A Prayer to Receive God's Favor in My Life
By Lynette Kittle
"Surely, Lord, You bless the righteous; You surround them with Your favor as with a shield"—Psalm 5:12
Do you think God's mad at you? Or believe He's punishing you? What about withholding good things from you? So many people look around at what is happening to others, compare it to their lives, and then feel like God doesn't care about them. Have you ever felt that way? But the truth is, all the above is lies. The enemy lies to us about God and who He is, and we can't believe a word He whispers to us. He's a liar from the beginning. 1 John 3:8 describes how,
"The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work."
We want to remember that everything God tells us in His word is true, yet every word the devil speaks is a lie.
4 Lies the Devil Tells Us
1. God is withholding His favor from me. The truth is God isn't a withholder. "For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does He withhold from those whose walk is blameless" (Psalm 84:11).
2. God loves other people more than me. Again, the devil lies to us because God's word reveals the truth of His being impartial (1 Peter 1:17), a Father who judges each person's work impartially. Likewise, we can be assured, "But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere" (James 3:17).
3. God doesn't want to help me. Especially during trying times, the enemy wants us to think God has left us and we are alone. But Psalm 3:3 describes, "But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high."
4. God has withdrawn His favor from me. Although the devil wants us to believe that we have lost God's favor because of something we did or didn't do, Proverbs 8:35 tells us, "For those who find Me find life and receive favor from the Lord." Likewise, Psalm 30:5 assures God's favor in our lives lasts a lifetime. And, as we grow in His ways, we continue to grow in His favor, too (Exodus 33:13).
3 Truth Concerning God's Favor
1. I have God's favor. Rather than believe the devil's lies, we want to remember because we belong to God, we have His favor. He doesn't withdraw or withhold it from us. As long as we live, for every day of our lives, we will have the favor of God.
2. His favor surrounds me. God's favor is like a shield around us, like a covering that goes where ever we go.
3. God's favor blesses my earthly endeavors. We can have confidence God is blessing our daily undertakings, establishing and blessing the work of our hands (Psalm 90:17).
Let's pray:
Dear Father,
Thank You for giving me Your favor to last my entire lifetime. I am forever grateful that I don't have to be afraid of losing it or fear you'll change Your mind about me. Teach me, Lord, to know and believe that because I belong to You, Your favor surrounds me like a shield daily. Lead me in believing the truth of Your word and not ever doubt it. Free me from the lies of the enemy who tries to keep me from walking in Your favor. Help me to discern his deception from Your truth. Daily remind me what Psalm 23:6 promises me, "Surely Your goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." Thank you for a lifetime of favor establishing all the work of my hands here on earth. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/JaffarAliAfzal
Lynette Kittle is married with four daughters. She enjoys writing about faith, marriage, parenting, relationships, and life. Her writing has been published by Focus on the Family, Decision, Today’s Christian Woman, kirkcameron.com, Ungrind.org, StartMarriageRight.com, and more. She has a M.A. in Communication from Regent University and serves as associate producer for Soul Check TV.
Editor's Note: We're proud to announce we've just launched a new nighttime companion to Your Daily Prayer: the Your Nightly Prayer devotional. You'll soon be able to subscribe to receive Your Nightly Prayer via email, or as a podcast, but for now you can find it on the website at crosswalk.com/devotionals/your-nightly-prayer. We hope it's a relaxing and soothing way to wind down your day with rich meditations on who God is.
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