Favour

“For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord bestows grace and favour and honour; No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” – Psalm 84:11

We find many examples in the Bible of men of God who were chosen by God to receive His favour. Divine favour rested on Isaac, not Ishmael. Jacob was favoured by God instead of his brother Esau, even though he was the younger one. Joseph and David were both the weakest in appearance, but God chose them among their brothers. And many more. From these examples, we learn that God's favour is by grace alone and does not spare those who have it from trials.

Psalm 84 beautifully describes the keys of David, who found favour in the sight of God. David loved to dwell in God's presence. He wanted God, not His blessings. David longed to walk away from worldly riches and be a doorkeeper instead so that he could stay in the house of the Lord. David placed his strength and trust in God alone. Though he passed through the valley of weeping, God turned it into a place of springs. Isn’t that what favour is?

One of my prayers was for God to not let me experience many side effects from the chemotherapy treatment. God may allow me to have this disease temporarily, but I prayed that God would make a difference in the way I went through it. I did not want to worry my family too much. I thanked God for His favour upon my life, my answered prayers. I remembered when we went to our doctor for one of our regular consultations, he asked me about my appetite. My answer was: I feel hungry almost all the time, and he replied with a smile: That is not a bad sign.

Amidst my battle with cancer, God showed me daily His faithfulness in His promises. The amount of kindness and support I received, the doors that were opened for our financial needs, the physical strength I had during my treatment, and many more.

People compete in almost all areas of life. And as long as we are in the world, we will somehow participate in the competition. When we try to compete with our own strength, we will soon become tired. As the old saying goes, there is always a higher mountain. That is the reason why the favour of God will be the key to our victory in life. You may not be the smartest in school or the office or the business fields, but because the favour of God goes with you, you will find favour and success in the sight of men.

If God allows you to enter into a challenging season, know that it is because you are chosen among many to experience the favour of God. And through the lessons learned, God will use your pains to paint His glory to people in need. You are favoured by God.

Many are called, but few are chosen. That’s favour