Requesting and Releasing Favor

As a Christian, I am continually at the mercy seat of God for requests of blessings, favor, forgiveness and whatever brings me into His presence.  It’s something every believer does or should do if God is a vital part of their lives. 

I can't speak for others, but I want to live blessed; even more I want to be a blessing to others.  Staying blessed allows God to keep using me as a vessel for His purposes, and that requires me to continually respond to His calling regardless of my feelings in the situation.  That also means my faith is in a testing mode daily.

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The Envelope Please!

 “Let your requests be known” is something I spend much time on with God on a regular basis.  After all isn’t that what prayer is all about?  I’ve learned that I’m not the only one who petitions for something they desire.

We received an unusual appeal on Tuesday. “The Favor of Your Reply is Requested!” was printed on the front of a large white envelope.  It was from an investment company asking us if we would favor them over other firms, with our income.

My husband and I both looked at each other and smiled as he said, “You can use that on your blog.” I tore off the front with the message, and tucked it under a stack of papers ... you know, just in case he happened to be correct.

Right away it got me to thinking.  Overnight I tried to process what that statement actually meant in the company’s eyes and if God was trying to get something through to me.  Well, of course He was, who was I kidding?

Release of Favor Calling

Earlier in the day I received an urgent phone call asking me to pray for a person concerning a situation. I called my husband and asked him to pray with the vet at the animal clinic where he happened to be working that day. 

We discussed the state of affairs briefly and went into more detail later that evening.  What appeared to be an attack from satan I actually thought was a testing from God. 

That person’s problem took me back to the message on the envelope and if they were somehow tied together.  Both had requested something from me, but what they wanted was entirely different.

 

Bestowing Favor on Believers

It doesn’t come as a surprise when another Christian asks me to pray for them and it shouldn’t to you either.  This is something we are to do for one another daily as members of the family of God. 

What I felt honored over was that the individual called me (us).  This person knows plenty of believers, but felt that if they called us, we could agree with them in prayer for the desired answer.  Wow, isn’t that something?  Doesn’t that make you feel special knowing someone trusts you to have the faith you need for Heaven to move? 

“For where two or three are gathered together in My name (as my followers), I am there in the midst (middle/among) of them.” (Matthew 18:20 NKJV emphasis mine)

When someone asks us to pray for them, they are requesting favor from your faith reserve.  They believe in your faith, because you have demonstrated you are trustworthy of God’s favor on your life in answered prayers.  Somewhere along your faith journey they have seen God work on your behalf, and want to tap into that grace. That says a lot about your Christian walk.

If no one is calling you to ask for your “two or three” faith, there is a reason. Our favor walk is directly related to our faith walk, and people can see if it is working in our lives.

Bestowing Favor Unintentionally

As a teacher, minister, counselor and writer I read a lot for my work.  Researching material takes quite a bit of my time, and in my exploration I have come across some great and not so great writing.

One of the places where I write has thousands of contributors.  As part of that community of online writers we encourage one another by reading articles written by other people.

I have been writing for this establishment for almost two years and by the time this is published I would have read 7,000 out of the three plus million articles they have online.  I enjoy the research aspect of writing and always have.  It’s actually the best part of it for me, because I often get to meet writers from around the world, and learn tons of interesting facts.  If you want to be a good writer, you have to do your homework.

The thing about looking at other people’s work doesn’t mean they will look at yours.  Let me explain why that little bit of information is so important to an online writer.

Most people who are online writers are doing it to make money and do it part or full time.  If a person is writing online as a career, they don’t often look at articles unless it pertains to the topic they are working on at the time.  This particular place where I contribute some of my articles keeps tab on how many articles you have visited.  So when I see that a top writer has only visited 25 articles in the past five years and mine was one of them, I am thrilled!  Not all writers feel that way, and get angry when that individual’s article gets top billing.  They feel that socializing should play a part in the rank of the article.  They’re not too off with that thinking, because the Internet search engines think the same way. 

The more visits a site has, the higher it goes in ranking for the search engines such as Google, Bing or others.  Having more visits is important to an online writer, because it generates traffic from other search engines all over the world.  Visits (likes) mean your message was noticed and hopefully will be promoted to the public successfully.  This is something every Christian writer strives for in winning a life to the Lord – “getting the word out to the World.”

What does this have to do with favor?  If you receive something from the world that causes you to increase in any form, that is God sending favor to you from man.  An experienced writer that notices my work and promotes it causes increase to my credibility as a writer, thus increasing my income. Most of the time the world doesn’t realize that they are being used by God to increase you in finances, position or favor.

There are countless times when the unsaved have given to ministries or a religious cause because they want to do something good or need a tax break.  Either way, it is another lesson of proof that God does fulfill His promises.  In reality, it’s favor given unintentionally, so God can receive the glory, not man.

Bestowing Favor Like Christ

Scriptures tell us that we are to show exceptional kindness, grace and favor to our brothers and sisters in Christ.  That is usually easy, even though not everyone does it.

“As we have therefor opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.” Galatians 6:10 (KJV)

The hard part about operating in obedience to God is demonstrating the grace of God toward those who we feel don’t deserve it.  I have to be honest, I don’t always want to be nice to nasty people, and surely don’t want to hand out my grace card of favor to them.  However, that’s exactly what we are supposed to do… show love to the unlovely.

“Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine (your) hand to do it.” Proverbs 3:27  (KJV)

“Do not withhold good from those who deserve it when it’s in your power (ability) to help them.” (from the NLT)

The person that called for prayer was facing several serious things, in which they were being treated unfairly and unkindly.  It was as if a swat team from the devil was zooming in to destroy their faith, finances and family.  Doing something good for this individual would be easy, because they certainly were due my kindnesses.

“But I (Jesus) say unto you, “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.” Matthew 5:44  (KJV)

Love, bless, do good, pray for my enemies? Ooh, I don’t want to do that.  Love the enemies that are trying to destroy my world?  You’ve got to be kidding.  My phone friend told me that along with the persecution came cursing, ridicule and threats as well.

Sure we know that’s what the Bible says, but doing it is another thing right? That would mean I would have to give grace like Christ did regardless of what was coming against me.  I’m not sure I can or want to do that.

That brings me back to the envelope. So what do we do when the world seeks a favor from us?  When it is within our power to do good we are to do it right?  Isn’t that what God is telling us?  Yes, however, we are not released to give favor to those that are not of the faith when it goes against His Word, because that would be an unequal yoking with Him.  

God sometimes asks us to do things that seem unreasonable and makes no sense to us, but it will not contradict the Bible.  For this very reason we need to stay in the Word of God so that we recognize if it is a favor request from God, satan or man.

I came across an old television program this week that happened to deal with a similar situation of the person who called me.  There was an accident where the person hit them from behind.  Neither of the vehicles was damaged, and an agreement of $5 was given to the first driver because of the inconvenience caused by the second driver. (That tells you how old this program was!) As soon as the person realized that the other driver was famous, they decided to sue for $250,000. 

The mother chose to show mercy and goodness to the individual that was suing them.  She showered the disgruntled driver with kindness, grace and favor even though she was the one being sued.  In the end, the charges were dropped.  What happened?  Mercy happened.  Even in situations where favor, God’s mercy is not warranted, God still gives grace when it comes to repentance.  If we are to be Christ’s hands and feet in this world in order to win souls, it means we are to reply to the request of “favor” in order to bring others into the Kingdom of God.

Vessels of Favor

There are many ways God shows His favor; we perceive them as blessings or forms of His protection from the evil one. 

Vessels of God are to become vessels of His favor for Him to pour out on others as He blesses us.  We learned this in our lesson about God’s favor shield.

“But let all those that put their trust in Thee (God) rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them: let them also that love Your name be joyful in You.

“For You, LORD, will bless the righteous; with favor You will compass (surround) him as with a shield.” (Psalm 5:11-12  KJV)

“But let all who take refuge in You be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread Your protection over them, that those who love Your name may rejoice in You. ¹² Surely, Lord, You bless the righteous; You surround them with Your favor as with a shield.” (Psalm 5:11-12 NIV)

Are you a vessel of favor God can use to dispense on undeserving souls?  I think that we often forget that we were once unbelievers that God showed grace to when we received His favor to forgive us from sin. 

Maybe God wants to use you to do something that will change the life of an unbeliever and you really don’t want to do it.  You might want to reconsider the cost of not obeying the voice of God. 

We receive blessings, grace (unmerited favor) from God because He loves us.  Favor is never given because we “deserve it”, but is given as a tool or vessel for a greater cause. 

Paul admonishes us that we have knowledge of the good news of Christ in our bodies or “vessels”.  This information is a hidden treasure to the world, and God’s mercy allows us to be a part of His overall plan.

“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.  We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair.” (2 Corinthians 4:6-8 NKJV)

In order for favor to be increased in our own lives, we have to be willing to give it to others freely.  God didn’t ask us to validate His reasons why we need to be kind to others that persecute us; He just said to do it. 

I feel richly blessed when God calls on me to give blessings (which are favors) to others.  It lets me know that He feels I am a vessel He can use, and that draws me closer to Him.  The more I am used to bless others, the more my favor levels need to rise.

If you are seeking God and longing to walk in His blessings, there will be times when someone out of the blue asks, “The Favor of Your Reply is Requested!”  How will you respond? 

You cannot give favor if you don’t have it to give.  This company was hoping I would bless and favor their company above any others with something I had that they needed (or wanted).  They did not realize that I was not required to bestow anything on them without the direction of the Holy Spirit.

On the other hand, my phone friend messaged that God heard our prayers and the situation was resolved.  As a fellow believer, I was required to use my faith and reply to their plea. Praise God for His mercy and favor toward our request.

It’s Time to Release God’s Favor

                             

Christian Mom with six kids sunrisewithasixpack.com 

After reading this, I guarantee that your favor vessel will be tested.  As a matter of fact, if you have been seeking God for blessings (favor) I know you have been in trials.  The question is, what are you going to do when a request is made of you from God or man?  It may have to do with finances, but not necessarily. 

Perhaps God is asking you to give the favor of time to someone or something.  You may be asked to give up possessions, friends, family or a position.  Whatever it is, don’t delay giving God what He requests of you.  If God wants you to release something into His hands so He can reply to someone’s request for favor, do it.  You can be sure that what you give up will not compare to the blessing He has that will replace, restore and renew what you gave away.

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly above all we ask or think, according to the power (of the Holy Spirit) that works in us.” (Ephesians 3:20 NKJV)

Our God is able to do above that we can ask or think.  Release favor blessings and your request for them will come back to you. 

“Give, and it will be given to you” (how) good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom.  For with the same measure that you use (give blessings, favor and mercy), it will be measured back to you.” (Luke 6:38  KJV)

Let God use you as His favor dispenser. Get excited when someone calls on you above all others and reply “Yes” to their request according to God’s Word, knowing you have been called as a chosen vessel of favor for our Almighty God.

If You Can Use Anything, Lord Use Me - Ron Kenoly

 

Until next time, release blessings of favor at God’s request!

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Favor to the Humble

Any writer in their right mind comes upon times when they simply want to avoid certain issues concerning their personal lives.  

However, as I promised a few weeks ago, there are topics I believe all people shouldn’t shy away from when it comes to living a life that God honors.

Let me fill you in on a few details and then I’ll continue.

My husband made another visit to the hospital for three kinds of tests, one of which is to check if the Digoxin levels are too high causing nausea.  I don't really understand the other tests yet, but I'm sure they'll fill us in on the details soon.  By the way, his leg is healing great from the recent surgery.

While out doing errands, hubby has had some challenges of his own. There are times when people aren't very kind if he's moving a bit slower than they want when he's using a cane.  That brings me to sharing a side of our lives that is a little more private.  Besides being on topic, I feel that it's Biblically correct and necessary for Christians to speak-up and defend the righteous.

Finding Grace

Leaving the doctor's office (that we had to travel a great distance to) we decided to get something to eat before the long trip home.  While standing in line to order our meal, a young man foolishly made fun of my husband making some unkind remarks and laughing in an effort to humiliate or embarrass him.

It didn't work and this man found the grace of God that day, because he didn't know the strength or abilities of my husband.  Having a hard upbringing, Hubby was the kind of guy that would beat the stuffing out of someone, then pull you up and lay hands on you for healing.  To put it mildly in his terms – he doesn’t do “stupid.”

Being redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb, the hubster has learned to refrain from certain past behaviors so that his testimony will not be ruined by responding to his feelings.  Just because we are Christians doesn’t mean that we don’t get angry.  The difference is that when tempted to give in to those natural flesh emotions, we are not to let ourselves fall into sin by acting out on them.

God has given us the ability to show others grace and forgiveness in difficult times.  He didn’t say we’ll always like it or find it easy to do so, but we are empowered by the Holy Spirit favor to do it anyway.

Stripping the lad of any power over him, quietly hubby moved aside diminishing his attempts of belittlement, and let the person go behind the counter of the establishment.  Apparently, he worked there and was about to start his shift.

Taking A Stand for the Righteous 

The woman taking our order noticed what happened but didn't say anything.  Sheepishly turning her head, she quickly went about trying to fill our order without making any eye contact.

I could see that she felt uncomfortable over the situation, and felt the need to say something knowing at that moment it would be scripturally correct.  Wisdom led that it be short and to the point; God would do the rest.

After paying the bill I leaned over the counter and spoke to the cashier in a timid manner.

"You might not be feeling that great either if you've had ten operations." 

Instantly stopping what she was doing her jaw dropped, "Are you serious?"

Nodding my head, I gathered our order and we left the facility.  As we were leaving, her speech turned as sweet as cream with an apology to follow.

Bullies Beware

There's a reason I wanted to share this with you.  October is National Anti-Bullying Month, and although it's toward the end of it the action never ceases.

Please don't be fooled into thinking that this type of conduct only happens to kids, because it doesn't.  Bullying occurs in every race, religion, at all ages and to a both sexes.

Hurtful words and harmful behavior happen at all ages, and even though hubby isn't old, he is proof of that.  That person saw the cane as a sign of weakness, but was obviously mistaken in his view and belief.  

Scene from Miracle on 34th Street

Maybe if hubby was old he’d have used that cane like Santa in Miracle on 34^th Street did and pop that bugger on the head … but he didn’t.  (I wonder if that crossed his mind; I’ll have to ask him.)

He doesn't usually need a cane, but that day hubby did due to riding in the car for such a long time causing his leg (the surgery one) to swell.  If that individual walked past my husband any other day he'd probably steer clear of him.

A warning to those who bully.  Don't think because a person doesn't lash out or try to get revenge that you are off the hook.  Someone is watching and waiting - God.

He sees it all and will turn the situation around so that those who are mocked are shown favor, while the mocker receives shame or public embarrassment. 

“The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked,
    but He blesses the home of the righteous.
 He mocks mockers, but He shows favor to the humble.

The wise gain respect, but fools receive shame."

(Proverbs 3:33-35 CEB)

This incident may not seem like anything big ( I gave the shortened version), but it does demonstrate a “type” of hate crime between generations or those with disabilities (even if temporary).  Bullying happens in more ways than most people realize, and at all levels from verbal to actual physical abuse.

There Is A Cause 

There are two specific issues that I'd like to address when it comes to bullying.  It’s not unusual for us to read, see or hear about bullying that goes on around us.  Christians get bullied and believe it or not, Christians bully.

In this case my spouse didn't do anything to warrant aggression toward him, and it had nothing to do with his faith.  However, in the past teen-hubby learned to bully from being bullied – through his pain he gave pain.  My husband came from a background of being bullied, and as he grew taller and stronger in anger he used to respond the wrong way.  

It was through God’s grace that he learned to recognize the reasons for the bad actions and types of bullying.  He came to understand that all of it is a result of something that had nothing to do with him.

As in every action, there is a cause and effect.  Hubby experienced the effect.  He wasn’t the cause of why this boy acted in that manner, but reaped the result of how the person learned to respond like he did.

Along his path to righteousness through Christ Jesus, my husband learned to  make Favored Decisions to change his own behavior even though he was hurting.  Only through the journeying with Jesus do we gain wisdom, knowledge and understanding for receiving His Daily Favor on our lives.

Learning not to react to someone else’s bad or bitter behavior is key to understanding the grace (unmerited, undeserved favor) of God.  It’s what allows us to demonstrate love and forgiveness to others even when they don’t deserve it.

Beloved, don’t be dismayed but believe.  By not getting angry and showing grace to others, God promises that He will increase grace (favor) on those who are humble.

Grace Forgives Stupid

What is your attitude when it comes to bullying at any age?  How do you respond when you see someone being bullied? 

Do you act the same way if it is geared toward an adult as you would if it was a child?  What does God say He will do for those who remain humble during difficult times of persecution?

“And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another,

even as God in Christ forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:32 NKJV)

The Bible tells us that we are to be kind one to another and be tenderhearted (showing compassion), forgiving one another even as Christ has forgiven us.  That includes when we are mistreated.  

I long to have a heart that forgives, is full of compassion and loves just like Jesus.  This is an attribute of Christ's that I strive for each and every day.  It takes work, but God's and unmerited favor are so worth it don't you think?

It doesn't mean we are to become doormats for bullying as believers, but that we are to let the grace and mercy we have been given through salvation be shown ... and yes, I'm going to say it ... even to the stupid-hearted!  After all, when we walked without Christ wasn't that a bit stupid as well?

 Stop Bullying Today (Christian Themed)

Until next time, demonstrate favor through God's grace!

I understand being persecuted and favor the humble heart.

-   Jesus Christ

What’s New This Week: Click on the link.

Confronting the Demon: A Gospel Response to Adult Bullying

by: Gerald A. Arbuckle

   

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Maybe you don’t know the Living God that I know but would like to have this kind of favor in your life also.  Click on the above tab “TellMe About Jesus” for more information on becoming a child of the Savior.

Note: Emphasis may be given in some scriptures to show clarity or understanding and is not to take away from the inspirited Word of God.

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Let It Go

Lori's books are available below.

A few weeks ago I had a brief conversation with author friend Lori A. Moore about people setting a time limit on grieving or any kind of grief for that matter. 

Grief doesn’t have to be only from losing a loved one, but comes in many forms.  This is a subject I’ve studied extensively for counseling people. 

There are numerous reasons why we grieve. People grieve over a job, pet, relationship, bad decisions, material things or loss of dreams.  Did you know that women even grieve over moving?

Lori made it clear that she doesn’t believe there is a time one should “be over it,” but there is a process along the journey. 

She explains in her book “Missing Andy” how she had to walk out the process with God in order to regain the “living” part of her life.

It was her journey through grief that “furthered her relationship with God and showed her how to truly live again. Come out of a place of inconsolable sadness and discover the joy that can only be found through Christ Jesus.” (Description quote)

Turning something that was meant for bad into good can only take place when you learn the meaning of trusting God.

Moving on from our past and the things we know is one of the hardest things someone can do.  Unfortunately, I can say this from too many experiences where I had to let go of my emotions in order to move forward in my life. 

Welcome new friends this week from: 

New on DFB – Kuwait; El Salvador; Dominican Republic; Lithuania; Kranj, Bohinj, Slovenia; Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India; Taiwan; France; Chili.  USA: Thank you faithful ones.
It gives me great joy welcoming new people each week.  What fun to meet you and share this Inner Journey together on Daily Favor?  (DFB - Daily Favor Blog) 
 

Feel free to leave your comments or prayer requests.  I would love to hear from you and how Daily Favor has worked in your life.  If I’ve missed anyone forgive me. Please share this challenge and invite more friends to join us.  You are making a difference!

 

Don’t miss out on this week’s challenge (below). Q & A

It’s funny that I’m sharing this writing with you this week.  I wrote it on April 10^th 2014, but the timing wasn’t right. 

How I came about writing this was triggered by some teaching and a single movie clip from years ago that helped me step out in faith after some tragedies.  Yes, there have been a ton of books and videos that I watched to help me deal with the emotional part of loss and some helped.  

However, there was a silly opening scene from Night at the Museum 2 (Smithsonian) that my husband and I have ingrained in our thoughts whenever the devil tries to suck us back in past hurts...  “Let it go, baby!” 

It seems that the Apostle Paul felt the same way ...
“Brothers and sister (in Christ), as I said, I know I have not arrived; but there’s one thing I am doing: I’m leaving my old life behind, (letting it go) putting everything on the line for this mission (journey).  I am sprinting toward the only goal that counts: to cross the line, to win the prize, and to hear God’s call to resurrection life found exclusively in Jesus the Anointed.” (from Philippians 3:13-14 the Voice)

Vessels of Grace

About ten years ago there was a woman in our church that couldn’t let go of her pain and guilt.  The problem wasn’t something she did, but what she felt she didn’t do.  Her teenage son committed suicide.  The devil tried convincing her that it was her fault, even though it wasn’t true. 

The grief and emotional roller coaster she experienced literally prevented her from leaving her house and functioning in society.  It almost destroyed her marriage.

Instead of giving in to fear, by faith her husband allowed God to work through him and her other children.  The process was slow, but it was a journey the family needed to take with God where they learned “we are vessels of grace.”

Beyond the Comfort Fence

There will be a time in all of our lives where we will have to go beyond what we know.  Some refer to it as “leaving their comfort zone.” 

When we moved from all that we knew in life our lives changed dramatically – some good, some bad events transpired over the course of a few short years. 

There were things I was holding on to that I wasn't aware of until after we moved.  Bitterness, anger, resentment and unforgiveness stemmed as far back to when I was four years old. 

Not having television or a car allowed me plenty of time to think.  That's when my writing really got serious and so did my walk with God.

I knew if I didn’t get my act together emotionally that I would never reach any more of my goals or my potential.  My life could have easily been swept away in depression, self-pity and disappointment.

God showed me through simple things that were taking place in my “new life” how to move from the past and let things go.  Honestly, this wasn’t easy at first, but as I practiced what I learned the healing would come.

Lessons from My Dog

It has to make you laugh at times when God reveals things to you in the most unusual forms, for example, my dog.

When Sunshine and I went on our walks, she was always on a lead and could only go as far as the leash stretched.  If I dropped the leash on the ground she would sit down at my feet.

Even if I moved away from her, she wouldn’t move, I mean ever.  It was if she was ground tied.  I never taught her that, she did it on her own (making me look good).  It was a behavior I needed to retrain if she was to experience new things I had planned for her. 

While traveling in New York there were places we visited in Lake George that had great open fields where we could run our pets.  One particular place I loved the entire football field was fenced. 

We decided to take the pets off the leashes and let them go, running free to do what they were meant to do in life – be happy, carefree and one with nature.  As soon as I took off the leash, Sunshine would run around in every direction literally popping in the air.  Although she was free to play, she was always aware of where I was on the field and kept me in her sight. 

Sunshine would run a bit and then run right back to me.  When I called her away from an unsafe place she listened and moved with me trusting that the decision was in her best interest.

God showed me/us that no matter where we go, He is worthy of our trust.  The Lord is always going to be there and His Holy Spirit will comfort us as we venture into new territories.  He isn’t leading us into places that will cause us harm. 

Moving the Boundaries

Our lessons of trust and moving past our comfort zone wasn’t nearly over.  If we are to grow on our journey with Jesus we have to get our “emotional pain” under control.  That will take moving beyond our own boundaries of faith and into God’s faith world.

A few years ago we realized that Sunshine needed to move past some pain in her life both physically and emotionally.  Her sister moved to Heaven and so we wanted her to build new relationships with our neighbor’s dog.  In order to do that we had to make a big decision – move the fence!

When we moved the boundaries of the fence and created a new larger space for Sunshine, she still wouldn’t go past the old fence line.  The fence wasn’t there, but in her mind it was and she refused to cross over to the new area beyond the former boundaries.

Invisible Fences 

Even though we enlarged her world, Sunshine stayed in the “old” part of the yard with invisible fences holding her back.  Is that what’s happening in your world?  Perhaps God is trying to get you to cross over into the new things and has removed some fence boundaries in your life, but you are being bound by invisible fences. 

It took some retraining, but my pup learned that I was always with her guiding her into the new territory.  Don’t you get it?  I was the one who moved the fence and expanded her boundaries.  She didn’t ask me to do it, nor did I consult her on my actions.  Her “Master” saw that giving her more room would help her stay emotionally and physically fit.  Once she accepted the move, Sunshine thrived in the new area.  

For the longest time we could still see where the fence used to be.  It took a few summers for the grass to completely cover the line, and now you can’t even tell where the old fence was.

Holding on to God and letting go of the past.

 

Unleashed Faith

Sometimes God takes off the short leash we had as new born Christians and moves the fences in our lives to stretch our faith.  It is a testing that is implemented to encourage us to step out in faith knowing that God will be with us no matter where the fences are moved. 

In the new places He takes us, we learn different ways or approaches that we never knew existed or were needed.  Instead of getting overtaken by the “grief” of whatever it is, God helps us take that new approach so we can accomplish greater things for Him.

Jesus gave us a reason to hope when He made the statement that we would do greater things than He did.  How could that be possible?  All things are possible with God when we unleash our faith and act on His promises.  

“Jesus said to him, “If you (He meant you or me) can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” (Mark 9:23 NKJV)
Knowing Christ said we will do greater things tells us that there is more to be done, and that God wants to do it through us.  How exciting is that?  

A preacher once spoke on a conversation he had with God (in his spirit, not vocally). The Lord asked him this question:  “What things would you do if you had unlimited resources and money?”

I can imagine a list of things that popped in your head as did in mine when I heard him share this story.  You might even say, “…but I don’t have those things.”  Once more, “What if you did?”  You would be able to do all sorts of things, but that wouldn’t require faith. 

God wants us to understand we do have access to anything through Christ Jesus, but it will come through our faith when we let go of what’s holding us in the same places.


Challenge of the Week:

Unleash Your Faith

Every person who has chosen to walk this journey to Jesus on Daily Favor is experiencing new growth, whatever the level or pace.  God is removing some boundaries and asking us to let go of things that are stopping Him from taking us beyond our expectations or “more than we could ask or dream.”

Our challenge will require three things of us.

First: Literally write down the things that you haven’t let go of that are stopping your promotion in God’s favor.  These are the things that are keeping you bound and preventing you from being the best you. Be honest, you’re dreams and desires are at risk here.  Bring that list into your prayer closet and give them to the Lord one by one.

After you’ve prayed put the list inside an envelope.  On the front write this statement:

“These no longer belong to me but God, because I let them go.”

Then tuck it into your Bible at Mark 9:23 as if you were handing it to God Himself.  Use the Bible as your point of contact, believing all things are possible with God.  Ask Him to strengthen you as you take this step of faith not to steal back what you have given over to the Lord.

The next two steps involve memorization of God’s promises, so when satan tries to talk you out of your deliverance, you can say, “Not this time devil, I’ve got a promise from God!”

Second: If we are to believe by faith for our dreams, we have to believe God will first meet our needs.  Memorize Philippians 4:19.

“And my God shall supply all (speak your name here) according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

Expect things to start going according to your prayers based on God’s Word.  It’s easy to recognize huge things, but make sure you don’t overlook the smallest boundary changes.  God is doing something, notice Him.

Third:  Every day (even past this week’s quest ending) pray the Disciple’s Prayer (some call it the Lord’s Prayer) in Matthew.  When you pray it, not quote, it something changes in the Heavenly atmosphere realm.  As you pray “us and our” be mindful that it is referring to the entire Body of Christ, not just you or your family.  

By praying for others, your prayers will be heard. In turn, God will respond to your faith granting His unlimited grace, mercy and favor. 

Jesus said, after this manner pray (say it like this):

Our Father, which is in Heaven, Holy is Your Name.

Your Kingdom come, Your will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from (all) evil: For Thine is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.  Amen.” (taken from Matthew 6:9-13 NKJV)

When we call on the Lord to lead us, we can freely let go of old painful boundaries and walk into a new life of hope.   Don’t count yourself out based on the fact that you lost your way on the path.  Hold on to the One who is faithful and makes all things possible.

Let your faith run wide (not your behavior) into places where you can grow.  In showing yourself faithful, God will expand the boundaries.  With your “griefs, worries and boundaries” taken away by the blood seal promise of Jesus, you are now an empty vessel waiting to be filled and used for the greater things. Unleash your faith; let it (faith) go and see where God takes you.  

 

All Things Possible Mark Schultz

Remember His Promises: Whom Shall I Fear [God of Angel Armies]  

Until next time, receive favor by unleashing your faith.

 

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