Good day my fellow brothers and sisters in the Lord!! I hope that at the time you find yourself reading my blog that you are enjoying the favor of the Lord for your life.

Don’t you just hate it when people say: ‘I hope you are enjoying the favor of the Lord in your life at this time.’ For many today, that may not be the case in their life.  You see I knew that when I wrote that at the beginning of my blog because I want us to see that no matter what place we are in life, the favor of the Lord is beneficial for us to seek after.

In Genesis 6 we read where the Lord saw how great man’s wickedness was and how evil his heart had become and we read in Genesis 6:6-7a “The Lord was grieved that He had made man on earth, and His heart was filled with pain. So the Lord said, “I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth.”  Wow, can we see that it is not a good thing to get God mad! Then we read in Genesis 6: 8 “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.” We go on to read where God instructed Noah to build an ark because He was going to send so much rain that it would flood the earth and kill everything on it. But since Noah had found favor with God, Noah, his sons, his wife and his sons’ wives, along with two of all living creatures would not die.  We read in the Scriptures that Noah did everything as the Lord commanded him to do and everything came to pass just as the Lord said. Sounds like things go pretty good for us when the Lord finds favor with us, doesn’t it. Sounds like finding favor with the Lord guarantees that everything will always work out just fine for us right, no problems.

We must be careful though that we don’t miss the fact that it took Noah and his 3 sons 120 years to build this ark and with that came a lot of taunts from his neighbors and from the people who were witnessing all of this. Didn’t we read that Noah had favor with the Lord? So why would the Lord make it so that Noah and his sons would have to endure such ridicule and for such a long time if the Lord had found favor with Noah?

The KJV of Genesis 6:8 says that Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. Favor, or grace, is what we want from the Lord but it doesn’t mean that we will be exempt from any trials or hardships in our lives. 

The Apostle Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 12:7 that he was given a thorn in his flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment him. In Vs 8 Paul pleads with the Lord to take it away from him, only to hear  the Lord respond in Vs 9 “My grace is sufficient for you for My power is made perfect in weakness.” Have any of you ever been in that place at a time in your own life; the place where you just couldn’t take it anymore and you cried out to the Lord for help? Let me ask you, what would your response be if the Lord responded the same way to your cry as He did to Paul? Well you better deal with it because that is exactly what the Lord is saying to you and me today.

Yes, our heart’s desire is that our life is to be found with favor or with grace by the Lord but that doesn’t mean that comes with no problems.

We are about to enter the season of Autumn; the time of the year when we make the transition from warm to cold weather, (I am not one who loves the cold). For those of us who live in Las Vegas, by this time of the year we are ready for some cooler weather and we gladly welcome the change. Is that we way we are when the Lord allows us to go through a time of trial in our life, a time when the it seems dark and dreary? A time when He looks to change us? Trust me folks those times will come.

Jesus said in John 16:33b “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” The Lord’s grace is sufficient for whatever we may face in this life and His favor in our life is what we must seek after. 

A prayer of Moses is found in Psalm 90 and he says in Psalm 90:17 “May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us – yes, establish the work of our hands.”  Matthew Henry writes: “In praying for God’s grace (His favor), God’s glory must be our end.”

My prayer is that the end result of all my prayers  as well as yours be as we seek after the Lord’s favor, His grace for our lives and the life of His church; is that His glory be established in His people for all to see!!!