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The Power to Bless: How to Speak Life and Empower the People You Love
Blessed people flourish by a power that transcends human talent or hard work--a mystical grace empowers them to be joyful and fruitful. But does it ever feel like others are blessed while you're stuck?
With honesty and warmth, Alan Wright shares his inspiring journey from craving blessing to living the blessed life. The absence of his father's affirmation left him struggling for years with symptoms of the unblessed shame, pretense, and drift. But when he grasped the most powerful blessing in the Old Testament--the mysterious, ancient blessing of Ephraim and Manasseh--he learned how to receive blessing and how to bless the lives of his loved ones. And you can too.
With biblical insight and practical wisdom, The Power to Bless shows you how to craft a positive, faith-filled blessing. By learning a few simple, biblical skills for imparting life-changing blessings, you'll be more spiritually blessed than you'd ever imagined, and you'll be equipped with the power to bless the people you love.
With honesty and warmth, Alan Wright shares his inspiring journey from craving blessing to living the blessed life. The absence of his father's affirmation left him struggling for years with symptoms of the unblessed shame, pretense, and drift. But when he grasped the most powerful blessing in the Old Testament--the mysterious, ancient blessing of Ephraim and Manasseh--he learned how to receive blessing and how to bless the lives of his loved ones. And you can too.
With biblical insight and practical wisdom, The Power to Bless shows you how to craft a positive, faith-filled blessing. By learning a few simple, biblical skills for imparting life-changing blessings, you'll be more spiritually blessed than you'd ever imagined, and you'll be equipped with the power to bless the people you love.
256 pages, Hardcover
Published February 2, 2021
25 people are currently reading
1206 people want to read
About the author
Alan Wright
87 books23 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
March 31, 2021
Needed. Grounded. Affirming. Applicable.
The illustrations are apt. The disclosure is engaging. Personally, it's an affirmation that what I have been doing is validated in God's eyes and will be rewarded by Him whether I see immediate earthly fruit or not.
The illustrations are apt. The disclosure is engaging. Personally, it's an affirmation that what I have been doing is validated in God's eyes and will be rewarded by Him whether I see immediate earthly fruit or not.
January 12, 2021
We live in a culture that holds an invisible bar over our heads telling us that we need to do better, try harder, run faster, or achieve more in order to be loved. All too often this spills over into churches and religious circles where we are told if we don't measure up then God won't love us. What Alan Wright shares in this book is a breath of fresh air. I loved reading this book. It is, as everything Alan Wright seeks to write and preach, full of tons of truth and tons of grace. He gently guides the reader through common pitfalls to avoid and, without shame or condemnation, points to a way to be truly free.
I find myself bringing up his concepts on a daily basis with those around me. The idea of a blessing is so simple yet so widely overlooked. It has caused me to pay more attention to the way I speak both to others and to myself. If you have friends, family, or children in your life and you want to play a part in helping them flourish, I cannot recommend this book more.
I find myself bringing up his concepts on a daily basis with those around me. The idea of a blessing is so simple yet so widely overlooked. It has caused me to pay more attention to the way I speak both to others and to myself. If you have friends, family, or children in your life and you want to play a part in helping them flourish, I cannot recommend this book more.
November 9, 2021
Blessing! Such a positive and evocative word that speaks of the bestowal and the receiving of goodness and favour. It ought to be spoken and heard frequently in Christian circles but yet many still shy away from even saying it. They often unconsciously say they are ‘lucky’ when something good happens or is done to them. So the very idea of calling it a blessing is alien to them. But the truth is that everyone wants to be blessed, not only with good things in life but also with a positive faith-filled vision about their future. So what can one do about this? Thankfully, help is at hand in this remarkable book by pastor and author Alan Wright.
Straight off, the subtitle of The Power To Bless tells you that this is definitely a how-to book. But a self-help book it certainly isn’t, because self-help implies that one can modify one’s behaviour or a certain outcome in life by following a ‘five-step plan’ or something like that through one’s willpower and effort. Rather, this book seeks to equip Christians with a proper understanding of the power of verbal blessing as taught in the Scripture and with a practical way that we can use to give verbal blessings to others and to ourselves (yes, you read right!). Wright demonstrates from his own inspiring life story and those of others, and his pastoral experience, that it’s a plan that really works because it’s rooted in the God who blesses!
The power of verbal blessing is deeply embedded in Scripture and rooted in the ancient Jewish practice of fathers speaking blessings to their children and grandchildren - pointing out the child’s gifts or virtues and foretelling good things for their future. But there’s one particular blessing - Jacob’s blessing of Ephraim and Manasseh - that Jewish fathers for thousands of years have been blessing their sons with. It’s found in Genesis 48:20:
So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying,
‘God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh.’” Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh.
What was God trying to say when He invoked the name of Ephraim and Manassed in the blessing? I must say I’d often been baffled by this ‘mysterious’ blessing, as had many over the years.
I’m glad I’m no longer puzzled as Pastor Alan - in this book - has provided much-needed clarity on the significance and value of this blessing. The Ephraim and Manasseh Blessing, he says, is prominent and powerful because it reveals four essential gifts that God wants you to receive and share with others. So for the main part of the book he explains what each of these gifts is, what it can do to us and others. Above all, the blessing reveals a beautiful and awe-inspiring portrait of God’s abundant grace for His children.
I especially like that the book gives readers extra bonuses towards the end of it: a personal blessing from Pastor Alan himself and many simple but powerful blessings from the Bible that they can use to craft their own blessings for their loved ones for every situation and season.
If you’ve always wanted to give your children, your grandchildren or your loved ones scriptural and faith-filled blessings but don’t know how, then this book deserves your attention. I can’t tell you how much I’ve loved reading it. It has certainly helped cement my firm and long-held belief that the power of blessing lies in God and His immutable Word.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the free ARC e-copy. My review is given voluntarily.
Straight off, the subtitle of The Power To Bless tells you that this is definitely a how-to book. But a self-help book it certainly isn’t, because self-help implies that one can modify one’s behaviour or a certain outcome in life by following a ‘five-step plan’ or something like that through one’s willpower and effort. Rather, this book seeks to equip Christians with a proper understanding of the power of verbal blessing as taught in the Scripture and with a practical way that we can use to give verbal blessings to others and to ourselves (yes, you read right!). Wright demonstrates from his own inspiring life story and those of others, and his pastoral experience, that it’s a plan that really works because it’s rooted in the God who blesses!
The power of verbal blessing is deeply embedded in Scripture and rooted in the ancient Jewish practice of fathers speaking blessings to their children and grandchildren - pointing out the child’s gifts or virtues and foretelling good things for their future. But there’s one particular blessing - Jacob’s blessing of Ephraim and Manasseh - that Jewish fathers for thousands of years have been blessing their sons with. It’s found in Genesis 48:20:
So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying,
‘God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh.’” Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh.
What was God trying to say when He invoked the name of Ephraim and Manassed in the blessing? I must say I’d often been baffled by this ‘mysterious’ blessing, as had many over the years.
I’m glad I’m no longer puzzled as Pastor Alan - in this book - has provided much-needed clarity on the significance and value of this blessing. The Ephraim and Manasseh Blessing, he says, is prominent and powerful because it reveals four essential gifts that God wants you to receive and share with others. So for the main part of the book he explains what each of these gifts is, what it can do to us and others. Above all, the blessing reveals a beautiful and awe-inspiring portrait of God’s abundant grace for His children.
I especially like that the book gives readers extra bonuses towards the end of it: a personal blessing from Pastor Alan himself and many simple but powerful blessings from the Bible that they can use to craft their own blessings for their loved ones for every situation and season.
If you’ve always wanted to give your children, your grandchildren or your loved ones scriptural and faith-filled blessings but don’t know how, then this book deserves your attention. I can’t tell you how much I’ve loved reading it. It has certainly helped cement my firm and long-held belief that the power of blessing lies in God and His immutable Word.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the free ARC e-copy. My review is given voluntarily.
January 27, 2021
Well, I am a magnet for an author who creates a desire in me, especially one whom I have read before and found worthy to read again. Anything-Alan Wright is a go-to for me because he engages my heart with my mind and connects me to the way God thinks. It’s hard to believe God WANTS us to know Him and His mind. So using the Bible and a great dose of human reality and pain, Pastor Alan connects the dots for me.
I wasn’t completely sure how this little book would get the job done, but as it unfolded I realize The Power to Bless revealed God’s heart with a new fragrance and vision for me. Most of us remember personal stories and examples. This book is loaded with them. Broken, flawed folks like me who were in need of a missed blessing awakened an excitement in me. I think the Spirit of God Himself opened my eyes to receive and broaden God’s perspective of ME. Then as I progressed through the book, I saw the need in so many of my family members, friends, even strangers to know how God sees them.
When God includes a seemingly insignificant story in the Old Testament, it takes someone like Pastor Alan who digs into the culture, into the power of the firstborn blessing, and into the surprise crossing of human hands, to bring alive to me the importance of it all. Who would think that today, the blessing continues from the Torah in Jewish families, “So that day Jacob blessed them and said: “By you shall Israel pronounce this blessing: ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’ ” So he put Ephraim before Manasseh.” (Gen 48:20) I knew Alan would bring this back to the Gospel. I expect it in every one of his books.
But we aren’t left wondering how to comprehend the blessing or how to craft one for a specific person. First of all the Spirit inspires and leads, and then Scripture lays the foundation for four truths developed by Alan ...
*the Security of God’s love for the one to be blessed,
*the Forgiveness and Freedom from the past,
*the Fruitfulness waiting to blossom, and
*the Favor to rest upon the one being blessed for their future each day.
Who wouldn’t want to have the vision of God come to life personally and then be the vehicle through which life and Hope flow to another?!? Oh, and by the way, the author peppers his books with humor. Nothing dry or boring about AW!
I wasn’t completely sure how this little book would get the job done, but as it unfolded I realize The Power to Bless revealed God’s heart with a new fragrance and vision for me. Most of us remember personal stories and examples. This book is loaded with them. Broken, flawed folks like me who were in need of a missed blessing awakened an excitement in me. I think the Spirit of God Himself opened my eyes to receive and broaden God’s perspective of ME. Then as I progressed through the book, I saw the need in so many of my family members, friends, even strangers to know how God sees them.
When God includes a seemingly insignificant story in the Old Testament, it takes someone like Pastor Alan who digs into the culture, into the power of the firstborn blessing, and into the surprise crossing of human hands, to bring alive to me the importance of it all. Who would think that today, the blessing continues from the Torah in Jewish families, “So that day Jacob blessed them and said: “By you shall Israel pronounce this blessing: ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’ ” So he put Ephraim before Manasseh.” (Gen 48:20) I knew Alan would bring this back to the Gospel. I expect it in every one of his books.
But we aren’t left wondering how to comprehend the blessing or how to craft one for a specific person. First of all the Spirit inspires and leads, and then Scripture lays the foundation for four truths developed by Alan ...
*the Security of God’s love for the one to be blessed,
*the Forgiveness and Freedom from the past,
*the Fruitfulness waiting to blossom, and
*the Favor to rest upon the one being blessed for their future each day.
Who wouldn’t want to have the vision of God come to life personally and then be the vehicle through which life and Hope flow to another?!? Oh, and by the way, the author peppers his books with humor. Nothing dry or boring about AW!
January 25, 2021
Do you want to be blessed and be a blessing to others?
In his book "The Power to Bless. How to Speak Life and Empower the People you Love", published by Baker Books, Pastor Alan Wright gives insight into the biblical practice of blessing others. The book is divided into three parts: 1) Believing the Blessing, 2) Receiving the Blessing, and 3) Giving the Blessing. In his introduction Alan Wright asks: "Has anyone ever looked you in the eye, affirmed your infinite value, identified your unique gifts, and pointed you toward a God-given destiny? What would it mean to you for someone to speak that sort of positive vision in faith over your life? Think about the people you love. Don’t you long to help them grow and flourish? How might you impact their lives if you became skilled in the practice of blessing? Here’s my point: everyone needs to be blessed. Without blessing, we will have no deep security and feel no real release from past failures. Unblessed, we’ll never be as fruitful as God has planned, and we won’t walk fully in the favor of God."
Wright writes open and honest about experiences and struggles. He shares examples from his own life, from the lives of others, and from the Bible. He has included a "Blessing Worksheet" (Chapter 11) as well as "Blessings from the Bible" (Appendix A) and "Blessings for every season" (Appendix B). This is very helpful for those who want to apply what they have read and for those who are learning to bless others or want to deepen what they are already practicing. The notes at the end of the book can be used for reference or further study. I highly appreciate the fact that Alan Wright gives a detailed and encouraging blessing to the readers in the conclusion of the book. I recommend this book for parents, especially fathers, who want to bless their children, for spiritual parents, for pastors, Christian workers, missionaries, and for everybody who wants to be a blessing to others. It is a great tool for all who want to learn this skill.
The complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley free of charge. I was under no obligation to offer a positive review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
#ThePowerToBless #NetGalley
In his book "The Power to Bless. How to Speak Life and Empower the People you Love", published by Baker Books, Pastor Alan Wright gives insight into the biblical practice of blessing others. The book is divided into three parts: 1) Believing the Blessing, 2) Receiving the Blessing, and 3) Giving the Blessing. In his introduction Alan Wright asks: "Has anyone ever looked you in the eye, affirmed your infinite value, identified your unique gifts, and pointed you toward a God-given destiny? What would it mean to you for someone to speak that sort of positive vision in faith over your life? Think about the people you love. Don’t you long to help them grow and flourish? How might you impact their lives if you became skilled in the practice of blessing? Here’s my point: everyone needs to be blessed. Without blessing, we will have no deep security and feel no real release from past failures. Unblessed, we’ll never be as fruitful as God has planned, and we won’t walk fully in the favor of God."
Wright writes open and honest about experiences and struggles. He shares examples from his own life, from the lives of others, and from the Bible. He has included a "Blessing Worksheet" (Chapter 11) as well as "Blessings from the Bible" (Appendix A) and "Blessings for every season" (Appendix B). This is very helpful for those who want to apply what they have read and for those who are learning to bless others or want to deepen what they are already practicing. The notes at the end of the book can be used for reference or further study. I highly appreciate the fact that Alan Wright gives a detailed and encouraging blessing to the readers in the conclusion of the book. I recommend this book for parents, especially fathers, who want to bless their children, for spiritual parents, for pastors, Christian workers, missionaries, and for everybody who wants to be a blessing to others. It is a great tool for all who want to learn this skill.
The complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley free of charge. I was under no obligation to offer a positive review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
#ThePowerToBless #NetGalley
February 1, 2021
The Power to Bless is the most uplifting book I’ve read in a very long time. By the time i was finished reading it I couldn’t wait to bless others. Alan Wright encourages his audience to not only bless loved ones but themselves as well because as we are blessed we are able to bless others.
He also points out that God speaks blessing over His children and this is what empowers us in every area of life. God’s blessing gives us security, freedom, fruitfulness, and favor.
I love Pastor Alan Wright’s ministry I am always uplifted and encouraged by his sermons, which are always grace and hope filled.
He also points out that God speaks blessing over His children and this is what empowers us in every area of life. God’s blessing gives us security, freedom, fruitfulness, and favor.
I love Pastor Alan Wright’s ministry I am always uplifted and encouraged by his sermons, which are always grace and hope filled.
July 3, 2021
This book was an a great reminder on how speaking encouraging words are powerful. Beyond speaking kind words, but speaking life into another and the art of building people up in an age where words seem to be either empty of critical. Wright shares great stories to reveal truth and more importantly brings scriptural evidence to why we should and how we can speak life into others.
I would recommend this book to everyone. This book is a great guide on how to share truth with those you love and even challenges you on speaking life to those in our lives that are difficult to love.
I would recommend this book to everyone. This book is a great guide on how to share truth with those you love and even challenges you on speaking life to those in our lives that are difficult to love.
January 21, 2022
I have often said, “Encouragement is oxygen for the soul!” I really believe that and here is a book that thoroughly proves it. I loved chapter 6! I was so sharpened by this book that I actually purchased the Kindle version- I bought the audio version and only buy the Kindle if there are great illustrations to be shared over and over again. I felt a twinge of conviction and guilt when he talked about our responses to life situations that we can provide a moralistic, amoralistic, curse or blessing response. I highly recommend this book.
December 22, 2022
3 ⭐️. Struggled with this one feeling a bit “victim-y” and “prosperity gospelish” in the beginning but by the end def had learned some things and overall glad I read it. I don’t believe that the author is actually exhorting either of those ideas but it definitely bumped up against something in my own heart. I think it will stick with me for a long time which may cause me to come back and up my rating, but for now the “meh and side eye” of the beginning is hanging over my thoughts. (Audio via hoopla)
February 2, 2021
The Power to Bless by Alan Wright is a book I found to be an answer to what is lacking in so many people’s lives. It helped me to look at my own lack of blessing at a young age and how it impacted my confidence and well-being. I learned, hopefully, how to break the cycle and to extend blessings to my grandchildren that are full of grace and truth. You too, can learn how to speak life and empower the people you love.
January 26, 2021
A timely read by Pastor Alan Wright! Deftly written with humor and insight into human behavior, this very useful book lays out the steps we can take to affirm and encourage others by using our God given power to bless. It belongs on a shelf with books as diverse as The Purpose Driven Life and The Five Love Languages and shares with them the potential to be life transforming for many readers.
February 1, 2021
What a wonderful book full of insight and wonder. We can change our lives and the lives of those we care about with the power of God’s words on our lips. This book will help you make it an easy and powerful practice. A must read for everyone!
December 27, 2021
Based on the Biblical teaching of the blessing of Ephraim and Manasseh. Wright show how these blessings are important and still used today. The book is divided into three parts - Believing, Receiving and Giving.
February 6, 2024
My, my, my! What a book. What a conviction! "May God make you as Ephraim and Manasseh". Phew! What a magical book. What a life changing book. This one is going to stick with me for a long time. Thank you Pastor Alan for your vulnerability and yes to God's ministry.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 15, 2025
This book gives a fresh look at what it means to bless someone. I listened to the audio book, which was good, however, there were times when I would have liked to have the e-version or hard version at hand to read over a second time or to copy down some of the thoughts that were presented.
January 9, 2021
# The Power to Bless,# Alan Wright, #nourishing,# encouraging.
This book will open your heart to Gods words and blessings. I highly recommend this book
This book will open your heart to Gods words and blessings. I highly recommend this book
January 30, 2021
The Power to Bless is a life changing book giving biblical insights in the power, purpose, and practice of blessing someone you care about.
February 8, 2021
As a parent and husband I really had to think about what I say and do for those around me. This book made me think of the things that I say a lot more. I enjoyed his personal stories and how they connected to the overall message of the book. I really liked the blessing worksheet at the end of the book as well as the appendices with blessings. These are practical ways that we can use the information from the book to make a difference in our lives and the lives of others around us. If you want to bless others around you, pick up this book and get to it. The very simple message of this book can work for anyone!
December 9, 2025
May God make you as Ephraim and Manasseh <3
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews