The Blessing: Giving the Gift of Unconditional Love and Acceptance

by John Trent, Gary Smalley, Kari Trent Stageberg

Overview

In this revised and updated edition, learn how the biblical gift of "The Blessing" is key to a child’s self-worth and emotional well-being. Children of every age long for the gift of The Blessing—the unconditional love and approval that comes from a healthy relationship with their parents.

This life-changing gift for Christian parents and their children, essential for instilling a deep sense of worthiness and unshakable emotional well-being, contains five essential elements:

• Meaningful touch
• A spoken message
• Attaching high value
• Picturing a special future
• An active commitment

Offering solid, practical advice and a fresh perspective on making this gift a bigger part of our families, The Blessing powerfully communicates these biblically based elements as necessary to prepare children for positive future relationships, including their relationship with a loving God.

New to this updated edition are:

• Giving The Blessing to others in your circle of influence
• Practical application tools and stories of how this is lived out
• Insight and help for those who didn’t receive The Blessing
• How to create a lifestyle of blessing others

If you have missed out on the approval of your parents, the final chapters are for you. They include help for those who grew up without their own parent's blessing and provide ideas for blessing events.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780785229056
Publisher:	Nelson, Thomas, Inc.
Publication date:	06/04/2019
Edition description:	Enlarged ed.
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

John Trent, PhD, a noted speaker and author, is president of StrongFamilies.com. He and Gary Smalley have won Gold Medallion writing awards for their books The Blessing and The Two Sides of Love. Dr. Trent has also written several children's books, including I'd Choose You! based on The Blessing, and his Gold Medallion award-winning book on children's personalities, The Treasure Tree. Dr. Trent maintains a private practice, certifies Lifemapping and Strengths coaches through ICCI, and teaches clinical mental health counselors at Phoenix Seminary and DMin students in marriage and family at Dallas Seminary.

Gary Smalley was one of the country’s best-known authors and speakers on family relationships. In addition to writing The Blessing and The Two Sides of Love with John Trent, their book The Language of Love (newly revised and updated) won the Angel Award as the best contribution to family life. His national infomercial, Hidden Keys to Loving Relationships, has been viewed by television audiences all over the world.

Kari Trent Stageberg is the CEO of StrongFamilies, her dream job since her dad, John Trent, started the ministry in 1998. More than twenty years later, after personal faith and relationship struggles, Kari was restored and healed through the power of the Blessing. Today she is a speaker, cohosts the StrongFamilies and Live Blessed, Girl podcasts, helps nonprofits through her partnership with the Nonprofit Consulting Shop, speaks, and pursues writing through her blog, MyBelovedDaughter.com. She lives in Tacoma, Washington with her amazing husband, Joey.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

1 To Change a Life 1

Part 1 Why Is the Blessing So Important?

2 The Lifelong Search for the Blessing 17

3 "Bless Me-Me Also, O My Father!" 24

4 A Life-and-Death Choice 32

Part 2 Understanding the Blessing

5 A Clear Path for Every Parent 43

6 The First Element: Meaningful Touch 52

7 The Second Element: A Spoken Message 75

8 The Third Element: Attaching High Value 94

9 The Fourth Element: Picturing a Special Future 115

10 The Fifth Element: An Active Commitment 133

Part 3 When the Blessing Doesn't Happen

11 Homes That Withhold the Blessing 157

12 Half-Blessed 178

13 If You Missed the Blessing 188

14 Reversing the Curse 202

Part 4 Living the Blessing Challenge

15 First Steps: A Written Blessing 223

16 Next Steps: Five Pictures That Point the Way 239

17 Last Words: Living the Blessing for a Lifetime 250

Afterword: An Invitation to Take the Blessing Challenge 253

Appendix: Becoming a Blessing Champion 255

Notes 259

About the Authors 263