responded by saying:

12a Waitest thou for one second, Lord. What about “blessed art thou comfortable,” or 12b “blessed art thou which havest good jobs, a modest house in the suburbs, and a yearly vacation to the Florida Gulf Coast?”

12c And Jesus said unto them, “Apologies, my brothers, but those did not maketh the cut.”

So there it is. Written in red. Plain as day. (If this were the only thing the Bible had to say about blessing, the author would have vaguely made his case. However, there's much more. Aside from the blessings pronounced upon Israel a multitude of times, there are these NT verses:

Jn. 1:16 From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.

Ro. 15:27 They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews’ spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings.

Ep. 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 

He. 6:7 Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of God.

Even still, we ignore it all when we hijack the word “blessed” to make it fit neatly into our modern American ideals, (Interestingly, this is exactly what the author has done.)

creating a cosmic lottery where every sincere prayer buys us another scratch-off ticket. In the process, we stand the risk of alienating those we are hoping to bring to the faith. (The author repeats his assertion. For some unsaid reason, "God blessed me" is offensive to the lost as well.)

And we have to stop playing that game.

The truth is, I have no idea why I was born where I was or why I have the opportunity I have. It’s beyond comprehension. But I certainly don’t believe God has chosen me above others because of the veracity of my prayers or the depth of my faith. (Non sequitur. But apparently he knows for sure that his lot in life has nothing to do with blessing. Thus, he must be relieved of any obligation to be thankful.)

Still, if I take advantage of the opportunities set before me, a comfortable life may come my way. It’s not guaranteed. But if it does happen, I don’t believe Jesus will call me blessed. (The author now reverses the equation. First it was a problem with us acknowledging God's blessing, now it's Jesus saying who is blessed.)

He will call me “burdened.”

He will ask,

“What will you do with it?”

“Will you use it for yourself?”

“Will you use it to help?”

“Will you hold it close for comfort?”

“Will you share it?”

So many hard choices. So few easy answers.

So my prayer today is that I understand my true blessing. It’s not my house. Or my job. Or my standard of living.

No.

My blessing is this. I know a God who gives hope to the hopeless. I know a God who loves the unlovable. I know a God who comforts the sorrowful. And I know a God who has planted this same power within me. Within all of us.

And for this blessing, may our response always be,

“Use me.”

Since I had this conversation, my new response is simply, “I’m grateful.” (Which conveys the same thought as "I'm blessed.")

Would love to hear your thoughts.

The author is happy to go off on random tangents and irrelevancies, but he never got around to telling us why it is wrong to acknowledge God for the material blessings He has given us. And He is indeed the source of anything and everything we have, whether spiritual or material:

Ja. 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

And clearly we are to be thankful, not only for salvation and spiritual things, but also for the material things God has given:

Mt. 14:19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves.  

2Co. 9:10-12 Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. 12 This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.

Ep. 5:20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Col. 3:17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

So the author treats us to answers to questions he never asked, omits everything in Scripture that speaks to the other side of the issue, mischaracterizes the idea of thankfulness for blessings, and generally fails to make his point.