God’s Favor!

It was a Saturday and I was excited, I had prayed for weeks asking the Lord for wisdom on whether to fix the computer screen of my laptop or to buy one of the popular bookstore  7” digital pads. 

The convenience of a digital pad was that it was portable, however, my laptop had all my previous files store on it!  At this time I had been taking public transportation, and I was getting tired of hauling my laptop bag around.  The wisdom I believe I received was to buy the digital pad, just for this reason of portable transportation.  The pad could easily fit in my pocket and go everywhere I was going, and It was also light. 

So, after I went with the advice I received, I was off to make my purchase. 

My first stop was to the bank and then I made my way to the bus stop.  Next to the bus stop was a dollar store and I was feeling a little hungry.  So I went to the store to purchase a snack.  After much pondering and a little guilt, I went with a sports drink and some yogurt raisins.  My conscience told me it was not the best choice and I started to feel guilty, even though I’m in reasonably good shape!

After leaving out the store I made a short walk to the bus stop, I set down and drank my sports drink and ate my yogurt raisins, that is when it happened my evangelizing scenes went off, God was calling me to evangelize!

In 2010 had an amazing encounter with our Lord, in this encounter I discovered I had the gift of evangelism.  Now wherever I go, if the Lord needs me to share with someone, or evangelize I make every effort to comply. I usually evangelize the simple message that the Lord has given me, on how He loves us and how he wants us to love others, and how he restores us. This usually happens to whoever the Lord guides me to.  Sometimes, it is that so small voice telling me who to share with, and sometimes the people really stand out.  It is almost like my eyes hyper-focus on them and they seem as if they are in High Definition! 

While at the bus stop two young men walked over and sat next to me, they were who I was being called to share with. I  introduced myself to them, and then I asked If I could share a short message with them, they agreed!   After sharing God's message of love and restoration, I thanked them, and we all waited for the bus together.

It's funny how the enemy tries to attack our minds after we do work for the Kingdom of God.  He wants to make us feel as if we are not worthy of the gifts, and grace of God.  The feeling of guilt came over me again for the food that I ate,  I then heard that oh so small voice say to my heart “you have Grace and favor”,  and at that exact same time a car passes the bus stop with a license plate that read “favor”.  Not far behind the car was bus number 14, this would be the bus that would take me to the downtown bus hub.

While boarding the bus I hear a lady with her three little granddaughters say the word, ”favor “,  she then defined the word to her three little granddaughters as I walked past her.  I was shocked that she said and defined the word that I just saw on the car’s license plate!   My spirit praises God and how awesome He is, however, my doubtful fleshly nature said to me “oh she must have seen the license plate on the car as well".

I felt as if I was supposed to sit close to her on the bus and share with her, however, for some reason I moved to the back of the bus.  

While riding to the downtown hub I could hear the grandmother quizzing her grandkids on the Bible and God at the front of the bus!  I thought to myself "what an amazing grandmother", I wonder if she realizes that she is evangelizing to the people on the bus as well and training her grandchildren in our Christian faith!

When we arrive at the downtown hub I was hoping she would get off of the bus so I could share with her.  When I went to step off of the bus she stayed on.  So I stayed on as well and asked her if I could share with her a message from the Lord, she agreed! 

I told her the message I have to share as I pointed to the heavens.  I said, "the Lord is really asking us to walk in love right now and this consist of loving God with all of our hearts, soul, mind, and strength". I then pointed to my right and said to her, "and love our neighbors as we love ourselves",  and I pointed to the left and said, " the Lord even wants us to Love our enemies and pray for those who hurt us", she agreed.  

I then asked her if she knew about the fruit of the Holy Spirit and shared what they were, I said the fruit of the Holy Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, faithfulness, and self-control.  I share how they are also ways of loving because love is kind, love is peaceful, joyful, and patient.  I told her that Galatians 5:22 basically says when the Holy Spirit comes upon us He will produce this kind of fruit(love) in us.  I told her that this comes through the sincere profession of our faith in Jesus and how out of this profession, our heart is open and the Holy Spirit comes and lives within us and how there should be an outward expression of the love of Him who lives within us.

 I then told her, however,  because of original sin the first sin of Adam and Eve eating from the Tree of Good and Evil we have a nature that is not from God, and that Paul covers this nature in Galatians 5:19, and that this nature consists of character traits like hate, anger, lust, greed, and others as this.  I shared that Paul says in Galatians 5 that we each have a battle waging within us.  I said the spirit of God wants us to walk in love and obey God, and share HIs fruit(love),  however, our corrupt nature is totally opposed to God and it wants us to do the exact opposite(hate, anger, lust, greed, etc.).  I shared however because of the Holy Spirit that indwells within us we can overcome our flesh, our corrupt nature.   I shared how if we practice living and walking in the Holy Spirit that lives within us, we are truly abiding(living) in God.  I asked her if she ever practices something and she said “yes”.  I then asked her if she always gets what she is practicing right, she replied “No” I said neither do I, however, the more and more I practice, I told her the better and better I get.  I explained how this is true with learning how to abide(live) in the Holy Spirit as well.

I then shared how in 1 John it tells us that God is love and how those who abide (live) in love abide in God and I share how it says in John 15 that those who abide in God can ask anything of the Father and if it is His will he would give it to us.  I said, however, a fruit tree does not produce fruit right away it goes through a growing season, and in that growing season, there is good weather and bad weather.  I said the same is true for us, whether we are good or bad.  Good and bad things will happen to us.  I shared how the Bible says the rain falls on the just and the unjust, however, if we continue to put God first we will always produce good fruit. 

I shared how the process is like a diver that dives really deep into the ocean.  The ocean depth represents us when we are at our lowest.  That diver can not surface right away or he will get something called the bends from too quick of a pressure change, so the diver comes up slowly, and that he may pause for a while in order to get used to the pressure(to acclimate), and how he continues up to the surface in this manner pausing and moving upward until he eventually surfaces.  

I shared how the Lord does a similar thing with us, 
and how the Lord wants our hearts to look like His heart and how his heart is love, and that our love takes time to grow.

  I told her how the Lord also prepares us for the promise that he has sown deep in our hearts,  and how it takes a season (a time God determines)to prepare us,  and that he wants us to be good Stewarts of what he wants to give us.

I told the best advice given to me by a friend was not to look too far in the future and not too far in the past, but to focus on each day, one day at a time.  and how in the Greek that there is a word called KAIROS and that this word means in "God’ s special time", it not our timing, but God’s timing.  I  then asked her one last question, I asked her if she has the Holy Spirit living in her, is it different than the Holy Spirit that indwells within me.  She replied it is only one Holy Spirit, I agreed and said you are correct, it is the same! 

So, I then askes Her another question.  I said, "since we are connected by the same Holy Spirit,  and the Body of Christ is like a spiritual network If I do anything to you good or bad, who do I do it to"?  She replied "God"!  I replied, "you are correct", "and, do you see we also do it to ourselves and the Body of Christ?"  I reminded her what the scriptures say,  that we are of the same body,  and if one part of the body suffers, we all suffer.    I reminded her that we have grace!  Meaning we are not perfect, however,  we have a perfect God that lives within us and He gives us unmerited favor and power, which equals His grace! 

 She thanked me and I moved back to another seat on the bus. The time came for the grandmother I just evangelize too to get off the bus.  As she stood up her three little granddaughters grab her by the arm and helped her off the bus, to my surprise she was blind! This is when I realized It was no way she could have read the license plates that said “favor”.   The Bible says sometimes we are hosting angels! 

The time came for me to get on another bus and I eventually made it to the mall where I would look for the 7” digital pad.  As I journeyed the Lord called me to evangelize with five other people, on three different occasions.   All were very special God moments.  

I eventually purchase my digital pad at one of the popular big-name bookstores.  After the purchase, I made my way back to the bus stop to make my journey home. On my way home I stopped at the grocery store that was just a few blocks from the house I was living in at the time.   While grocery shopping the Lord called me to witness to women in the grocery store.   I shared and like so many others she was thankful for the message.  After I paid for my groceries and left the store to walk the last few blocks home, I was stopped by a woman driving a very nice car. 

She asked me did I need a ride, after giving her a puzzled look, she explained that she knew I was a Christian after she heard me evangelizing in the store!  So after quick discernment from the Holy Spirit, I determine it was OK and let her take me to the house. I then asked her did she hear everything that I shared with the person in the store.  She replied “No”.  So,  again I share the message God has given me.  

After I was finished I asked her what type of work does she do?  She replied that she was a caregiver I smiled and told her that I do the same kind of work, and in fact,  At the time I was living and working with a friend who had suffered from a debilitating medical condition.  I asked her if she had any business cards and she replied “yes” and gave me one, after getting out of the car and into the house I looked at the card.  While in the car she never told me what her last name was, however, when I read the business card and saw and read her name  I could only be amazed at God's grace and favor, her last name read "Favors". Oh, what an amazing God we serve, I said out loud.  God is so Gooooood!