Time for a nice Thanksgiving blog. We had a great time on our trip to When I take time to reflect on all the things I’m thankful for each year I can’t help but be amazed at the favor of God on our lives.
For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous;
With favor You will surround him as with a shield. Psalm 5:12
I’ve been thinking a lot about God’s favor lately. It’s amazing to me that just being in righteous relationship with the Lord brings his favor to your life. Just doing the basics of Christianity, (repenting of sin, keeping a pure heart, meditating in God’s Word, seeking to live a good life, etc) causes God to be so delighted in us that he pours out favor and blessing all over His children. Such simple responses on our part bring such incredible blessing from our Heavenly Father. It’s just amazing to think that anyone would ever want to live life any other way.
Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good;
Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! Psalm 34:8
What does this favor look like in our life?
Like family. We are surrounded by such a great family. Spending time with them, like we did this last week, has got to be our favorite thing to do. You know, we really did a whole lot of nothing. We just hung out for days. And reflecting on this week, that’s exactly how we love to spend every holiday time – just being together.
Like church. Not just Family Life Church but all of the body of Christ here in the Treasure Valley, back in Bend, Portland, Orange County, San Diego, Uganda, all over the world. Most people are thankful for their friends. But who knew relationships could be so meaningful and rich. When your relationships are a result of God’s favor, they surpass anything you can experience otherwise. I absolutely love being a contributing part of my local church. It’s the only place I can grow into the man God has called me to be and feel the deep sense of satisfaction that comes from knowing God is using me to further His eternal purpose.
Like surprises. You ever get that feeling that His favor is just chasing you. As if life is so good and you don’t need anything more but God still just loves to surprise you with blessing? This week while in
(Not a real picture of the new guitar)
We have so much to be thankful for. Sometimes I feel like I must have more than everyone else, but then it hits me – God has no favorites. His favor is available to all who live this life. It pleases God when we take time to reflect on all that He has blessed us with.
In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thess 5:18
Question of the Week:
What does God’s favor currently look like in your life?
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Likewise, amazing times with family and friends, being a part of the church body, a great local church that's in a miraculous growth period, and support from everyone around me. Oh, and good music from a great dad.
Hmmm... God's favor. Well, I'd have to say that God has just been blessing my socks off lately with wonderful family and friends. I am discovering now, more than ever, that to have awesome Christian relatives is a rare thing. God is also showing me favor by letting me in a little bit on His plan for my life...opening doors, closing other ones, and really cool opportunities. Who ever said life as a Christian is boring?
Well, being the little sister who follows in your footsteps, I've followed you right into many of the same blessings. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because you just get to sit with family and talk about how thankful you are while eating the best food all year.
God seems to dump his favor on me more than I can ever deserve in the best family, incredible friends who encourage me both in California and in Bend and in Idaho, and His favor keeps being poured on me through HIs willingness to use me. God gives me so many opportunities for my future and for HIs involvement in my life.
Dad and I have always felt that you were extra blessed with God's favor.. you have been the recipient of a boatload of blessings over and over again throughout your life. We thank God often for that for both you and Keri and for how much you love Him. We thank God for your new family with Jamie, David and Lorelei too! We loved having you all at our home for Thanksgiving.. we most certainly have tons to be thankful for! I love you all! Mom
Today: David slept through the night pretty well. Lorelei made a pot of coffee before I woke up and left some for me. I cleaned the house yesterday, so today is reserved for studying and praying. And to top it all off it looks as if it may snow here soon!
What does the favor of God look like in my life?
That's a great question that I couldn't answer immediately (thus the four day wait).
I would say, among other things, the following:
God has blessed me with a SPECIFIC calling and purpose in life for this season. That's fairly "normal" as far as how the Christian walk SHOULD go. For me the favor is in the fact that the call is bigger than my own ability, which requires miracles to pop up on a fairly consistent basis if the calling is to be accomplished. Whether it's an unrequested check in the mail, the "coinsidental" run in that turns in to free housing or training facilities etc., the injuries that heal in one day, or the random $15,000 free trip to anywhere in the world with my family that I won yesterday on zest.com :)
I feel like I'm favored to be in a place similar to the beginnings of King Solomon. If you look past his request for wisdom, he was simply requesting that God give him the tools necessary to accomplish his personal, God given assignment. Along the way God answered that prayer and suprised him with more.
I don't really pray for favor. I believe it is something to position yourself for, not pray for. It's one of those earthly authority things. I have a lot to learn on this subject still, but I think we often miss the favor of God because we didn't authoritatively position ourselves for it... or we accepted the normal way of doing things before pressing through for the miraculous.
So Danny, light questions = 20+ responses
heavy questions = 5+- responses
What do you think about that? :)
I would say right now in life the favor of God looks like...
An amazing Husband and a wonderful child that He has allowed me to share my life with. How He is helping us care for her and how we get to watch her grow every day.
I am constantly amazed on what He has done in our lives and what He continues to do on a daily basis. Awesome question!!!
Jonathan -
I'm loving the Solomon insight. That's great. Congrats on the zest victory!! The crazy Collins life rolls on. I believe you guys are a couple that puts a demand on the favor of God on your lives and sees miraculous results because of it. It's a good challenge for us all...some people get offended by it, but others are pushed on to greatness through your example. Way to go.
As for light and heavy questions, I guess it's to be expected. Actively thinking outside of our routine takes effort. Plus I sent an email out on that first question and haven't since.
I guess I'll keep mixin' it up between the lights and the heavys.
We'll see how it goes.
Alright believers, here's a question that may throw a stick in the wheel. Let's say family, thanksgiving, open doors, oppurtunities, guitars, etc. are all taken away. Let's go ahead and say it's winter and you are in prison without a coat too. Are you still in God's favor? Hmmmmm?
Good one Corey! I don't think that it is about the situation as much as it is about the Source. Because I walk in relationship with God I constantly receive blessings that flow from the Source of the goodness of God's heart. Today that might look like financial blessing and amazing opportunities. Tomorrow it might look like the Peace that surpasses all understanding in the middle of a difficult time. The situation may look different based on the season. However, because the Source never changes, we can always trust the gifts to be good. If we cannot find any trace of the goodness of God in our lives then I would have to question whether or not we are truly positioned in a relationship with Him that results in the fruit of the Spirit.
Indeed His presence is our ultimate reward. I can look at the lives of both Abraham and post-conversion Paul and see very little in common other than "the source" as you put it.
It would even seem there is a difference between old covenant and new covenant favor. Abraham had much, as did David, Solomon and the like. Even Job came out more naturally blessed after his trial.
Yet Jesus himself was a poor carpenter.
Perhaps God was using this paradox to teach us something and I think it is this: "Come what may...if I truly know Him...I am blessed."
We run in to trouble if we begin saying "If I do...then He will" or if we begin to beleive that we deserve anything more than relationship with Him when we're obedient.
I think the most spiritual healthy lives are the ones that constantly remind themselves that they DO have much. Always remembering that if they ever had less, they would still know Him and consequently would still have His favor.
While I absolutely agree with you that Christians should never expect the Mansion and Mercedes as perks to their relationships with God, I do believe that we can and should expect provision and blessing from our Heavenly Father. The form that blessing takes in our lives is not the vital key but rather that we grasp the goodness of our Father's heart and that being a son/daughter provides us the privilege of being the recipients of that goodness. Just as David will receive the blessings that come from being our child vs the neighbor kids down the street, so we should expect to live in the overflow of the goodness of God's heart towards His children if we are in relationship with Him.
I believe the problem comes when we think we can dictate to the Father what His blessing should look like in our lives. Whether God's favor looks like the amazing deal on the new house we bought or Sara Mihalski's testimony of bread showing up on their doorstep when a communist government was attempting to starve their family, we are in a good place when we stop and give credit to the Father and cultivate a thankful heart for the blessings in our lives.
"If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!" Mt 7:11
To summarize, I am in total agreement with you that the favor of God does not equal materialism. However, I do believe that we can expect to live a blessed life because we have chosen life vs death and blessing vs cursing. I believe that the greatest testimonies for an unbelieving generation are lives walking in the obvious favor of God. The more that I understand the heart of God the more that I take away the limitations for what that favor should look like. While it doesn’t have to always look a particular way, it can look a multitude of ways and that would include financial blessing, material gifts, etc. Just as much as it would include wisdom in decision making, food on the table, perfect peace, etc.
Let’s better define favor. Favor’s cousin in scripture is grace. The favor/grace of God is certainly unmerited and undeserved. It’s not something that you can work hard to receive. We’ll never be able to pray hard enough to receive the new motorcycle we really want. I agree with Jonathan when he said, favor has more to do with position than prayer. That position is righteousness. Based on my position as a righteous son of God, I receive the favor of my Heavenly Father. This means He takes pleasure in me, delights in me, wills to do me good, regards me with loving favor.
So the outflow of His favor is His goodness in my life. God wants good things to take place in my life on a regular basis. There is no part of God that wants bad things to happen to his children. Then comes the eternal question, “Then why do bad things happen to good people?” That, my friends, needs an entirely separate blog to itself.
We do run into trouble by building “if I do…then He will” thinking in our lives. Unless, of course, those thought patterns are straight out of scripture. Like, if I tithe, then God will protect my finances and provide for all my needs. Or, if I receive Christ, I will become a righteous son. And also, if I am righteous, then I can expect God’s favor and goodness in my life.
Back to our friend in prison with no coat…
I guess the first question has to be – Why are you in prision? Did you rob a bank? Did you leave your coat at home or did the guards take it from you?
If you’re in prison for crime (and you later became righteous), than God’s favor in your life may look like influence with other prisoners. Or favor with the prison guards. Or extra food or something.
If you’re in prison for preaching the gospel then scripture is clear about what our attitude needs to be concerning persecution. 1 Peter 4:12-19, Acts 5:41.
Bottom line – His favor is His goodness in your life. It ranges from the simple material temporal things (guitars and cars) to the eternal and significant (relationships, kingdom responsibility, revelation in the knowledge of God, etc)
I was referencing 2 Timothy 4:9-22 when I used the prison analogy. Paul's life in particular is one that perplexes me in regards to our topic.
"for I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name's sake." (Acts 9:16)
What an interesting verse! A chosen son of God, a premier apostle and very likely the reason the gospel ever graced our ears having that spoken over his life!
Truthfully, I'm holding to no position in this. Too far one way and you have materialism. Too far the other way and you have existentialism. Like most things in christianity, balance is key. I'm searching to more sharply define the truth.
Perhaps I AM asking the question "why do bad things sometimes happen to good people?" or maybe it's "why do bad things sometimes happen to correctly positioned people?"
And that sounds like a very good new blog topic!
God is so good. He never said that life would be easy, but that it would be good. God has poured such blessing into my life, big and little. waking up on time w/ out my alarm clock, getting to work on time, being blessed with a great job, friends, family, and church to serve at. the biggest thing probably...hearing God speak...we are so blessed to have God be concerned with the details of our lives and speak and tell us how to step...:-) love you all
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