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Favor from God = Favor with man

The second principle actually leads to a sub-plot of pride that Haman possessed. When I guard my heart, I understand that true honor and favor are given by God—not man. I have learned that when I seek favor with man first, that it doesn’t result in favor from God. However, when I seek favor from God first, it results in favor with man also. Why is this? When you seek God you find yourself serving others, as Jesus teaches us to do, “That the greatest of all is servant” (see Matthew 23:11). On the contrary, seeking…  ( Click for more )

Why are we commanded to “guard our hearts above all else”? (Proverbs 4:23). My pastor recently mentioned that “above all” is only used sixteen times in the Bible and this is the only place where “above all else” is used—signifying utmost importance in this command. Another thing to note is that we are not talking about the muscle inside your ribcage. The word “heart” in the Hebrew can be translated as our “mindset”. Essentially our mindset is the seat of our emotions, or the place where our motives are formed.…  ( Click for more )

I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:13-14 NIV

I’ve heard it said that women that go into labor and eventually give birth to a child hate the process of labor. (No kidding, right!) It is tremendous and intense pain. It is something that you despise and wonder why all this pain, but then suddenly all the pain of the situation is erased with the crying of the newborn baby. The delivery makes all of the pain of the process worth it. As…  ( Click for more )

Favor. What causes an individual to have the “favor of God” upon their lives? Do some individuals have more of it than others? Is favor the same as anointing? All good questions that came to my mind while reading a book about this subject recently. Many people preach on how to walk in God’s favor and how to obtain God’s favor. Further it is said that by obtaining God’s favor it will translate into blessings in other areas of your life. So what is it and how is it obtained? Hopefully this devotional will center on answering that last question. …  ( Click for more )

Popularized by Edward Hickson, the phrase, "if at first you don't succeed, try, try again", has come to mean displaying determination against all odds. It is an admirable phrase, one that I've used both for myself and to encourage others in my short life. However, I would like to change this antique phrase just a bit to "if at first you don't succeed, wait on God". Why the subtle change? Well, because I've always associated that powerful saying with individual effort or some type of extraordinary self-motivation. You know, a special will-power that you invoke…  ( Click for more )

Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 1 Peter 5:5-6 (NIV)

The life of submitted believer is similar to an olive that yields the fruit of fresh oil. Crushed olives provide oil that is used for many things. However the usefulness of oil isn’t realized until the olives are pressed in a process to yield the “fruit”.…  ( Click for more )

Just one more week of change. May this be a refreshing spring of water for your spirit as you wait patiently on the Lord. He is faithful and he will answer. Although it may seem that you are in a drought or a dry season, do not let your natural man perceive something that is not true. Continue to praise God for the season of harvest that you are in.

Verse 4…Delight yourself in the Lord…Living a life for God should bring us joy. I always tell my children that they must choose to have a good day. They are in full control of making themselves enjoy their day.…  ( Click for more )

This is something different that I pray will bless you. Often I like to take a division of the psalms and personalize it. I have found great peace and joy in this process. Replacing the personal pronouns with my own name and speaking the “revised” psalm out loud. God’s amazing character is throughout the Bible and particularly in these psalms of praise and adoration from various writers.

Verse 2…The LORD builds up Jerusalem…God alone can establish us. The righteous are sustained by his Great name and no other. There is no need to seek sustenance…  ( Click for more )

Now it came to pass, when David was dwelling in his house, that David said to Nathan the prophet, "See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of the covenant of the LORD is under tent curtains. Then Nathan said to David, "Do all that is in your heart, for God is with you. But it happened that night that the word of God came to Nathan, saying, Go and tell My servant David, "Thus says the LORD: "You shall not build Me a house to dwell in. 1 Chronicles 17:1-4

Although King David desired to build God a house, his request was rejected. (Maybe another…  ( Click for more )

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green. Psalm 92 12-14 (NIV)

Ok. Stop and think. Name the last situation you have been in that God did not see you through. Just pause a bit and think about it. Ok now that you have that situation in mind, what was it that made you doubt that he would come through for you (until he did.) Fear? Anxiety? The seriousness of the circumstance?…  ( Click for more )

And it happened, before Isaiah had gone out into the middle court, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying, "Return and tell Hezekiah the leader of My people, "Thus says the LORD, the God of David your father: "I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the LORD. Then Isaiah said, "This is the sign to you from the LORD, that the LORD will do the thing which He has spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees or go backward ten degrees? And Hezekiah answered, "It is an…  ( Click for more )

You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Isaiah 26:3 (NKJV)

In the Last Samurai, there is a scene where Tom Cruise’s character, James Algren, is learning to fence but keeps being defeated. The commander’s son, Nobutada, finally tells him that he has “too many mind”. He reminds him that he is trying to “mind the sword, mind the people watch, mind enemy - -too many mind”. What he means is that if James is to learn the way of the Samurai, he had to focus more intently on this one thing. James…  ( Click for more )

Samuel said to Saul, "I am the one the LORD sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from the LORD. This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. Then Saul attacked the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, to the east of Egypt. He took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and all his people he totally destroyed with the sword. But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves and lambs - everything…  ( Click for more )

It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. God accepted Abel's offering to show that he was a righteous man. And although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us because of his faith. It was by faith that Noah built an ark to save his family from the flood. He obeyed God, who warned him about something that had never happened before. By his faith he condemned the rest of the world and was made right in God's sight. It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his…  ( Click for more )

Now the gates of Jericho were tightly shut because the people were afraid of the Israelites. No one was allowed to go in or out. But the LORD said to Joshua, "I have given you Jericho, its king, and all its mighty warriors. Your entire army is to march around the city once a day for six days. Seven priests will walk ahead of the Ark, each carrying a ram's horn. On the seventh day you are to march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the horns. When you hear the priests give one long blast on the horns, have all the people give a mighty shout.…  ( Click for more )

"Later on God tested Abraham's faith and obedience.”Abraham!" God called."Yes," he replied. "Here I am.”Take your son, your only son – yes, Isaac, whom you love so much – and go to the land of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will point out to you. Genesis 22:1-2 (NLT)

I cannot imagine that Abraham on his three day journey to this region of Moriah thought that his faith was being tested. We all know the story of this great father of faith and how he was called from his father’s…  ( Click for more )

"Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them - to the Israelites. Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Joshua 1:2,6

What would you do if you were commissioned by God to do something that you knew you were incapable of doing? I mean in and of yourself it’s not happening and even with God’s help you are still a little afraid. Joshua was faced with filling the shoes of Moses,…  ( Click for more )

I have to admit that I struggled with the title of this train of thought for some time after just penning a four-part series on “The Blessings of Obedience”. But who do you know that doesn’t need just a few more pointers in being obedient? I know of no one. I struggle with obeying God’s will just like the next person, but I’m learning to realize that it is ok to struggle, as long as you resolve to say “nevertheless thy will be done” (see Luke 22:42). I encourage any of you struggling with your desire to obey God’s will for your…  ( Click for more )

What is the cost of being a disciple of Jesus? Does the Bible specifically tell us what this cost is and how we are to “pay for it”? Does discipleship even require one to give up something? After all Jesus paid it all, right? Today I seek to answer some of those questions in order to emphasize the reality of true discipleship. Being a believer in Jesus Christ is not just accepting the salvation he provides, but it is also following the road to sanctification that he outlines for us. He has mandated that we obey his commandments and follow his for our life (see…  ( Click for more )

In this day and age, believers are challenged to match up their theology (one’s view of God) with reality. A tumbling economy, soaring prices, rising unemployment and a stack of bills may cause every facet of your mind to run wild with anxiety. It is ok, you’re normal. A valid question is, "does God see this and care about this”? It is not easy to acknowledge that a loving, caring God allows such disarray, especially in the life of one of his own children. Quite frankly, a sane person would say that the believer is crazy for believing that God allows such…  ( Click for more )

When we all gather together for kingdom purpose it will trigger the sharing of resources. I have realized that churches that operate with one common goal and agenda that their contributions to the kingdom are greater, more consistent and impactful. When a church is divided on the direction it should take, the result is smaller resources, inconsistency and less impact for God’s kingdom. The latter example struggles to get support financially or physically (in attendance) for its programs and activities. Whereas the former performs at maximum capacity while completing tasks…  ( Click for more )

Before we continue this week, let’s address two points from last week’s devotional. What does “church” really mean? First, I hope we are not naïve enough to believe it is a building with four walls. Next, let’s assume it is an institution. When I use the word institution it may connotes a bureaucratic system of doing things (e.g. prison, school, etc.). Well, this is precisely what I mean. I have been a member of churches that operate more by rules, regulations and traditions than by the inspiring of the Holy Spirit. In my opinion, this is…  ( Click for more )

I will start with an apology in that this thought will take some time to flesh out. I don’t know how long but it has been something I’ve dealt with for two years so it may take a while. But what happens when you as a believer find yourself in a life that has as much bondage as the life of sin you left? Let’s say you are a part of a church that believes that the more programs that it puts on the holier they appear. The pastor or leadership can never be challenged because they manipulate individuals to adopt their agenda. Consequently, you feel confused and trapped.…  ( Click for more )

In the “The Bucket List” Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson play two old men carrying out their life-long wishes before their terminal illnesses take their lives. Jack’s character is filthy rich and provides the means for the trips and excursions that they take together. Wanting to leave their mark on the world they do some of everything. (I won’t tell the whole movie, rent it.) But when I think about that movie in context, it proves to me that God has created every being with a purpose. Everyone wants to leave their mark on the world. Their “I was here”.…  ( Click for more )