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Favor: The Path to Prosperity
by Tom Brown
 You can have people favor you. The dictionary defines favor as
to show preferential treatment, to give advantage to another, and
to give special favors.
Do you think your life would be better if people gave you
preferential treatment? Of course it would.
There was a time in my Christian walk that I expected people
to not like me because I was Christian. I had a persecution
complex. It is true that the Bible says that we shall be
persecuted, but at the same time, we need to balance persecution
with favor.
It is Christ-like to have favor working in your
life.
And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with
God and men. (Luke 2:52)
Jesus grew in favor, not only with God, but also with men.
People favored Jesus. Yes, they crucified Him, but at the same
time, crowds thronged to hear Him preach. People liked Jesus.
We all want to be like Jesus. To be like Him means that we
should also grow in favor with people. Believe for
favor. Don’t believe that people will dislike you.
Benefits of Favor
Favor has its benefits. Ruth caught a rich, godly man for a
husband named Boaz. The Bible says:
At this, she bowed down with her face to the ground.
She exclaimed, "Why have I found such favor in
your eyes that you notice me—a
foreigner?"… "May I continue to find favor
in your eyes, my lord," she said. "You
have given me comfort and have spoken kindly to your
servant—though I do not have the standing of one of your
servant girls." (Ruth 2:10 and 13)
Let’s face it: in order to get married you must have
someone favor you. If you’re single you can
get this favor working in your life to find a spouse. Ruth was not exactly the best catch but she had
great faith in God and had a right spirit.
Bob Buess tells the story of a woman who wrote to tell him how
bad everything was in her life. She was attractive but she could
not get a date with any of the boys. She had a negative spirit.
Bob wrote back, "I don’t blame them for not liking
you. I’m afraid I could not like you myself." He wrote
that to shock her. He got her attention. Then he told her to
change her attitude about others and herself. He sent her
scriptures about favor and told her to confess them about herself
everyday. It worked. She wrote back to tell him that she was
engaged.
He met her later, and she introduced him to her
fiancé—not the same one that she was engaged to but another
one. She eventually married the second guy.
Whether you are a young teenager who feels
lonely or a businessman who lacks customers, favor can work for
you. But you have to put it to work.
You have to believe for it.
Joseph had Favor
The best story in the Bible about favor working in
someone’s life is Joseph. Everything started off bad with
Joseph. Although he was the favorite son of his father, his
brothers hated him. They sold him as a slave. Eventually he wound
up at Potiphar’s mansion.
God gave Joseph favor with him, and so Potiphar placed him in
charge of the entire estate. Later, Potiphar’s wife falsely
accused Joseph of rape, and so Joseph was thrown in prison.
Still, Joseph did not let the circumstances get him down. He
stayed optimistic. The warden put Joseph in control of the
prison. There he interpreted the dreams of Pharaoh’s baker
and cupbearer. To the cupbearer, Joseph told him that his dream
meant that he would be restored as Pharaoh’s wine taster.
Joseph added, "When all goes well with you, remember me and
show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this
prison." (Gen 40:14)
The cupbearer forgot Joseph. So for another two years Joseph
stayed in prison. Eventually the cupbearer remembered Joseph, and
through a set of circumstances Joseph became second in charge of
Egypt.
You might ask, "Why did Joseph have so much favor with
people?" Listen carefully: The reason Joseph
had favor with people was because of his magnanimous spirit.
We don’t often hear the word magnanimous but it means a
big heart, generous in forgiving an insult or injury, free from
petty resentfulness or vindictiveness.
You see favor does not flow from heaven to others so that they
look upon you with kindness. No, favor flows from your spirit to
others. If your spirit is wrong and polluted then
favor can’t flow from you to others.
Favor is not based on luck, but on a big heart.
Mary was Highly Favored
The Bible mentions that Mary was highly favored.
The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you
who are highly favored! The Lord is with
you." (Luke 1:28)
But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid,
Mary, you have found favor with God."(Luke 1:30)
Why was Mary highly favored? Notice later in that same
chapter:
And Mary said: "My soul glorifies the Lord and my
spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of
the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations
will call me blessed, (Luke 1:46-48)
Mary’s spirit was full of praise, not complaints or
bitterness. She said, "My spirit rejoices." Favor works through a person who has a rejoicing spirit.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit,
brothers. Amen. (Gal 6:18)
A similar word for favor is grace. Grace is with your
spirit. If your spirit is negative, favor can’t flow
from you to others.
Joseph had a good spirit about him. This is why God gave him
favor with so many people. He had reasons to become bitter, but
he ignored them and chose to forgive people. He even forgave his
brothers.
If you don’t have many friends, I can tell
you why: you don’t have a good spirit. You have become
negative. You think bad about
others, and possibly, think bad about yourself. You need to
change your attitude and believe the best in people and yourself.
When you start to do that you will begin to have favor with
others.
Shields Up!
My personal favorite scripture on favor is this:
For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous; you
surround them with your favor as with a shield. (Ps 5:12)
My wife and I confess this scripture often, especially when we
are going to speak in front of people. We know that unless people
favor us, they will reject the message we preach. This scripture
has worked.
God will surround them with favor as with a shield. You
need a shield for protection. Favor will protect
you from the gossip and criticism of others.
When they try to malign you, favor can protect you from the ill
effects of their malicious words. This shield of favor will not
just protect you from the front but also the rear. It is a shield
that surrounds you. Even when you don’t know what
people are saying about you, this divine favor will insulate you
from damage.
When I think of this scripture, I can’t help but remember
Star Trek. Whenever the Enterprise was being attacked, the
Captain would order, "Shields Up!" The shields would
protect them from missiles.
You need to order, "Shields Up! Shield of Favor up!"
God’s word is put to work as you confess
favor with people.
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