Life of Favor - Pastor Philip Steele - September 13th, 2026

Hi, my name is Michelle Steele.

Pastor Phillip and I want to thank you for listening to this message from Life of Faith Church.

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Hallelujah.

Is worthy of worship.

Hallelujah.

The Lord's good to us.

So good to us.

Hallelujah.

Thank you, Jesus.

We're gonna get right into the word and we'll receive our giving as we normally do at the end of our service.

But uh let's go over to Jeremiah 32.

And uh, you know, while I was just preparing for the service this afternoon, uh the Lord was talking to me about some things, and one of the things he said to me, he said, if he said, You I I told my wife already and he said, You you tell the folks tonight, he said, if they will listen to what you're saying and apply it, he said, before they leave the service, events will be set in motion that will turn around situations.

Amen.

And uh we're we're gonna minister on some things that uh the Lord and and when I say this, I don't I I mean no slight to anybody that talks uh uh about these different things.

But you'll hear people that say, well, we need to do this and we need to get back to this and the ABCs of this and all these things.

I understand that.

I agree with that, I don't disagree with that, but this what we're gonna minister is is something that the Lord has been telling me to focus not more on necessarily in my life, but more on proclaiming it, ministering on it.

And uh we want to deal tonight with this life of favor, a life of favor.

Hallelujah.

The Lord said you have to give greater focus to the favor of God, you have to give greater focus to the favor of God, and there's any number of reasons.

We we we can talk about those those reasons.

Favor produces wealth.

Uh I said it this morning that the blessing is the empowerment to prosper.

Favor produces opportunity to make it happen.

The blessing is the empowerment to prosper.

Look at but you're right there in Jeremiah, but look over here at Deuteronomy 33.

Deuteronomy 33.

Hallelujah.

And verse 23.

And I'll read it the way my Bible reads it.

And of Philip and Michelle, he said, Oh Philip and Michelle, satisfied with favor and full with the blessing of the Lord.

Possess thou the West and the South.

Now that's in the Bible, but it's in the Bible so you can get it in your life.

It's in the word so it can get in me.

And so every day when you're when you're going about your day, you're going about your life, and you begin to declare and you begin to say that I am satisfied with favor and full of the blessing of the Lord.

Then that means if you're full of the blessing of the Lord, there's no room for lack.

There's no room for decrease.

There's no room for not enough because I'm full of the blessing of the Lord.

And notice, I'm satisfied with favor.

Amen.

Psalm says this.

It says that every day, the Amplified Bible says, you stretch out your open hand of favor every day to every living thing.

Amen.

And so the Lord said to give greater focus to the favor of God.

And what you have to do in any situation, I've said this for years, especially in healing school, if you're working on healing in your body, healing has to become your job.

I have to focus.

I don't mean just listen to it.

I mean you've got to make that your job.

You're talking health, you're declaring health, you're confessing health.

When somebody says, How are you doing?

you say, healed, praise the Lord.

When somebody says, How's things going with you?

Healthy and well in Jesus' name.

You're making that your life.

All right?

I have a lifestyle of health, a lifestyle of healing.

You have to make favor and financial increase your job.

I have to make favor and financial increase my job.

It's my job to increase.

It's my job to walk in the favor of God.

Hallelujah.

God expects that of us.

He expects us to walk in the favor of God because I'm going to show you some verses.

He's already made it available to me.

It's my job to walk.

And notice, it's my job to walk in it.

I don't know what everyone in here does, but if I came up to you and I said, What is your job?

You would tell me what you do.

You would tell me maybe what the name of it was, but then you would tell me what you do.

What's my job?

To walk in the favor of God.

My job is I'm a believer.

What am I a believer of?

Anything the Word of God says.

And he said that favor surrounds me like a shield.

Every day of my life.

That has to become my focus.

So what does that mean?

I qualify for things, I receive things I don't qualify for.

I walk in places I should not qualify to walk in, but I walk in them anyway because I'm surrounded by favor.

Every person that encounters you encounters the favor of God first because that's the shield that goes before you.

Amen.

And it's the favor of God that causes things to be changed to your advantage.

It's the favor of God that causes things to happen for you that can happen no other way.

Oh, glory to God.

Amen.

It's the favor of God that causes that to happen.

When they say no, favor says yes.

When they say it can't be done, favor says it can be done.

When they say there's no way, favor says yes, there's a way.

Why?

Because favor is the hand of God in operation in your circumstance.

Oh, hallelujah.

Oh, hallelujah.

Say it out loud.

Thank you for your favor.

Amen.

So make that your job.

Favor is not an accident, it's available to every believer, and here it is in Christ.

In Christ, favor is available to every believer.

Amen.

When you focus on who you are in Christ, you cannot fail to focus on favored.

Because in Christ, I have the favor of God.

It came with being in Christ.

That's why in Christ you have no identity of your own.

In Christ, you have no identity of your own.

You know, I still hear believers running around say, I can't catch a break.

I don't understand.

Nothing ever goes my way.

In Christ, I have no identity of my own.

I cannot identify as a failure.

I cannot identify as somebody that can't make it.

I can't identify as somebody that never catches a break.

Because in Christ, he always causes me to triumph.

In Christ, I'm more than a conqueror.

In Christ, I can do all things.

In Christ, I am who God says I am.

In Christ, he always gives me the victory.

That's part of the favor of God.

Amen.

See, there's things that we hear, but we got to take them in.

When we say favor isn't fair, what do we mean by that?

Favor isn't fair.

Because favor qualifies you for things you don't qualify for.

And it's not fair.

Somebody's there that qualifies for it, but you get moved up to the front of the line.

Somebody's there that qualifies, but they choose you.

Because there's just, here it is, something about you.

It's called the favor of God.

And you make that your job.

Everywhere you go, you're looking for it.

Every time you're in an encounter, you're looking for the favor of God.

If you're meeting about a financial arrangement, you're looking for the favor of God.

If you're meeting with somebody, you're looking for the favor of God.

Everything, say everything is going my way.

See, because of the favor of God.

Amen.

The favor of God.

Am I helping you?

Yes, sir.

Favor releases the resources and supply that you need to fulfill the call of God and the desires that He's placed in your heart.

Favor releases the resources and the supply you need to fulfill the call of God and the desires He's placed in your heart.

It's not just about finances.

What has God placed in your heart?

What desire has God placed in your heart?

Favor releases the resources.

I say favor releases the resources.

I remember one time Brother Jerry had been believing for a piece of property in Crowley, Texas.

110 acres he was believing for.

Had asked the Lord for it.

Well, the government had taken that over.

There was a lien of$1.2 million on that property.

And you know, the government likes their money.

So$1.2 million lien on that property.

And they had been believing for it.

He was away on a trip.

And they they that the government, the the arm of the of the whoever was in charge of that, called Brother Jerry's office and said, you know, we want to sell this property, but it's got a$1.2 million lien on it.

Would you make an offer?

Well, his office manager called him and said they asked to make an offer.

Well, God had told him, watch, God had told him, I will deliver that property into your ministry and you'll pay what you want to pay for it.

Right?

Well, it's got a$1.2 million lien on it.

And so he called his attorney, and here's what he said.

He said, call them and tell them that I want to give them$200,000 cash for that property.

I want the lien removed, and I get all the mineral rights.

Well, he called, and he's got a Holy Ghost-filled attorney, or did have, he's in heaven, obviously, today, but uh that got saved under his ministry.

And the attorney called and he he was talking to them and he said, Do y'all believe in miracles?

And they said, We don't see them around here.

He said, Okay, well, he said, here's what my client said.

He'll give you$200,000, lean taken off, once the mineral arrives.

They said, No, that won't that won't work.

We're not even going to present that.

He said, Yes, you are, because you called us and asked us to make an offer.

Here's our offer.

Right?

Amen.

Well, they they took some time.

I I forget day, two days, something like that.

They they called the office back, and the first words out of their mouth to his office manager was, we now believe in miracles.

Right?

$1.2 million lien taken off, right?

$200,000 cash, mineral rights to the property.

Right?

You don't qualify for that.

Yeah.

But with favor you do.

Right?

Amen.

With favor you do.

And now he's down some years later, and he finds out why God said, get the mineral rights.

They found gas on the property.

They put gas wells on it.

Amen.

He said he sold that property.

They they uh developed that property, he sold it to the developers and put all the money into the church, all the money into the ministry that that God gave them.

Amen.

Because why?

Favor releases the resources to and supply you need.

Favor.

So if you look, and and it may not just be financial, it's in any area.

Favor releases those resources.

Right?

Maybe you need wisdom.

Favor will release the resource of wisdom.

Maybe you need help on your job.

You need a superior to show you favor.

Favor releases that resource.

Amen.

Look at Jeremiah 32.

Whoo, glory.

Now stay with me because we got a lot to say.

And it might as well go to you.

Amen.

I'm working on a building.

In the spirit and in the natural.

Jeremiah 32, verse 40.

Jeremiah 32:40

Hallelujah.

And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that's God's people, that I will not turn away from them to do them good, but I will put my fear in their hearts that they will not depart from me.

Yes, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul.

For thus saith the Lord, like I've brought allowed all this evil, brought is allowed, as I have allowed all this evil upon this people, so I will bring on them all the good that I have promised them.

Amen.

Say it out loud, all the good that God has promised me is coming on me.

Oh hallelujah.

Oh hallelujah.

Ephesians chapter 2 and verse 10.

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

We'll read it out of the Amplified Bible.

It says, For we are God's own handiwork, his workmanship, recreated in Christ.

Understand this.

Let me say this real quick.

Every blessing is because I'm in Christ.

Make much of being in Christ.

Right?

Make much of being in Christ.

Brother Hagin, you say all the time, make much of your redemption.

Because everything I received is because I'm in Christ.

For we're God's own handiwork, his workmanship recreated in Christ Jesus, born anew, that we may what?

Do those good works which God noticed predestined, planned beforehand for us, taking paths that he prepared ahead of time, that we should walk in them.

Here it is, living the good life which he prearranged and made ready for us to live.

So he has a good life that he's already prearranged and made ready for you to live.

And favor is the key to walking in it.

I say favor is the key to walking in it.

Favor is preferential treatment.

It's a gift bestowed as a token of regard or of love or friendship.

Now you may not have a problem with this, but there are people that they're just taken aback if you say God's your friend.

Well, if he was Abraham's friend, why wouldn't he be my friend?

Well, he's my father.

Well, can't you be friends with your father?

I think you can.

He's my father.

Hallelujah.

He's my friend.

And he prearranged this good life and made it ready for us to live.

Hallelujah.

It's ready right now for us to live it.

What do we have to do?

Just step into it.

Amen.

Maybe you're living a part of it, but there's always more.

Maybe you're living in a portion of it, but there's always more.

Don't listen, never get caught up in this trap of, well, it's better than it's ever been, but it's not as good as it can be.

It might be better than it's ever been, but it hasn't reached where it can be.

Right?

The Bible says in Deuteronomy, what does he say?

God's will is that we have days of heaven on the earth.

He said, I want you to have days of heaven on the earth.

Now that's not perfection, but that's freedom from the curse, freedom from the power of the curse, freedom from poverty, freedom from sickness, freedom from all the things that the world is subject to.

We're in the world, but we're not of the world.

Jesus said three times in John 17, I want you to know that you are not of the world like I'm not of this world.

Why are we not of this world?

We are of God, and our citizenship is of heaven, and one of the main credentials that heaven gives God's people is favor.

Oh, hallelujah.

Do you see that?

When people see you and the favor of God's on you, it makes them wonder what's different about you.

It makes them wonder why things are always going good for them.

And it's not just about things, it's about you come out of things with no scars and you come out of things smelling all right, and you come out of things better off than you went in them.

And when they say, How'd you make it through that?

The favor of God.

God brought me out, God did that for me.

Oh, hallelujah.

Woo!

Hallelujah.

If I wasn't preaching, I'd run.

Oh God.

Glory to God.

Go ahead.

Hallelujah.

I might just go ahead and run anyway.

Glory to God.

Hallelujah.

Thank you, Lord.

Thank you, Lord.

Hallelujah.

Ha ha ha ha ha.

Thank you.

Glory to God.

Thank you, Lord.

Amen.

Thank you, Jesus.

Thank you, Jesus.

Now you know why Brother Hagin always went, woo! Amen.

Hallelujah.

Yes, sir.

Favor.

Favor.

Everybody say favor.

See, he's prearranged it and made ready for us to live.

Favor also means to provide with advantages.

Or to show special privileges.

To provide with advantages.

Everywhere you go, Brother Eddie, you got advantages.

Everywhere you go, Anna, you got special privileges.

Joe, everywhere you go, God's stooping to show you kindness.

Oh, hallelujah.

Glory to it.

Isn't that beautiful?

Yes, it is.

Amen.

On my job, God is bending down to show me kindness.

And it doesn't matter if they don't want to be kind to me.

Amen.

The kindness of God is upon my life.

That's what part of favor is this.

God will make even your enemies to be at peace with you.

That's part of the favor of God.

They don't know why they like you, but they like you.

I've had people tell me, my wife knows this is true.

I've had people tell me, I don't know why I like you, I just do.

I know why you like me.

It's favor.

Hallelujah.

Hallelujah.

God wants to look at Psalm 5.

My goodness.

You're in the right place tonight.

Psalm chapter 5.

Psalms 5 · chapter mention

These uh, and I say this because I want you to be aware of it.

These meetings on Sunday night are different.

Because quite honestly, I'm ministering out of another room.

It's it's it's I'm still the pastor, but I'm ministering out of another place.

And it's it's important that we see this because like Sunday morning, Wednesday evening is feeding.

We're feeding the flock.

Sunday night, we're moving things, we're changing things, we're we're breaking things down.

Amen.

And uh Psalm 5 and verse 12.

Notice this verse.

For you, Lord, will bless the righteous.

So we stop right there and we ask ourselves, are we the righteous?

Then what will God do for us?

Bless us.

And then notice with favor you can pass him about as with a shield.

So I'm blessed of the Lord and surrounded by favor as with a shield.

So God wants to surround us with his favor.

Amen.

Surround us.

You know, you can't be surrounded without every part of you being covered.

So I'm favoring the front, favoring the back, favor on the side, favor up top, favor down low, right?

Beneath me, I'm just I'm just favor, favor, favor.

Amen.

On the right, on the left, over me, under me, right?

I got favor.

This is important.

So that means when people connect, contact me, the first thing they encounter is God's favor.

So when you go in to make a deal, the first thing they encounter is God's favor.

See, that's why he meant when he said, My presence will go before you.

The presence of God is often the favor of God that's going before you.

Oh, hallelujah.

And so God's already prepared the people that you're going to to give you a deal, to help you, to bless you, whatever it may be.

Why?

Because the person that the good life has already been prearranged and made ready for them to live is stepping into it.

Every day when you get up to live your life, a good life has already been prearranged for you.

It's already been made ready for you to live.

I don't have to make it happen.

I just got to walk in it.

To make anything accessible, you just gotta walk in it.

Amen.

Don't try to figure it out.

How am I gonna do all this?

Just go do it.

Just just let it go.

Amen.

Are you following me?

Some some years ago, I took a men's group and we went uh, well, it was uh not, well, it it's about, let me see, a little over three hours from here, uh, uh around Jane.

And uh uh it's just up the road from uh Bentonville and uh all those places.

There's a campground there called Eagle River Campground.

All right, and I took a group of men up there, and we uh had a men's outing and and uh rafted the the the river.

It's not, you know, they they it gets moving a little bit, but you know, it's not that bad.

But here's the thing when you got in that river, you didn't have to worry about how you were gonna get back to the landing spot.

You understand?

You just got in the river and went with the river.

And eventually you got to where they were where they needed their kayak back or whatever you were on.

I I never once said, wonder if I'm gonna get back there.

How am I gonna get back there?

I'm just I'm the river.

Who's doing what's doing the work?

What where am I?

In the river.

He said, Who's it?

What'd he say?

I have pre-arranged.

If I come to you and I say, I prearranged your trip, I bought the tickets, I have paid for the hotel, right?

All of your everything is paid for, all your incidentals are paid for, whatever you need.

All I need you to do is show up at the airport at this time, go to this, right?

Yeah, everything's paid for.

What do you got to do?

It's got to show up.

Just all the work is done.

When we say things like that, I think sometimes we we understand what we're saying, but it's like then understanding what I'm saying and then walking in it.

The work is done.

All the work that it took to prearrange and make ready the good life for you to walk in has been done in Christ.

I have to walk into it.

How do I do that?

By faith.

So every day when you get up and you say the favor of God surrounds me like a shield, and I'm gonna walk in this good life that has been prearranged and made ready for me to live.

You might walk out the door, and it seems like anything but a good life that's prearranged and made ready for you to live.

But by faith, you're walking in it because now you're in the river of favor, and it's gonna take you where you need to be.

Amen.

So, you're not all those other things, you're blessed and highly favored.

Right?

I'm not, and you fill in the blank.

I'm not this, I'm favored.

Amen.

God wants to surround us with his favor.

Favor belongs to us as part of our covenant.

Genesis chapter 12 and verse 2, in the Amplified Bible, it says, And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you with abundant increase of favors.

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

Abundant increase of favors.

And I will bless you with abundant increase of favors and make your name great and distinguish, and you will be a blessing dispensing good to others.

Now notice that's not just favor, that's abundant increase.

For something to increase, it's already got to be there, it's already there.

When you got born again, favor showed up.

Now it's time for the abundant increase of favors.

Oh, hallelujah.

Amen.

And this covers every area of our life.

Sometimes I understand that people focus so much on the material part of it, and I understand that.

I get that.

I understand that.

But favor brings you greater revelation, favor brings you greater wisdom, favor brings you greater knowledge of the things of God.

Why?

Because it's the abundant increase of favor.

Favor is not just about one thing, it's a multifaceted thing.

It brings you the blessing of God in every area of your life.

Hallelujah.

Amen.

When somebody says, Do you know so-and-so?

Yeah, I have favor with them.

You know your neighbor?

I have favor with them.

Amen.

I I've said that ever since we moved in our house.

I have favor with him, I have favor with them, I have favor across the street, I have favor.

They like me.

Why?

Well, nobody wants a grumpy neighbor.

Right?

Want nice neighbors.

Well, they gotta like you.

Amen.

See, that seems like a small thing, but there's peace.

I I was out talking to my neighbor not too long ago, and and he's got a dog that's a little bigger than ours, and it don't take much to be bigger than our dog.

But boy, she's she she's a mountain lion on the inside.

She'll go outside and and the deer will be in our front yard.

What what they did was that the people that lived in the house before we bought it, they fed the deer.

All right.

And then so each generation, they brought the deer there.

And so they still come.

You can't plant a flower in the front flower bed because they like the flowers.

Well, you come out, and our little seven-pound poodle, five-pound.

She'll come out and she bark, listen, she barks so hard that she's on, she's like this, and she barks so hard her rear end comes up.

And it comes off the ground.

She's barking so hard.

And the deer's just going.

Ann?

Right?

Well, anyway, I'm out.

That has nothing to do with favor.

I'm out, I'm out, you know, with my dog, and the neighbor comes out with their dog, and and we're talking, and just out of the clear blue, he says, You're the best neighbors we've ever had.

That's the favor of God.

Amen.

Right?

So favor is it produces materially, but it produces spiritually.

Amen.

Notice in uh uh Luke chapter 2.

Luke 2 · chapter mention

Am I helping you?

Luke chapter 2.

Luke 2 · chapter mention

Started talking about my dog and got off my train of thought for a minute.

She's blessed and highly favored too.

Because he said my livestock would be blessed.

Hallelujah.

Luke chapter 2 and verse 52.

Luke 2 · chapter mention

And Jesus increased in wisdom and statue and in favor with God and man.

If Jesus increased in favor, Jesus needed favor.

Anything that Jesus needed, I need.

And anything that Jesus could increase in, I can increase in.

Hallelujah.

How do I increase in favor?

I have to give my attention to it.

I have to give my attention to it.

Anything that you want to be better at, or anything that you want to increase in, you have to give your attention to it.

You have to give your attention to it.

That might not be all you look at, but in my opinion, you need to be looking at favor at least every day.

Somewhere I'm looking at favor every day.

Why?

Because I need it every day.

Every day I need it.

Hallelujah.

In uh Psalm 119.

He tells us here that we should consider our ways.

Now there's a lot that we could get into here.

I don't know.

I've got a lot to try to share with you tonight.

But Psalm 119, verse 58.

Psalms 119:58

Notice he says, the psalmist says, I entreated your favor with my whole heart.

What did he entreat?

His favor, his loving kindness.

Right?

His stooping low to show kindness.

I entreated your favor with my whole heart.

Be merciful unto me according to your word.

Notice, I thought on my ways and turned my feet unto your testimonies.

I thought on my ways and I turned my feet unto your testimonies.

So notice what he says.

I considered my ways.

I entreated your favor, I considered my ways.

Well, uh uh a lot of times that can mean I'm looking for something wrong.

No, it can mean am I looking for favor the way that I should?

I'm considering my ways.

Right?

I'm not looking for something wrong.

But Lord, am I talking favor like I did?

Am I declaring favor like I once did?

Am I declaring that I have a good life that's been uh uh prearranged and made ready for me to live?

Am I talking that like I once did?

Lord, I see that I'm not.

I'm considering my ways and I'm gonna turn back to that.

I'm gonna turn back to that.

Hallelujah.

See, the thing about this is anything that's easy to do is easy not to do.

Anything that's easy to do is easy not to do.

The easiest thing in the world is every day call yourself favored.

Call your situation favored, call your family favored.

What is also easy is not to do it.

And and when we, I shouldn't say we, I'll say me.

When I, when I end up not doing it is usually when things are going well, when there's not a lot of hiccups, right?

What I need to be doing when things are going smoothly is storing up favor, speaking it over my life continually.

Why?

Because here's what I know there's going to come situations that you're gonna need the favor of God.

And if I've got it already stored up, I can just go get it.

So he said, consider your ways.

I considered my ways.

And notice he did this.

Nobody had to tell him to do it.

And what is he entreating?

He's entreating the favor of God.

I entreated your favor with, and notice, with my whole heart.

So that means I have to give greater focus to the favor of God in whatever area.

Whenever something happens, no matter how small or large it is, that's the favor of God.

Amen.

When when Michelle was coming back from California, you know the favor of God is that there's no delays.

Not just that, you know, you made every flight, but there's no delays.

Hallelujah.

The redeemed of the Lord shall return.

So she's going, she's gonna return, because the Bible says the redeemed of the Lord shall return.

But it's it's the favor of God that makes things go well.

Amen.

Jesus increased with favor, so I can look at Proverbs 8.

The Lord said to me, if you we'll hear and apply what we're hearing before we leave, events will be set in motion to turn things around.

Proverbs 8 and 33.

Hear instruction and be wise and refuse it not.

Blessed is the man that hears me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the post of my door, for whoso findeth me findeth life, and will obtain favor of the Lord.

Will obtain favor of the Lord.

So when I hear and I apply God's wisdom, what happens?

I receive favor.

I receive favor.

And and notice what he said.

Whoso finds me finds life and shall obtain favor of the Lord.

But what has to happen?

I'm watching daily at the gates of wisdom and waiting at the post of wisdom every day.

And what happens?

I find favor of the Lord.

I find favor of the Lord, or favor with the Lord.

Proverbs chapter 3, verse 1.

Proverbs 3:1

He says, My son, forget not my law, but let your heart keep my commandments.

For length of days and long life and peace shall they add to you.

Let not mercy and truth forsake you, bind them upon your neck, write them upon the table of your heart, for so you shall find favor and good understanding in the sight of God and with man.

Hallelujah.

And notice what he says.

John Osteen used to say this.

He would say, When you, if you fill your heart with the word of God when you don't need it, when you do need it, your heart will feed your mouth the word of God.

Amen.

And so when I'm when I'm when I'm filling my heart with the favor of God, when it doesn't seem I need the favor of God in a certain situation, when I do need it, and it and that situation shows up, favor will come out.

But notice this.

I'm hearing and applying God's wisdom.

I'm loving God's instruction.

Amen.

Say it out loud.

I love your instruction.

Say this, I love your word.

Amen.

Why?

Because that's where the favor comes from.

He said, When I find wisdom and understanding, I will what?

I will find favor.

Trust, he said, notice, so shall you find favor and good understanding.

Hallelujah.

Determine, let's go to Proverbs 11.

Determined to do the right thing, even if no one else is doing it.

Determined to do the right thing, even if no one else is doing it.

Proverbs 11 and 27.

He that diligently seeketh good procureth favor.

But he that seeks mischief, it will come unto him.

So when he says, he that uh uh diligently seeketh good procures favor, if you're seeking good, you're seeking favor.

And notice what it says he that seeks mischief, it will come to him.

Hallelujah.

One translation says, trouble will come to him that seeks evil.

Hallelujah.

So do the right thing, even if no one else is doing it.

And that's not just in things that are evident, that's not just in things that people can see.

I'm thinking right, I'm talking right, I'm believing right, I'm keeping my heart right, I'm walking in love, I'm doing the right thing.

Even things that people can't see.

Why?

Because I'll find favor.

Amen.

Hallelujah.

Proverbs chapter 13 and verse 13.

Proverbs 13 · chapter mention

Whoso despiseth the word will be destroyed, but he that fears the commandment will be rewarded.

The law of the wise is a fountain of life to depart from the snares of death.

Good understanding gives favor.

But the way of transgressors is hard.

So, what does that mean?

Favor smooths the way out.

When you're living in favor, it's not hard.

What's he say?

The way of transgressors is hard.

Transgressing what?

The word of God.

Never lose your zeal for the word.

Never lose your zeal for the word of God, for getting in the word of God.

Amen.

Never let it become something that's just something you've got to do.

I made this statement.

I was talking to an associate minister, and I and we were talking about putting the word in your mouth and letting it come out of your heart into your mouth.

And I said, you know, the Bible says that people that are blessed and everything that their hands touch is blessed, that they meditate on the word night and day.

I said, God told Joshua, you shall meditate upon my the law day and night, and then you'll have good success, and then everything that you do will prosper.

He said in Psalm 1, he said, the blessed man, he said, on his law he meditates day and night.

And I asked this minister, I said, when did day and night become 30 minutes in the morning?

Because there are people that want to give 30, 45 minutes to God in the morning and get the blessings of meditating day and night.

It doesn't work that way.

See, that's why this has to be our job.

We're constantly putting our mind on it, we're constantly letting it come out of our mouth.

When I'm having a hard day, it's like, Lord, I thank you for your favor.

I'm having a tough day, but your favor is going before me and it's changing this situation in the name of Jesus.

Amen.

He said, these are things that I need to talk about.

Watch.

When I get up, when I lay down, as I go about my day, I'm teaching them to my children.

I'm reminding them what?

That we have the favor of God.

Hallelujah.

And the weight of your situation can be felt.

You can be going through something that it's like it's a physical thing in the room with you.

But the favor of God will move that thing out of your life and produce the victory for you.

Oh, hallelujah.

But what do I have to do?

I have to never lose my zeal for the word of God.

I go back consistently, I go back constantly and read things that stir me up.

Not because I need to be stirred up.

Yes, my wife, I live, she lives with me.

I don't need to be stirred up.

I'm stirred.

Right?

I'm I'm I'm I mean, you you can ask her.

I don't have down days.

I don't ever get out of bed and go, oh my, what a bad day.

That's never is not me, never will be me.

I got too much to be joyful for.

God healed my body, God saved my soul, God delivered me out of hell, God's saving my children.

He gave me a beautiful wife.

I have a beautiful daughter.

There's nothing to be down about.

Nothing, absolutely nothing.

But I got to keep my zeal for the word of God.

Right?

What?

I read it all the time.

John 17, 17, change my life.

Sanctify them through your word.

Your word is truth.

Radically transform my life.

I go back to that over and over again.

And I sit back and I close my eyes and I think about where I was when that radically transformed my life.

And I never want to lose that sense of transformation in my life.

That's what he meant when he wrote, when Jesus, through the Apostle John, wrote to the church at Ephesus.

He said, You're doing all these good things.

He said, but here's something.

I want you to be aware of.

He said, I have one thing against you.

Here it is, you've left your first love.

In other words, you're still saved, you're still filled with the Holy Spirit, you're still doing good things, but our relationship is not quite what it was back when it first began.

Have you ever heard people that say, you know, man, when I first got a hold of the word, and I was this and I was that, and I was moving and I was going and things were moving, and then it's like somehow they moved away from that.

If you had to say it to receive it, when you first learned it, you got to say it to receive it now.

And don't lose your zeal for that.

Just because you know it is no evidence that it's radically transforming your life now.

Every level of my life has an area of transformation that must occur.

And what happens sometimes, especially in our circles, is we hear something and we go, yeah, I've heard that.

Doesn't mean that it's transforming things now.

Are you following me?

I've got to consistently keep the button pushed so that there's a consistent transformation in my life.

Why?

Because every level, every level, now notice I'm not saying every level new devil.

That's not what I'm saying.

I'm saying every level is another level of maturity.

I go to this level, right?

Listen, when Pastor Richard and I got a hold of the word, we were talking about this the other day.

It's a good thing we got to hold the word because uh until I got the job I got, we couldn't afford insurance.

Couldn't afford insurance.

And so it was like we get sick, we got to believe God.

What are we gonna do?

And so we learned to believe God for that.

Now, nothing wrong with insurance.

I had good insurance.

The Lord helped us with our second daughter was born and had a lot of health problems, and and the Lord paid all of it.

All right, but insurance paid it all.

Here's what I'm trying to say.

Here's what I want you to see.

So even though you get to a place where there's things you can handle on your own, you got to keep your level of word built up because something's gonna come along you can't handle.

So every level requires another level of maturity.

Maturity comes from the Word of God.

God will ask you to do bigger things, and the level of favor that you were operating in six years ago is not gonna move what he needs you to move now.

So the level of favor has to grow.

Why?

Because the maturity level has to grow.

Amen.

David started with a bear and then moved to a lion and eventually got a giant.

Right?

Yeah.

How did he know that God would deliver him from the hand of Goliath?

What did he tell Saul?

The same God that delivered me out of the hand of the lion and out of the hand of the bear will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.

This is so important.

People that have favor talk different.

Notice something.

Paul, excuse me, Saul was anointed to be a Philistine killer.

The Philistines hated Saul.

They hated him.

When they found his body and his son's body on the battlefield, they dismembered them, they beheaded them, they took their bodies and nailed them to the wall.

They hated him.

Why?

Because the Bible says that God had anointed him and ordained him to drive the Philistines out of Israel.

Oh, hallelujah.

Now watch.

He goes to the valley, and the Philistines are on one side, the Israelites are on the other side, and you'll remember the story.

It says, For 40 days Goliath came out twice a day.

Eighty times he showed up.

And what's it say?

He defied God and defied the armies of the living God.

And he not only not only did he come out and and and challenge them to a fight, he said, I defy the armies of God.

Send me somebody.

40 days.

Now watch, 40 days.

What was that?

40 days all through the word of God is always a trying period.

It's a testing period.

What was that?

Saul had 40 days to step up and do something about this.

He was the one that was head and shoulders taller than everybody else in Israel.

He was the one that should have gone out and fought Goliath.

He was the head, but he's sitting in his tent scared.

If the head gets scared, the body gets scared.

Are you following me?

40 days, 40 days.

And now watch.

Don't see, we've heard so much about David that's not biblical.

Because here's what people get.

You know, that he was just this little boy, and his dad decided you need to send some milk and cheese and bread to your brothers, you know, and they get into all this garbage that's not biblical.

David was not a little boy when he went to fight Goliath.

How do I know that?

Because it says they were looking for somebody to play music for Saul.

They said, let's find somebody that's a cunning player to play music, and when they play, the spirit will depart from him.

And the man stepped up and he said, I know a man who is a valiant man and a man of war, Jesse's son, David.

You're not a valiant man of war at 12.

Or 13.

And it says he came and he played, and the demon left Saul, went away from him.

And it says Saul kept him and he became his armor bearer.

You don't become an armor bearer at 13.

He wasn't just a preteen.

But all your movies show this little kid going with a little donkey.

It's not how it was.

40 days, he's putting them to the test.

Saul wouldn't do anything about it.

So God sends David.

Now watch, when you have favor, you act differently.

Where's all of God's chosen people?

What are they doing?

They're what?

Cowering, hiding from one man.

One man.

Now, big man, but one man.

I remember one time my dad and I were with another preacher, and we went somewhere, and I forget exactly what we did, but it was one of these old gas stations, filling stations, and he needed something, I forget what it was.

And uh the guy in there was just kind of rude.

And uh this this preacher that we were with, his name was Dave Rich.

And Dave was a former Grand Ole opera star, country singer, and he had gotten saved.

And we we came out and he said, he had a real deep voice.

He goes, Well, I thought he's gonna jump on me.

He said, but there's three of us and one of him, so I guess we could have handled him.

Right?

Three of us and one of him.

Well, you know, you figure a few Israelites could have done some damage.

But the man with favor shows up, what's he do?

He walks in there, and the first question he asked was, What do you get if you kill him?

Is that what he said?

Somebody has to stop him from saying what he's saying and what his brother say.

Now, these guys don't, they they have the favor, but they're not walking in it.

What is favor?

It goes before us as a shield.

If somebody would have stepped up in faith, if somebody would have stepped up in faith, we may not have ever seen David throw sling a rock and hit him in the forehead.

We'd be reading somebody else did it, but nobody would do it.

But David shows up and he says, What do you get if you kill him?

And you know what it says.

Family will go free, no taxes, get to marry the king's daughter.

What a babe.

Now, I don't know if that's in the Bible or not, but anyway.

And and and his brother gets upset with him.

Right?

Now I'm going through this for a reason.

His brother gets upset with him.

I know the, you know, what I know what you're trying to do.

You're trying to make a name for yourself.

Where are those few sheep?

People that are not walking in the favor that belongs to them will always ridicule people that are walking in the favor that belongs to them.

That's why you can't worry about what anybody thinks, about what you believe.

You've got to just keep walking in the favor of God, regardless of what anybody thinks.

Amen.

They asked a basketball player one time, they said, they said, uh, you know, what do you say about these people, you know, that they're your detractors and whatnot.

And he said, look, he said, in anybody's life, he said, you're gonna have a hundred people that like you and five thousand that don't.

He said, focus on the hundred and keep stepping.

Right?

Amen.

You can't help what people think about what you believe, but what you believe works.

I'm not gonna back off on what I believe.

Here's what David said.

What have I done?

Isn't there a cause?

Somebody needs to do something about this.

Right?

Somebody needs to stop this.

And then he went to somebody else.

Now tell me again, what do you get if you kill him?

You remember?

House go free, no taxes, marry the king's daughter, what a babe.

Amen.

This is important.

And then he went to Saul.

And notice what Saul said.

You can't.

People with favor on their life do not understand those two words.

You can't.

Because here's what favor only says you can.

Why can't I?

Why would you ever let somebody determine what you're expecting?

They are not facing what you're facing.

They're not dealing with what you're dealing with.

Why would you let them tell you that you can't expect it to change?

Right?

And here's why you can't.

Because you're a young man and he's been a warrior from his youth.

Right?

And David said, Let me tell you something.

Your servant kept his father's sheep.

And a bear came.

And I killed him.

Is that right?

And then he said, A lion came and took a kid from the flock.

And your servant chased him down, grabbed him by the beard, and killed him.

See, people with favor have been through some stuff.

We're not just talking, we're not blowing smoke.

We've used it, we've seen it, we've watched it happen.

I know that God can turn impossible situations around.

Not just because somebody else said it, but because I've seen it in my life.

More than once they've said it can't happen.

And I watched God make it happen anyway.

Hallelujah.

Do you see that?

So people that walk in favor, you don't walk in favor and not face things.

But you walk in favor and you see what you're facing fall under the power of the favor of God.

He said, You can't.

Y'all forgive me now if you're a real Pentecostal, I'm gonna undo this button.

Amen.

Lord help us.

Right?

But here's the thing: you can't.

And here's why.

And David went through the story.

And then notice what he said.

And this Philistine will be like one of them.

Now here's the question: What were both of them?

Dead.

I'm here to tell you tonight, and you do whatever you want to do with what I'm telling you.

What you're facing is gonna fall by the wayside, and it's gonna be like a thing of nothing.

That's why that's what's gonna happen.

You're gonna walk over it and it's gonna be like the carcass of a dead dog.

You're just gonna step over it and go on about your way.

Why?

Because the favor of God is there.

The favor of God produces blessings for the person that carries it, but it is a mighty weapon in the hand of God to move things out of the way.

And if that thing don't move out of your way, favor will destroy it and make it move out of your way.

Hallelujah.

Because favor, I'm getting ahead of myself.

This is another message.

Because when the Bible talks about the hand of God being against, it's the favor of God.

When the plagues were coming on Egypt, the Bible calls that the hand of God that was against Egypt.

But what was happening to Israel?

They were experiencing the favor of God.

What was happening to their enemy?

Destruction, falling apart, everything going wrong.

What's happening in Goshen?

No flies, no darkness, no death, no destruction.

Why?

The favor of God is light.

And we got to learn from that.

Pharaoh kept saying, I won't let you go, I won't let you go.

And finally, God said, You're gonna let them go.

See, God has this innate ability to produce confrontations with the power of the enemy that does not want to let his people go.

Read it all the way through the Bible.

Pharaoh kept saying, I'm not gonna let you go.

I'm not gonna let you go.

I'm not gonna let you go.

And you know all the things that happened.

But God set up a confrontation with Pharaoh at the Red Sea, and Pharaoh would not bend his will, and he would not bend his life to serve the living God.

And because of that, he came into a confrontation with God, and Pharaoh was no more.

When somebody keeps pushing against the favor of God on your life, they're doing it to their own demise, they're doing it to their own destruction because the favor of God is a shield.

Hallelujah.

Glory to God.

Over and over again, Elijah, over and over again, he preached to Israel.

Turn from Baal, turn from these things.

And finally, God said, I want you to go confront them.

I want you to, and you remember the story.

I want you to go confront them.

God brought a confrontation with one man, one man with favor on his life.

One against, well, there were 450 prophets of Baal, but there were 400 and some odd other prophets of the groves.

So, in reality, around 800 prophets and one man with favor.

Ha ha ha.

Everybody's against me.

You got favor, though.

Right?

They said I can't, yeah, but you have favor.

You have favor.

You have favor.

Who did God answer?

The one with favor.

What happened to those that opposed the favor?

No more.

Amen.

That's why I'm telling you, that thing that's been pushing you, it's like a dead dog on the side of the highway.

That's all it amounts to.

You have the favor of God.

You just got to keep going.

Because everything that encounters it.

Goliath disdained David.

Goliath said, Am I a dog?

That you would that see, people with favor talk different.

Am I a dog?

The Hebrew says David said, Well, that's what you're saying.

Must be, because that's what you're saying.

You said it, not me.

People with favor talk different.

Amen.

David started talking and he said, Look, you've defied the armies of the living God.

And he said, Today, this day, I'm gonna kill you.

And I'm gonna cut your head off.

And uh for a reproach against the enemies of Israel.

And then, boy, then he got to prophesy.

And he stepped up and he said, Then I'm coming after all y'all.

That's what he said.

I'm coming after the whole army.

And then he ran.

He ran to the battle.

Ran to it.

Favor.

Mark Hankin says that these things will make a whale, uh a tadpole slap a whale.

He said, these kind of things will make you swing out over hell on a corn stalk and spit in the devil's eye.

And it will, too.

He took off.

He took off.

And the whole time he's he's twirling that sling.

It wasn't an accident.

He knew what he was doing.

Hit him right in the head, and you remember the story.

Cut his head off.

What happened?

What happened when Goliath went down and David cut his head off?

It says when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they all took off and ran.

Everything that's been fighting you, I'm telling you, when you step over the carcass of whatever it is, it's all they're all gonna run.

They're all gonna run.

Because they they have no answer for you.

They have to get you thinking like you don't have favor to have any effect on you.

As long as you're thinking, I have favor, you can't win.

Favor changes adversity into victory.

God turned Joseph's captivity in Potiphar's house into a promotion.

They lied on him, they did him wrong.

He got put in prison and he got promoted.

It says he was a prosperous man in prison.

In prison, God made favor made Joseph prosper.

And uh uh Joseph moved from the prison to the palace because of favor.

Favor is a divine current that moves you from your current situation to your future dream or vision.

Hallelujah.

It moves you from where you're at to your future dream or vision.

Favor is a supernatural force.

Amen.

Which one?

Favor is a divine current that moves you from your present situation to your future dream or vision.

Favor is a supernatural source, a supernatural force.

And the full measure of God's favor is made ours through Christ.

Through being in Christ.

See, the path of favor begins with recognizing the assignment.

Recognizing the assignment.

I'm not going to take the time to go there.

You can read it when you get home.

When you look at Ruth, and here we have Naomi, and her husband has died.

Now her sons has died, and she's going back to Bethlehem.

And she says, Look, you need to tell Orpha and Ruth, you need to go back to your families.

And you remember Ruth, she stepped up and said, No, where you go, I'll go.

Your God will be my God.

Your people will be my people.

Where you stay, I'll stay.

Where you die, I'll die.

What happened?

She recognized her assignment.

Right?

There is no boaz.

There is no marriage.

There is no victory if she doesn't recognize her assignment.

Hallelujah.

Say out loud, I know my assignment.

I know my assignment.

And and and and and she went with her and refused to be moved away from her.

Elisha was so mightily used by God because he recognized his assignment.

Stay here.

The Lord has called me to go to Jericho.

As the Lord lives and as your soul lives, I will not leave you.

And the two went on.

And after the third time, when they're going to the Jordan, he says, Ask what you want me to give to you before I'm taken away.

He said, I want a double portion of your spirit, not a double portion of your anointing.

He already had the anointing.

He had already been anointed the prophet in waiting in that area.

I want a double portion of your spirit.

I want a double portion of what makes you who you are.

I want a double portion of the favor of God on your life.

Hallelujah.

And he wouldn't leave him because that's my assignment.

You got to understand something.

When God puts you somewhere, if you leave where God put you, everything God had for you there stays.

Doesn't go with you.

Doesn't go with you.

It stays there.

This is so important.

I uh and and and and and I'm saying this just as a teaching moment.

I want you to see this.

I've had people come say, God told me to come here, God told me to be here, God told me to be Part of this year.

Now you have said a lot when you said God told me.

If God told you, God told you.

God told you.

So what does that mean?

If God told me, where's my assignment?

There.

Right?

I had somebody come to me one time and said, You know, Pastor, I've been coming here, but I really believe the Lord wants me over here.

Then you better get over there.

I love having you.

I appreciate you.

But you're not going to get what you need here.

You got to go where God assigned you.

If this is where God told you to be, everything you need is here.

Everything you need to grow is here.

But what do you have to do?

You have to recognize the assignment.

You got to recognize the assignment.

Oh, hallelujah.

See, what problem are you assigned to solve?

What issue are you assigned to solve?

Don't allow anyone to distance you from your assignment.

Whatever it is.

I was talking this morning about how the Lord said to my wife and I in my office that time when our pastor said he was transitioning over from the pastorate.

And he said, I'm going to be traveling.

And Pastor Michelle asked him, she said, Well, who's going to travel with you?

And he said, Nobody.

We don't have anybody to help us.

And the Lord said to both of us, then that's your assignment.

That's your assignment.

I remind them of that all the time.

Because my pastor's so gracious.

And he'll call and he'll say, He'll say, Philip, would you be available to do this?

And I'll say, of course.

And then I always remind him, that's why I'm here.

I'm in Little Rock because I'm assigned to you.

The Lord will bless our ministry, but I'm assigned to you.

That's my job.

Right?

That's my job.

And here's what I want you to say.

I recognize that.

I understand that.

That's why the favor of God will continually operate in our lives.

Listen, when you look at people, when you look at things like uh Brother and Sister Moore, Keith and Phyllis, when you look at them, and and they were in their own ministry.

They had graduated Rhema, they had been preaching, they had more life ministries, they were doing all these things.

God had given them a plane, they were doing all these things.

And the Lord said this: when he first went to Rhema, the Lord said, Here's your assignment.

Help Brother Hagin.

And he said, That means if they need chairs put out, if they need whatever, I'm helping Brother Hagin.

And the Lord said, after they graduated Rhema, he said, Did I tell you to stop helping Brother Hagin?

And he said, No.

He said, Then you're still supposed to be helping him.

And they got on the phone and called Brother Hagin and said, you know, this is what the Lord said, and can we come and be in some of the meetings?

And they said, yeah.

And eventually, you know, they begin to be the people that arranged their travel and took care of them and ironed their clothes and did these different things.

That was their assignment.

I was talking to my pastor one time, and he said to me, he made this statement to me.

He said, He said, Well, you know, Keith and Phyllis Moore did these things for the Hagans, and he said to me, He said, worked out pretty good for them.

In other words, you can expect the same thing.

Amen.

See where God called you, don't lose sight.

Am I helping you?

Don't lose sight of your assignment.

Find your assignment, find your appointed place.

That's where favor's at, is in my appointed place.

Amen.

Discover who or what you're assigned to and help them be successful.

Find who or what you're assigned to and help them be successful.

I mentioned some of them already.

Elijah came and found Elisha.

Well, Elisha was a man of some means because he was uh uh plowing with all these oxen.

He had 12 yoke of oxen.

12 yoke.

That's 24 oxen.

And he's the head man.

And when he found his assignment, what'd he do?

Left it all.

Burnt the stuff, sacrificed the ox, and left.

Why?

He found his assignment.

Walking into your assignment will never produce a deficit.

It will only produce a dividend.

Not a deficit.

And that and and that doesn't matter, listen, it doesn't matter how old you are, it doesn't matter what gender you are, it doesn't matter what race you are, favor doesn't recognize any of that.

Favor recognizes are you in your assignment?

Are you going after what God wants you to go after?

Amen.

When the Lord started dealing with me about uh uh the the conference that we have coming up in October, clothing the next generation.

I I've learned not to question God, but I I've I've, you know, I just in my mind, why me?

Why, why, why do you want us to emphasize this?

That's my assignment.

That's my assignment.

We got to be a bridge.

We got to be a bridge.

This church, this ministry has to be a bridge into those things.

That's what that's why, listen, that's why during that conference, you all all the students from the children detour every every student that comes, we're gonna have a special reserve seating for them.

Every night the speakers are gonna lay hands on them and impart into them why we're clothing the next generation.

That's our assignment.

Am I helping you?

David and the men in the cave of Dulum.

It says that when David was in the cave of Dulum, that everyone that was in debt, in distress, and other problems came and joined themselves to him and did what?

Made him their captain.

And it goes down and it shows you the names of those 40 mighty men, those men that came to him.

The main 40.

Well, all of those men, when you read, when David gave three billion dollars of his own money into the building of the temple, all of those men that you saw that were in debt and in distress, they got together and gave five billion.

Sound like they did pretty good.

Yes, sir.

Why, they found their assignment.

When you read through that account of David, you see over and over again the same guys, the same guys that were with him, the same guys that were helping him.

When Absalom tried to take the kingdom from David, it says that those those same 400 men came and secured David and went with him.

And it was, listen, it was so bad that you know David sent the man back to advise Absalom, you know, against, I forget the uh advisor, but it says that that the advisor that Absalom had was speaking, and when he spoke, it was like the oracles of God.

Ahithophel.

That was his name, Ahithophel.

Well, this other man went back, and David said, You go back, don't come with us, you go back, and you counter what he's saying.

He went back and listen how he talked about these guys.

He said, uh the Ahithophel said, Go destroy him now.

And the man said, Look, look, look, look.

He said, Your father and these men, they're not gonna be hiding in a cave somewhere.

He said, they're gonna be like a wounded bear.

And he said, You come on them, you're gonna have all you want.

Right?

Why?

Because he knew.

He knew, look, the favor of God is on.

Listen, when and and Absalom took his advice, you know what it says Ahithophel did?

He went home and hung himself.

Because it's over.

It's over.

You following me?

Over and over again you see that.

Over and over again you see it.

Why?

They found their assignment.

When when Goliath's brother, so the Bible says, got a hold of David and was about to kill him, it says that that Abishai came and intervened and secured David and killed the giant.

And then they said, You're not going to war with us no more, so the light of Israel's not put out.

They found their assignment.

Am I helping you?

You know, Michelle, her testimony has had almost a hundred thousand views in two weeks.

94.6,000 views.

We could have worked the rest of our life and not had 94,000 people see it.

But here's the thing.

Why did we go?

Why did she do that?

Why did she travel and record that testimony?

Because part of her assignment is helping addicts find freedom in Christ.

Praise God.

Praise God.

I think one thing, now I'm almost done.

I gotta pray in just a moment.

I'm almost done.

I think one of the things that's kept us where we are and kept the blessing of God going on our life is Michelle and I have never forgot where we came from.

I love it when people honor you and I get that and I understand that we need to do that.

But we never forgot where we came from.

We're still that little couple that were hungry for God, that sat in that living room with family members that told us we were the bottom of the barrel.

We're still that couple that sat in the living room with family members, and Michelle had the first time she had ever given her testimony out, out with me in a meeting that we were doing.

I was preaching in a little African-American church in Kansas City, Missouri, way out of nowhere.

I forget her name, Sister Wright, I believe was her name.

And she would call me and ask me to come minister.

And one night she asked Michelle to minister.

Michelle gave her testimony.

It's powerful.

We videotaped it and we're watching it in the living room, and nobody watches it, nobody's paying attention to it.

And so we turned it off.

And a family member was sitting there and they go, Listen, those testimonies are a diamond dozen.

Everybody's got one.

You know, it's like the man walking down the beach and he's throwing sand dollars back in the water.

You remember that story?

And his grandson says, Granddad, you're not making a difference.

He said, Look, they're all around.

You're not making a difference.

He threw another one in the ocean.

He said, Makes all the world of a difference for that one.

Right?

See, that's what I wanted to tell that person.

It may look like it makes no difference to you, it makes all the difference for her.

That's personal to me.

You know, God delivered her to give her to me.

Right?

God set cherry free to give her to you.

Change my life.

Not cherry, her.

You got me?

All right.

This is important.

Their success precedes your success.

Because favor is a seed that can be shown.

Sown.

When you sow favor, you reap favor.

When you sow favor, you reap favor.

That's why I like to pour into ministers.

I don't know everything.

I've known a lot of people.

God has graced us to minister on some great platforms.

And he still graces us to minister on some great platforms.

But I've had people time and time again come to our churches and say, you know, when I hear your ministry, it's kind of like, you know, the old saying, Well, I thought you'd be bigger.

Right?

Like somebody meets somebody in person.

Like I remember the first time I met Jerry Savell.

I thought he'd be bigger.

I can see the top of his head, right?

When I first met Charles Caps, I thought he'd be bigger.

Just a slender, small man, but my goodness, what a life-changing word.

But here's my point.

That doesn't bother me.

This is my assignment.

And oh, what God's doing for us.

Amen.

Do you know do you know how many churches would love to be on TV, but they can't be on TV?

For whatever reason?

And God has kept us on TV since 2010?

That's the favor of God.

You stay with your assignment.

Keith Moore said it this way.

He said, you go where you're called and stay where you're, or you go where you're stationed and stay where you're called.

That's what you do.

If God has said whatever, if if God has said this is the assignment on your life, then you go after it.

Why?

Because favor is a seed that can be sown.

And the people that you show favor to and they end up in success, their success precedes your success.

And so I love pouring in the ministers.

I love helping ministers.

And I'm going to be very honest with you.

More than once I've been burnt.

More than once.

Listen, I've had ministers come and we've poured into them, and they've they've decided they wanted to go do their own thing and left and took people.

Took people.

I had I had I had one group leave one time and they took three or four families with them.

People say, What'd you do?

Blessed them, prayed for them.

Why?

I don't need the favor shield to go away from me.

And you know what God did?

They took three or four families.

It wasn't two weeks.

We got eight or ten back.

Why?

Because favor is not only a protectant, it's an attractant.

You're here tonight because I believe because God wanted you here.

And there's something that you need.

Hallelujah.

Glory to God.

That thing, that thing, whatever it is, you're just going to step over it.

It's done.

The shadow of a dog never bit anybody.

See, what does that mean?

Shadows don't bite people.

And according to Scripture, Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 14, according to Scripture, the devil has been paralyzed, he's been neutralized, he's been robbed of all of his ability to harm, to hurt, or to destroy us.

Hebrews 2 · chapter mention

We don't run from paralyzed devils.

Amen.

Hallelujah.

Do you believe that?

Glory to God.

Glory to God.

Hallelujah.

Thank you, Jesus.

And so, Lord, I believe that what you said, you said that things were set in motion to produce change.

That circumstances would change.

Father, as this was heard and as it was applied and received.

And Father, we've received it tonight.

The next step is application.

And Father, as we apply it, we shall see those things change in the name of Jesus.

Oh, hallelujah.

Hallelujah.

I said in my word, the Lord says, in the account of the army that came against the people of God and came against Jehosaphat.

And over and over again in that account, the men, Jehoshaphat's men, went out to meet with the enemy emissary.

And they asked the enemy emissary, they said, Don't speak in Hebrew.

Speak in your language because we understand it.

And in the word, it says that the enemy emissary spoke even louder in the Hebrew tongue.

How that they could not win and they could not help but be defeated, and not to allow Jehosaphat to lie to them and tell them that God was going to deliver them.

And it said he spoke loudly so that all on the walls could hear.

No, the Lord says, No, that your adversary, that your enemy loves to talk, and he loves to boast, and he loves to say what he will do, and he loves to declare your defeat, and he loves to tell you that you can't and you won't, and it's impossible.

But I, the Lord your God, say to you that no matter what your enemy is saying, and no matter what he is speaking, his words shall fall to the ground like dead leaves off of a tree in the autumn season.

For I have caused them to come to nothing, and I have caused them to be powerless, do not think on them, do not respond to them.

They are a thing of nothing, they hold no power, and they hold no victory over you.

In the name of Jesus.

The closer to defeat he comes.

Hallelujah.

The only thing he can do is talk.

Talk is how he gets words into your mind, the Lord says.

Words getting into your mind.

The thought pattern, the mind is the gateway.

But when you say no, you don't listen, his words fall to nothing.

And you must understand and comprehend and know that the days that we're moving into and the seasons that we're moving into, it's going to require those.

If they're going to do exploits, they must number one know their God.

They must number two believe the word of God at all costs.

They must number three look for, expect, and walk in the favor of God every day.

Because the day that we're moving into, yes, it's the days of the end.

It's the time of the end.

But so many people are looking for everything to fall apart and they're looking for everything to come to nothing.

I'm looking for a people that are expecting good.

I'm looking for a people that are expecting good things and expecting, in spite of what's going on in the world, that we're going to be a light on a hill and we're going to change the situation and we're going to change the community that we're in.

That's who I'm looking for.

Never one time in my word did I say, lay down your shield and lay down your armament and just get ready for me to come back.

My coming back to get you is a reunion, not a rescue.

I do not need to rescue my people from the enemy.

My people have victory over the enemy.

The rapture of the church is a reunion with me, not a rescue from the devil.

So be strong.

Be valiant.

Be mighty.

Be stalwart.

Walk in the favor of God.

Never, never allow words of weakness to come out of your mouth.

Never, never say, I can't.

Never say it's impossible.

Never say this is overwhelming me.

You are not overwhelmed.

How?

The Lord says, can you be overwhelmed when the greater one lives on the inside of you?

So you mark the date and you mark the time and you mark the night that the Lord your God made the statement that the plans of the enemy shall fall to nothing.

And it will it will not be something that you have to wait.