“For whoever finds me (wisdom) finds life and receives favor from the Lord.” – Proverbs 8:35

Below are some of the many ways God has shown me His incredible favor the past few months.

- When searching for a Nanny for Kaleb to allow me to work in the mornings, God provided a Godly woman named Rhonda who lived within 5 minutes of us. In addition to this, she’s also affordable and genuinely cares for him. We thank God for Rhonda more times than we can count.

- About a month after watching Kaleb, Rhonda offered to watch him until 2:30pm each day, rather than the standard 1:00pm. She offered this for NO EXTRA CHARGE. This gives me an additional 7.5 hours of work time per week. That’s INCREDIBLE! Her generosity has made a HUGE impact on what I’m able to accomplish each week.

- I received an unexpected refund check for $300 from my lawyers. Apparently there was a miscommunication with the secretary and they had accidentally overcharged me for the formation of my LLC. Now, how often do you hear THAT happening? (The refund part, that is… not being overcharged by a lawyer…)

- The freelance graphic artist I work with lowered her hourly rate specifically to support what I’m doing with Mills Creative Minds. This was completely unprompted and unexpected. And appreciated.

The favor of God is often referred to as something Christians should “claim.” It’s an odd concept, “claiming” a right as a Christian. To try to clarify what this means, I figured I’d share what it means for me, personally, to “claim” God’s favor in my life.

I make a point to constantly remind myself that I’m loved and favored by God. I tell myself that His favor is being poured out on me daily, like a huge barrel of honey. It covers me and smothers me from head to toe, and it’s super-sticky. And not only am I surrounded by it, but it rubs off onto those around me. It’s sweet and delicious and it’s meant to be shared.

Because just as God pours His thick favor upon ME, I am an ambassador of His favor to those around me. I am responsible to show unparalleled favor to the other people He puts me in contact with. It’s a cycle, and to get that flow started we sometimes have to jumpstart it with a sacrificial gift ourselves.

I say “sacrificial” because I believe that when we give something up and it actually costs us – financially, emotionally, etc. – such an act is noticed and rewarded by God. That’s exactly what I believe happened when He led me to give money away in October (and again this month). It hurt to give. But I sincerely believe my obedience unlocked His future gifts of favor that I would have cheated myself out of if I had decided to ignore or resist His leading.

Galatians 6:7 addresses this concept perfectly. “A man reaps what he sows.” You really can’t get any clearer than that, can you? Yet we all know people who make a habit of pointing to everyone else in their life as “the problem.” “If only THEY did this…” or “If only THEY weren’t so ______”  You get the picture.

Responsibility: it’s not for everyone. (Apparently…)

You want it? You gotta give it first. Whatever you sow – encouragement, money, love… negativity, greed, selfishness – you’re gonna reap.

Don’t like what you’ve been getting in this life?
Time to take a closer look at what you’re giving.

In the next few days I’ll be sharing how God’s favor has been unleashed in my life. How, by simply believing in His love and desire to bless me, I have received far more than I could have ever asked for. He has blessed me beyond my imagination (and my imagination is a mighty fertile playground, lemme tell ya).

The good news is He wants to do this for everyone. Every single one of us who claims Jesus as his savior is heir to the kingdom. Not just the kingdom in the next life, but everything that God wants to give us in this life as well. (And those of you who are only thinking in terms of cash or lottery winnings are thinking way too small. Trust me.)

More to come,

Kevin

“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.”     – Psalms 84:11

One of the foremost arguments when discussing the concept of favor is that it’s works-based. That we can manipulate God’s willingness to dish out gobs and gobs of favor based on how we act or what we do. This idea is half correct.

On the one hand, God is a generous, loving God who wants to give us good things. And He is the one who controls the favor, not me. He’s the only one who provides for all my needs. My part is to just reach out and accept what He’s freely given. And that can prove to be difficult.

It’s not easy to fully comprehend that He genuinely wants to give good things to me, to bless me beyond anything I could conceive of. It’s also not easy to trust that He’s going to meet my needs, regardless of what my circumstances may look like. Because let’s face it, sometimes we find ourselves in situations where we’re just not convinced everything’s going to work out in the end.

God provides us with everything – absolutely everything. (“What do you have that you did not receive?” 1 Corinthians 4:7) We can no more manipulate Him to give more favor than we can get Him to give us more oxygen each day. Or make the sun shine more. Or make the sky bluer. These things are all freely given, and in the same way they can’t be increased, we also can’t earn any of them. The only thing that makes us “blameless” in the earlier verse is our identity in Jesus Christ. So nothing we do can make God love us more than He already does.

But what we do moment by moment CAN influence His desire to favor us with more than we deserve. Just as a parent would want to reward a child for their obedience and wise or generous decisions, God wants to reward those who live according to His will. It’s simple cause and effect.

Kevin

I’m only human. And I don’t feel adequate to try to explain what I’ve learned about God’s favor these past few months. Nonetheless, I ALSO feel that God wants me to write about it and share what I’ve experienced, so I’m going to try to tackle this thing, regardless of my self-doubts.

I don’t know why I suddenly had an interest in it, in finding out what “the favor of God” actually means. It was right after reading the books on watching what we say and believing in a positive future. Maybe the concept was mentioned in those books and it seeped into my subconscious. Ida know. But when I want to learn about something, I immerse myself in the subject matter and drink it in deeply. I smother myself in it, and by doing this I’m able to claw my way through it all and when I’m done, the teaching STICKS to me. It works for me.

So the following books & sermon series have helped shape my understanding of what it means to be favored by God. I highly suggest you check them out on your own, so you don’t have to rely on my slap-dash summarization to get the Big Picture.

Favor – The Road to Success (How To Receive Special Favor with God and People) – Bob Buess

The Blessing of Favor – Experiencing God’s Supernatural Influence – Kate McVeigh

The Favorable Hand of God – Charles Stanley (August 2008)

As I mentioned in an earlier post, when we respond to God’s leading with faithful obedience, He will unleash His favor and blessings in our lives like never before. Favor is wholly supernatural, even if it comes through natural means. Favor is when God opens up His heavenly providence and makes it available for us, as Christians, to take hold of.

Daniel was favored by God. He went from a lowly position in jail to highly esteemed in the kingdom. Jesus was favored by God. Everywhere he went he had followers, men and women who listened intently to his every word. As Christians we can expect that same kind of favor in our lives. We can live in expectation of being treated differently by those around us. We can expect to be blessed beyond what we deserve. (This is called “grace.”)

The verse that God has underscored for me the past few weeks is this: 2 Corinthians 9:8.

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.”

This is what it means to me: I don’t have to freak out about the future.

Sometimes the growing list of “Things To Do” to make Mills Creative Minds is seemingly overwhelming. And it’s a slow process. Nothing has happened as quickly as I thought it would, or should. But if I remind myself of God’s promise in that verse, I’m okay. I’m at peace.

God knows my heart. He knows why I’m pursuing what I’m pursuing. He KNOWS it’s to provide money to missionaries and churches worldwide. And He’s able to provide me with everything I need to accomplish this goal that He’s put in my heart. Not necessarily everything I want – this isn’t a cosmic treasure chest, here – but everything I might NEED. And if I don’t have it, but I think I desperately need it? Guess what? I obviously don’t. Because God will provide what I need. (That’s hard to swallow, because we often get so emotionally wrapped up in situations where it’s easy to blur the lines between “needs” and “wants.”)

-Kevin

 ”May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us – yes, establish the work of our hands.”      – Psalms 90:17

A few weeks ago while passing through Oklahoma City, Kim and I were able to stop at LifeChurch.tv where we used to attend church. It was great to be there again and experience the fellowship & powerful messages.

That weekend they had a guest speaker, Bill Hybels. His message was on hearing the “whispers” of God, and deciding what to do with them. I had already planned on writing this column at the time, so hearing this message was both educational and a confirmation.

The gist of his message can be summarized in one sentence: Listening to and obeying the whispers of God results in the unleashing of His favor and anointing.

That’s it. You want to be blessed in this life? You want God to give you His favorable Hand in what you do? Then pay attention to what He’s telling you. And DO it.

This is a lesson that He continues to show me slowly, day-by-day. And just like Hybels said, I find He rewards me in accordance to my direct obedience to Him.

About two months ago I was driving in the car and praying. My lawyers (who helped me set up Mills Creative Minds as an LLC) were going through tough times, financially. The landlord of their building decided to stop paying the electric bill, so everyone in the entire high-rise were about to be cut off and thrown out. (If that’s not the textbook definition of “hard times,” I don’t know what is…)

So I prayed for them. I asked God what more I could do for them. He said to pay my lawyers an extra $500 IN ADDITION to the $1,600 I owed them for making Mills Creative Minds an LLC. I readily admit it: I hemmed and hawed for a few minutes, turning things over in my mind. Was that really God who said that? Or was it my mind playing tricks on me? Wouldn’t that just be awkward? Telling them I was giving them money because “God told me to”?

This is what we often do when God speaks to us. We try to discount the message because we find it unpleasant or painful. In this instance, paying $500 was quite painful. I have a set amount of funds set aside this year to get Mills Creative Minds off the ground. Most everything is earmarked for certain areas already. That $500? That was going to buy me a new monitor, which would in turn allow me to work more efficiently when designing ideas.

But there was no doubt in my mind: it was God who spoke. How did I know? Well, for one thing, it was a specific answer to a specific question. And secondly, my fleshly self was resistant to the idea. Which means it didn’t come from ME at all. So these two facts were enough to convince me to do it. I wrote them a note, apologizing for the awkwardness of it all, and sent ‘em a check for $500. I figured if I began Mills Creative Minds by following His leading, why in the world would I stop now?

The following week they sent me a thank you note, along with a very unexpected confession. In addition to their property woes, their practice was going through a particularly hard time overall that month, and they weren’t going to get a paycheck at the end of October. (It’s a small family practice; father, son & daughter.) They said that receiving the two ADDITIONAL checks for $250 apiece was heartbreaking for them, seeing how God was using an everyday schmo like me to meet their needs. (My words, not theirs.)

Surprisingly, my giving also had a direct result on me as well. Quite simply, God’s favor was suddenly unleashed in my life in ways I had never imagined. Not only has He provided for me financially, but mentally as well. Simply put, my brain is on FIRE since then. Pieces of the licensing puzzle are falling into place left and right. It’s fantastic. Things that previously stumped me are suddenly clicking, making perfect sense. I have a renewed sense of understanding. Of insight. Wisdom.

“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”     – Luke 6:38

So the moral of this story is this: do what God is telling you to do.

Listen for His voice. Read His Word. Seek His insight. Hear what He’s been saying to you.

And then DO it. Obey Him. Follow through.

You will be blessed in ways you never imagined.

-Kevin

There are four steps when it comes to visualizing your ideal future. For creating the movie in your mind. And they are:

1) Choose your goal.
2) Visualize it clearly.
3) Set a specific deadline.
4) Commit it to God. Partner with Him.

1) Choose your goal.

Be specific. The subconscious mind is like a toddler. It needs direction, and you have to be specific. So choose your goal and make it CLEAR that that’s your goal Write it down. Say it aloud. Whatever it takes to remind yourself, constantly: “Hey. That’s our goal. Go for it.”

2) Visualize it clearly.

Once you’ve chosen your goal, round it out. Fill in all the details. What’s going to happen when. What will success look like? What will it feel like? What will you be feeling the moment you’ve reached your goal? And then work back. You’ve pictured the final moment. Now take a step back and picture the moment JUST before that one. And work your way back to where you are now, today.

For those of you who are often frozen with fear at making the next step, this is a huge help. Suddenly you’ll be able to see it in bite-sized chunks. No, you don’t have to do it all TODAY. And you can’t. You’re human. But you CAN do the next step. It’s not a huge step. It might not feel like progress, but it’s a start. And at this point? Any movement at all is progress (whether your feelings agree or not).

3) Set a specific deadline.

Don’t let your goal pass you by because you didn’t nail it down. Goals are often like Jell-O: they’re hard to nail down if you don’t solidify them. So get your goal frozen in your mind as soon as possible, and capture it on paper somewhere. Write it down. Talk to someone about when you’re going to achieve it. You might NOT hit the deadline, but this keeps you from putting that goal in the “someday” bin, where it’s been all its life. Time to take it out, dust it off, and get started. Set a deadline today.

4) Commit it to God. Partner with Him.

This last step it crucial. Without God partnering with us, whatever frustrations or disappointments or setbacks you encounter will be lonely. You read that right: I said lonely. And that’s the worst feeling in the world. God made us to partner with other people, to rely on others to help us achieve our goals. He also made us to rely on Him and His power to sustain us. He keeps our hearts beating day in and day out. He regulates our breathing. Our brains? He’s the one who makes the messages shoot through the neurons. So commit your way to Him and allow Him to lead you. He knows the roads you’re going to face along the way, and with Him as a partner you’re better equipped to navigate ‘em.

Faith in God removes tension, fear, worry and all the negative forces that hold us back from succeeding. If the most powerful force in the universe is on your side and supporting your goals, why would you fear any failure? He is in control. Even if you “fail” according to our definition of failure, He can (and often WILL) use that failure as a springboard for your future success. This might sound like some kind of a twisted riddle some of you, but until you’ve been through it you won’t understand. (This is where having faith in the midst of failure comes in.)

It isn’t magic. But it works. What we think affects every facet of our lives. So change your stinkin’ thinkin’ and start living the life God intended for you to live. It’s time to begin again. To change your life. Today.

Kevin

Recommended Teaching:

Charles Stanley’s “Reaching Your Full Potential” – A Clear Mind.
(Audio Archives. November 2008.)

The mental movies that we play in our minds has a direct impact on what plays out in our lives in the future.

Take my life as an example. Starting a company from scratch can be a daunting experience. Instead of looping the message that I’m overwhelmed with all the stuff I have to learn, that I don’t have the time or the resources to make it happen, how there’s so much to do and see and know, etc., I make a point to constantly switch the soundtrack.

I tell myself that I’m gaining new wisdom and understanding on a daily basis. I tell my mind that God is revealing new mysteries to it every single day. That He’s providing me with the answers. Guiding my every step. I picture a future based on faith, rather than on my fears. And then I slowly etch over that picture on a daily basis, carefully carving that image into my mental canvas so that when an alternate message tries to stick, it simply can’t. Because it won’t fit with the grooves on my mind.

I want to emphasize that it’s important that the image we hold, the goal we’re striving for, is in line with God’s Word or, better yet, specifically given by God. This is the case with Mills Creative Minds and the book I’m currently writing. One day back in May I was praying, asking God how I could generate more money to support some missionaries overseas. A few hours later He literally woke me up in the middle of the night and gave me the ideas. The message.

Create & pursue Mills Creative Minds and write the book.

Just like that. It was as if someone rang a bell or a musical triangle. The message was clear, and it resonated within me. So my current God-given goal is absolutely crystal in my mind. There is no question what I’m striving for, aiming to achieve.

Don’t think I’m unique in this ability to hear from Him, by the way. I believe God will guide each and every one one of us if we’ll only pursue Him more than our own goals. If we’ll put Him in His rightful position in our lives, He WILL reward that kind of faith and obedience.

So how do we go about switching out the film? Turning off the movies of failure and fear for one of faith and hope? Start by imagining yourself succeeding in the area where you strongly desire success. Imagine a screen on the wall in front of you. And on that screen, see yourself doing the very thing you long to do. Then loop this movie over and over and over again in your mind. Play it and replay it and memorize it. The dialogue, the motions, the emotions – take it all in.

Since I work from home and spend a lot of time here in my office, I’ve modified this method just a bit. When I spend time with God, I sit in a glider rocking chair across the room, facing the desk. So sometimes I pick up an empty photo frame – just the naked frame itself, with no backing or anything – and I hold it up in front of me, “framing” the desk. And then I begin making my movie.

I picture myself sitting at the desk, working. Coming up with new ideas. Exploring them, doing the research, designing them on the computer. I envision myself making the sell sheets to send to manufacturers, calling them and talking to prospective partners. I watch as I negotiate a contract, collect royalties, and I see myself thanking God as His plan falls into place. And finally, I picture myself giving money away. Writing Ray & Laura Pittman and telling them that they’ll never have to buy plane tickets again. That from this point on, I’ve got it covered.

It’s quite a movie. And I loop it again and again and again and again, so that as I make my way through the process I have a groove of success already carved out for me. And any distractions and complications I run into will either adapt to that permanent groove, or slide away. It might sound strange. It might sound hokey, but it works.

Those who are knocking this idea aside in your heads? Have you achieved what you hoped to achieve up to this point? Done what you set out to do years ago? If so, then keep doing what you’re doing. But if not? Why not give this a try? (Really, what have you got to lose?)

Kevin

 These are some of the notes & thoughts inspired by Charles Stanley’s message, “A Balanced Schedule.” (November 6, 2008)

Ephesians 5:15-17 “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.“

Your time is your life. Your life is your time. To become the person God wants you to be, it’s vitally important to spend your time wisely, where He wants you to invest it. Take advantage of every opportunity that God has given you. A balanced schedule is essential to living out God’s calling in your life.

We’re driven by the clock, living in a pressurized society. If we don’t manage our time wisely, we can become easily derailed and sidetracked from what God has in store for us.

If you’re going to become the person God wants you to be, you’re going to need to spend consistent time with the Lord. There are not shortcuts, no loopholes. We all face the same pressures and challenges in life, but if we don’t make it a priority, it simply won’t happen. And that’s what it all boils down to, you know: Priorities.

Look at your life. You go to work because you prioritize being able to have an income, being able to eat. You spend time with your family because you value and appreciate them (or should, at least). In your free time, you watch movies or read a book or listen to music or browse the internet or (fill in the blank).

These are all choices we make in our lives, and we’re lying when we say we simply don’t have time for God. The truth is we’re not MAKING time for God. Whether we verbalize it or not, we believe He’s not a high enough priority to invest our precious, limited time with Him. It’s too valuable to waste, we think. We have to much to DO. We can’t waste our time to just BE. To sit quietly and listen. To allow Him to have greater access to our hearts and our minds.

We really can be idiots, can’t we? Seriously. Who do we think we are? All that time we have? That we don’t want to surrender to Him? Where do we think it came from? This life we live? Who gave that to us? Who provided us with everything we see in our myopic little fishbowl of a world? Everything we enjoy and love?

God did. So why, oh WHY do we not give Him the time He so rightfully deserves? Because we’re human. And selfish. And afraid. We’re afraid of what He might say, or ask us to do, or think of us. We’re filled with guilt and shame and fear and anger or resentment, and we completely miss what God is all about. We miss the essense of His character.

Love. God loves us. And because He loves us so much, everything He might say to us or askus to do is based on love. Lemme tell ya, He’s asked me to do some pretty wild things the past few months, some of which I’ll write about later on. A typical person would shake their head and try to drown out that still, small voice inside them. I choose not to. I choose to listen to what He says to me, to accept the fact that He IS speaking, and then obey. (Don’t worry, it’s harder than it sounds.)

Spending time with God is when we get direction, encouragement, and peace. Who wouldn’t want that? Who wouldn‘t want to prioritize this stuff? We’re tempted to value all the fleeting things in life, the window dressing, if you will. We waste our time munching on the limp lettuce of life while He’s prepared a full course dinner for us back in the kitchen. And yet we think we’re living the “good life,” that “it just can’t any better than this!” Pfft. Try again.

Your time is a gift. A daily, limited gift that God’s given you. Make a choice today to use it differently, to change your life. Carve out the time to spend with Him. Five, ten, fifteen minutes… start small, if you have to. God doesn’t have a set requirement. But be consistent. Make a commitment to giving Him a regular portion of your time back, and then watch as He blesses your life in ways you never imagined.

You will be amazed.

Kevin

Our words create images inside of us. What we say paints a mental picture, whether or not we realize it. And just like everything else we do in this world, we’re given a choice. We can be positive or we can be negative. We can either speak positive words about the future, or we can reinforce the establishing of a negative one.

It’s easy for us to get so wrapped up in what we SEE in this world. We miss the fact that God is UNSEEN, and true to His nature He often works BEHIND the scenes. He created everything, absolutely everything – out of nothing. He spoke, and creation came into being. His words established reality.

In the same way we should watch what comes out of our mouths, it’s also important for us to know how to practice the lost art of Shutting Up. Instead of talking negatively about ourseves, our children, or our family and friends, it would be better to say nothing. I think one of the most applicable sermon series I’ve ever heard on this subject was LifeChurch’s Zip It messages about two years ago. (Excellent messages.I can’t recommend them enough.)

Watching our words requires us to watch our attitudes. The Bible says “from out of overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.” (Luke 6:45) If you genuinely want to watch what you say, it’s going to require your taking a good, hard look at what you’re THINKING from moment to moment.

You’ll have to look at your core belief system, and pinpoint exactly WHY you’ve given into thinking so negatively. There’s a reason for everything we think, say and do. Rooting out the self-destructive seeds that are buried down deep is where it starts.

“Those who say they can and those that say they can’t are both right.”

Our words are virtual seeds. We plant them in our minds and the minds of others when we speak. So take some time to examine what it is you’re planting, at what you’re saying. Ask God to reveal any areas in your life that you need to turn over to Him, to allow Him to weed out for your good. Ask yourself: do you REALLY want the picture you’re painting to sprout up out day? To become reality? And when it does, what’s going to be on those branches? Fruit? Or thorns?

Believe that everything you say – absolutely everything – will come to pass.

When we speak, we’re speaking a form of faith. We’re either speaking faith in a positive future, or we’re speaking faith in a negative one. Either way, one some level we’re believing in what we say, or else we wouldn’t bother saying it. So think about that. Let it sink in a little deeper and sting a bit. And then? The next time you want to complain or moan about this or that? Keep a lid on it.

“The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”  – Proverbs 18:21

“Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord;keep watch over the door of my lips.”   – Psalms 141:3

What we think determines what we believe, and what we believe determines what we say, and what we say determines what we do. Note the genesis of the entire process: it all starts in the mind.

In the same way, if we make a point to first speak words of wisdom, faith, healing, etc., then our words will affect our thoughts and, conversely, our actions. They’re all entwined; a complex, indivisible system.

Change your words? You change your thoughts.

Change your thoughts? You change your actions.

Change your actions? You’ll change your life.