This prayer can only be effective (in that it only reflects truth about who God is) when both sides of the request are uttered, in tandem. “Bless me”–alone, this is selfishness. It focuses on the self, and it tries to make God beholden to my own whims, goals, desires. It is an attempt at a magic potion, not a request to a dynamic, self-giving, Trinitarian Lord.

“Make me a blessing,” is similarly lopsided. If I don’t first receive, I have nothing to give. If I don’t acknowledge my own need, then I don’t acknowledge God’s love for me. “Make me a blessing,” in and of itself, can become pure self-centeredness. Let me save the world. Let me become the Messiah. Let me be seen as the one who makes a difference.

But the two together–“Bless me, that I might be a blessing”–capture the holy tension of a relational God, a God of giving and receiving. Recognition of need, and recognition of purpose. Humility in myself, confidence in God’s ability to put me to work, to equip me and send me out there to care for others.

So I enter this week with this as my prayer–

When I am caring for my children… bless me, that I might be a blessing.

When I am reading for class… bless me, that I might be a blessing.

When I am talking with a friend… bless me, that I might be a blessing.

When I am asleep, when I am exercising, when I am cleaning the kitchen, when I am eating a meal, when I am driving… in all that I am, in all that I do, bless me. That I might be a blessing.