You do know, there are people who don’t want to see others favored by the Lord. Sad to say, there are even church folks guilty of this. Their reasons can stem all the way from envy to—they feel the person doesn’t deserve to be blessed. Beware, not all smiling faces come from happy hearts; not all wishers are well-wishers. To put it bluntly: Haters simply don’t like others being favored over them.
Honey draws ants—favor draws haters.
If you are a recipient of God’s favor, people will wonder: Why do you always get the best jobs; make the best deals; and get the last turkey on sale? These are innocent questions that will intrigue the average person’s mind. On the other hand, if the person’s spirit is vexed, the devil will turn those harmless questions into something sinister. The enemy will draw these people to you, and use them to pull you away from your blessings.
Deception in plain view: The haters think you are their problem—when the devil is their problem.
Don’t trip on a hater’s hate!
Keep in mind—if you trip over their hatred by retaliating in an ungodly manner, you could miss what God has for you. Thank the Lord for His bountiful favor; and leave the haters scratching their heads in bewilderment.
If God be for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31b)
God’s ways and thoughts are higher than ours. (See Isaiah 55:9.)
Don’t waste your time trying to understand the omniscient mind of God. He chooses to favor whomever He wishes; whenever and how He pleases. Maybe a person is favored because they’re walking upright before God. Or, maybe He’s using favor to draw them closer to Him. Or, perhaps He wants others to see His goodness through them. Whatever His reasons are, they are His reasons; for His glorious plan.
God bestows favor for His purpose.
In Genesis 6:6-7, God said He regretted that He created humans because of their sinful ways; therefore, He decided to wipe them off the earth. But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord; as a result, Noah was used for God’s purpose. In Ruth 2:15, God favored Ruth, and led Boaz to her. God had a purpose because this union became a part of Jesus’ lineage.
When we are favored, we are to view the advantages it brings as tools to be used for God’s overall purpose. It will be to our detriment if we allow anyone to deter us from the mission that we have been assigned.
On the flip side . . .
However, we must make sure we’re not one of the ones doing the hating. No one is above being deceived by the enemy. We might think we don’t have a jealous bone in our bodies, but he will try us. Paul said when he wanted to do good, evil was always present (see Romans 7:19-21).
We have no control over evil thoughts zooming into our minds, but we do have control not to take them under consideration.
In closing, don’t take your blessings for granted. Instead, praise God, honor Him with your obedience; and use your faith to humbly accept the fact that you have been favored by the Holy One; and haters can’t do a thing about it.
© 2019
See you next week on Paulette Talks Faith.