Observations:
I asked myself after the salutation, what does Paul  do?
Paul does four things:
1. Paul writes, 'Grace to you from God our Father.'
2. Paul, writes, 'Grace to you from the Lord Jesus Christ.'
3. Paul writes, 'Peace to you from God our Father.'
4. Paul writes, 'Peace to you from the Lord Jesus Christ.'

Interpretations:
I asked myself the significance of what Paul did?
Paul could have begun his letter right away after the salutation to the Philippians but instead he wants to bless them with grace and peace from the One He has a personal relationship with who is also the Creator of the Universe. He wants the Philippians to know that the blessing of grace and peace is available to them too just as it is available to Him from God who He refers to as 'God our Father' emphasizing a son-Father personal relationship. He also acknowledges the Lordship of Christ where the grace and peace come from.

Implications:
I asked myself what are the implications for my own life?
Just as Paul blessed the Philippians in the Name of the Father and the Son, as He was led by the Holy Spirit, I too need to bless others whom God puts in my way. In this world of curses and sadness, it will be refreshing for others to be blessed by words and deeds as I depend on God, our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

When my focus is on the Lord Jesus and my desire is to bless others through words or deeds, He does provide a way. Everyone needs compassion & blessings and it is awesome that God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ can choose us through the Holy Spirit to bless others just as He chose Paul. I want to always be a blessing to others as my Lord and Savior provides me an opportunity. I hope you can be a blessing to others too.

I ask you now dear friend, when do you B.L.E.S.S others in life?
Dear friend, if you bless others in your life when it is only convenient to you, you are missing out on blessing them when they need that blessing. We are not called to bless others at our convenience. Paul did not even do that. Paul blessed the Philippians with words of GRACE and PEACE while he was still in chains. We too  should take every opportunity to bless others that the Lord puts in our paths as we depend on God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ for those opportunities. You need not be a leader to bless others. You however need to be content with where the Lord Jesus placed you to bless others. If you are not content where you are then, you will be coveting what others have and you won't be in a mood to bless others.

My precious wife Chandraleela and I will never forget what Emily Lutz, a sister in Christ wanted to do for us when we were in desperate need. Even though it was Missions Week at our church and she was on the Missions team, she was willing to drive us all the way to Washington, D.C from Pittsburgh with 8 suitcases of 50lb each, 3 carry on luggages of 17 pounds each, and 2 laptop bags if we could not find anyone to give us a ride. She would have had to leave the Missions dinner, etc but through her actions she proved what it means to be Missions minded. The theme had to do with serving and she was going to put it to action no matter how inconvenient it was for her. What makes it amazing is that there was no benefit for her to take us all the way to DC and then come back on her own but she wanted to do it to be a blessing to us and fulfill the Bible command: 'Carry ye one another's burdens and fulfill the love of Christ!' (Gal 6:2). I have not seen that kind of extreme help in our lives for almost 21 years. So many loving people have helped us in the past but this stood out :)

When the need is the greatest, the willing sacrifice of others seems the greatest. Emily L exemplified that with her willingness to bless us. We saw her love for us in her willingness to help even though in the last minute we did not need it because my loving brother Rohit R came all the way from Silverspring, MD just to take 5 of us with all the luggage I mentioned earlier to D.C.

One day my sweetheart wife Chandraleela shared with me about how a sister in the Lord called her from India to acknowledge how much she was blessed by Chandra through her prayers and sharing of God's Word that had started when they were both in nursing school together. After that call, she was so overwhelmed with praise that the Lord would use her to bless others. In her own words, she said she is nothing without the Lord and all praise and glory should go to the Lord for her sister in Christ to experience a blessing through her. That call motivated her not to waste away the gifts that the Lord Jesus has empowered her with so she could be a blessing to others as the Lord uses her. Then my wife shared a testimony from her college years regarding this  friend. Hearing my wife share a testimony from her college years motivated me so much too to use the gifts the Lord Jesus has given me to bless others without giving up. Thank you Jesus.

She also shared that her desire and hearts longing was to be married to a pastor and said that she felt married to a pastor and was so thankful for the online ministry that the Lord Jesus has given me even though I am not a ordained pastor. I was really touched by my wife's words and exhortation because at that moment she was blessing me so much with encouragement and exhortation to continue to do what I was doing. She also expressed to me how happy she would be if we could do direct ministry again being involved in the lives of others by praying for them in a group, by sharing God's Word in a group, and encouraging them to pray and study God's Word. Now with the Lord's help we do International Game Night Ministry to bless students with the love of Christ through our church Oakland International Fellowship. We are also working to fundraise support to do fulltime ministry through Pittsburgh Standard reaching souls for Christ. We have been touched by the financial support and prayer support we have received so far.

Marie told me a story about how her mom would pray for every single student that crossed her path everyday blessing them with prayers reaching Father God and that I can do the same when it comes to the students I come across.

Blessing others does take a sacrifice in terms of inconvenience and time but if we are not willing to sacrifice our convenience and time then we cannot bless others. Though Paul was shackled in chains in jail, he took every opportunity to share God's grace and peace with others to bless them. You can do that to where you are at.

I still remember the day Pastor Mike was willing to come all the way to give me chicken soup and antibiotics if I needed them when he found out that I had been sick with a violent cough so he can  bless me and our family. Thank you Jesus. He eventually dropped off Citron Tea from Panda Supermarket.

Friend, you may not know who you will touch with the love of Christ until you  have a F.A.C.T check: Faithful, Available, Compatible, and Teachable to the Lord's calling to bless others as my former Pastor Hugo loved to remind me. This counseling advice was given to me when I was going through a hard time in my life. Regardless of what we go through, we can bless others. The most important way you can bless others is through your prayers and helping them to learn to pray to the Lord Jesus and receive His Word.

Pastor Lake, a Pulitze-Prize winning journalist is willing to bless me by advising me on my writings and even wanted to get together to do a devotional together. Thank you Jesus!

When we know Jesus Christ as our Lord and Personal Savior first so we can bless others in the Name of Jesus Christ. It starts with Jesus Christ and not with us. Paul had a relationship with God, the Father, God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit before he started blessing others.

We too need that relationship if we do not already have it. When we have that blessed relationship with Christ, we can bless others leading them to the blessed Lord everyday, saving souls.

We live in a world filled with curses. Now is the moment to take time to send others a blessing in the Name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior whether it is through writing a letter, speaking over the phone, texting someone, or even personally meeting with them as the Lord Jesus provides opportunities.

He may want to use you to bless someone and save them through Jesus Christ. Take that opportunity friend just as my wife's friend's life changed because my wife had taken the opportunity years ago in college to get up early in the morning  at the time to pray and study God's Word. Then, she would gather her friends in college together to have a prayer group encouraging each one to pray after she shared God's Word. One friend was hesitant to pray because she did not know how so my wife had written a prayer for her to pray during prayer time. That act years ago paid off in one friend's life who called to share with her recently what the Lord had begun in her life. Praise the Lord!

You may never know, at what point in time, what your act done in the Lord's Name can bring about in a person's life where they can feel blessed because you answered the call of the Lord to bless others in the Name of the Lord.

So, use the opportunities the Lord Jesus has given you to bless others for His Name's sake and you will be touching lives and souls for His Kingdom's sake. We are so thankful to be blessed by so many people. Thank you Jesus!

May you come to bless others as our blessed Lord everyday saves souls! Amen!

"Bless Lives Everyday Seeking Savior! (B.L.E.S.S)"/"When do you B.L.E.S.S. others in life?"  

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, thank you so much for loving us and dying for our sin. Thank you so much for coming back to life to save us, covering us in your precious cleansing blood. Oh Lord thanks for blessing us by your grace and peace. Help us to bless others as we depend on you Jesus. Lord, you have given us the greatest blessing in the Salvation you bestowed upon us by your grace. Help us to always receive your grace by acknowledging our sins before you who alone can redeem us and restore us showering upon us your blessings of Eternal life and Abundant life. Thank you so much Jesus. We ask thee to be our Lord and Personal Savior so when God looks at us, He sees you covering over our sin so His judgment will passover us. Please give us opportunities to bless others where you have placed us using your empowerment no matter how difficult and hurtful it may even be. Thanks Jesus. Thanks so much again Jesus. I want to be a blessing to others throughout the week. Help me Lord to do that. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!