February 5, 2026 - Good Morning! It’s Thursday, February 5.
We are right smack dab in the middle of the cold and flu season. So, the important question of the day is - What do you say when someone sneezes? In the year 1600, Pope Gregory declared that the proper response was “God bless you!” Aren’t you glad that you’re a Daily Devotion reader and get the benefit of little tidbits of trivia like that? By the way, when the pope made that decree, the world was suffering from a pandemic - not Covid... the Plague!
The word blessing has several different meanings, doesn’t it? Sometimes it denotes the prayer before a meal, or maybe you “say grace.” Sometimes it means approval - he asked for my blessing before he proposed to my daughter. Sometimes it’s a kindness - my neighbor shoveled the snow off my porch, what a blessing! I sometimes use it as a postscript in emails or letters, instead of “sincerely” or “very truly yours.”
But in the Bible, the word blessing means “the pouring out of God’s favor.” In Numbers 6:24-26, we read the words that God gave to Moses as a blessing over the children of Israel.
The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
In February of 2020, right before the world changed and our pandemic began, a song was released that was inspired by that scripture passage from the Book of Numbers. “The Blessing” won the award for Christian Song of the Year. Google it this morning. You’ll be blessed.
Meet you back here tomorrow,
David
cindertex50@yahoo.com
