The Year of The Lord’s Favor
I had been searching for my word of the year, but every word I tried seemed off. Each word was perfect, but each seemed contrived; like they were meant for me. I looked at growth, soar, joy, present, love, enjoyment, and a lot more, but none felt right. Can you tell I said that in a huff?
Monday morning, I sat down to listen to a sermon on YouTube, and he was talking about Jabez. During his sermon, he was giving out different Bible verses, and one of them changed everything.
Isaiah 61:1-3
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, 2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.
When I read these verses, I was filled with joy, light, and splendor, and I knew that the Lord had provided me a word for the year…favor!
Some of the definitions of favor are:
- The state of being approved or held in regard:
- Excessive kindness or unfair partiality; preferential treatment:
- Something done or granted out of goodwill rather than from justice or for remuneration; a kind act:
- Friendly or well-disposed regard; goodwill:
Those definitions come from a dictionary, but I am more interested in what the Bible has to say about favor.
Psalm 5:12
12 Surely, Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield.
Psalm 84:11
11 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.
Ephesians 2:8-9
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
Proverbs 12:2
2 Good people obtain favor from the Lord, but he condemns those who devise wicked schemes.
1 Peter 3:12
12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
So, what does living in the Lord’s favor look like?
To live in the Lord’s favor means experiencing the blessings and favor of God in your life. This can take many different forms and may include material blessings, such as financial prosperity or good health. But more importantly, living in the Lord’s favor means experiencing the peace, joy, and fulfillment that come from being in the right relationship with God and living a life aligned with His will. It means having a sense of purpose and direction and being able to weather the storms of life with confidence and hope, knowing that God is with you and has a plan for your life.
Living in the Lord’s favor also involves cultivating a heart that’s open to God’s leading and guidance. It means being willing to listen to Him and follow His direction, even when it may be difficult or uncomfortable. It means being humble and recognizing your dependence on God, and trying to live in a way that reflects your trust in Him.
To live in the Lord’s favor is to have a close relationship with God and to seek to follow His will for your life. It means striving to live in a way that pleases Him and brings Him glory. Seeking to grow in your faith and understanding of God’s word and seeking to live out your faith in all aspects of your life. It means being obedient to God’s commands and seeking to honor Him in all that you do.
I’m starting each morning by reading Isaiah 61. I want to be called an Oak of Righteousness and to proclaim the good news of the Lord. I’m thrilled that the Lord gave me my word of the year, and I anxiously await to see the favor He bestows on me this coming year.
To God Goes The Glory!
Have A Blessed Day!
I enjoy your scriptural inspiration posts every bit as much as I enjoy your fashion ideas! Thank you and God bless! My word of the year is “focus” (on what’s important).
I have never done a word of the year. I like your choice.
Happy New Year!
Good and insightful post. My word is “refresh.” I want to feel refreshed in my walk and in my outlook. As with most people, my 2022 kind of drug me down down down. I need to look up a;nd refresh my soul and spirit.
That was so good. God has to literally thump me on the head before I realize what he saying to me. My word for the year is “change”. I have never picked a word before. I actually tried to “change” my word, 😂, but it kept coming back to me.
Beautiful post. Thank you!
Surrender – that is my word for the year. Finally giving complete control to the Lord for every area of my life – not that I ever had control myself but believing to experience His peace even more as I surrender all the things in my life to Him.
James 4:10
I like that!
My word for the year is Gratitude. I am thankful every day for things but I decided to look into more things to be thankful for that I am over looking
Wonderful word of the year. Mine is Abundance. Not monetary but spiritual – being able to live an abundant spiritual life in 2023. I hadn’t looked at the January theme of my Journaling program but after I chose my 2023 Word and verse 2 Corinthians 9:8 – I found the theme for January was abundance. Many people think of abundance only pertaining to money but as a believer it is so much more. Can’t wait to see what favor God brings to your life in 2023 and what abundance He brings into mine.
Thank you for your inspirational posts.
God gave me 2 words this year; gratitude and forgiveness. Praise be to God. Hoping you have many blessings this year.
My word is courage having courage to face difficulty is hard
courage to change is hard but with god all things are possible