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Life can hum along and then—bam!—the barrel tips. It could be a message, a phone call, a headline, and suddenly the door you were excited about is bolted shut.

I’ve been there. Overwhelmed, trying to find my feet, journaling at 3 A.M. because my thoughts wouldn’t stop.

During one of those challenging weeks, God gave me a single word: favour. I studied it and camped in the story of Joseph. What hit me wasn’t the palace, but it was the middle. In Potiphar’s house, people saw how the Lord was with Joseph and that everything he did prospered. In prison, at rock bottom, people again saw that everything he did prospered, so Joseph was promoted.

Joseph didn’t chase titles. He chased God, and favour found him in every room.

David’s path looks similar. Anointed young, crowned at 30, reigning for 40 years… but the middle was caves, pursuit, and pressure. Yet in the wilderness, God gathered to David the very people who’d become his mighty men. Detours were divine setups.

Here’s what God kept pressing on my heart:

  • Favour isn’t a fair-weather message. It’s not “I’ll think blessing after the storm.” It’s for during the storm.

  • Obedience matters. “If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best of the land.” You don’t earn favour, but you step into it by doing what He says, especially the small nudges that seem random.

  • God isn’t scrambling. He’s not reacting to surprises because He already prepared steps for you. Often the why shows up later, but obedience keeps you under His shadow.

  • God uses it. “He causes all things to work together for good” for those who love Him and walk in His purpose. He doesn’t cause everything that happens, but He can use anything.

I’ve watched this play out in tiny, daily steps of obedience. A whisper that didn’t feel “big” but later became the exact setup I needed when plans flipped. A lot like Joseph meeting the cupbearer in prison—who would’ve guessed that was the connection God would use to open the palace door?

Then there’s the furnace. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow, so they were thrown into the fire… and a fourth man showed up. They walked out without the smell of smoke on them. Sometimes God’s presence is most obvious in the heat.

So, what do we do in the middle?

  • Name the problem, then name your God. Speak aloud. “My God is greater than ______.”

  • Journal and listen. Ask, “What’s my next step?” Not ten steps—one.

  • Obey quickly. Don’t chase outcomes but choose to chase God. Outcomes will chase you.

  • Stay consistent. A glad, steadfast heart feasts regardless of circumstances.

  • Study favour in pressure. Read Joseph, David and Daniel’s stories and watch how favour worked under weight.

One more picture I love: draw your name in the middle of a page. Around it, write everything that’s surrounding you, whether it’s the bills, the report, the closed door. Then draw an enormous circle around all of it and write “GOD”. What surrounds you is surrounded by Him.

If you’re thinking, “I’ve done everything right and nothing’s changing,” don’t quit. Hidden progress is still progress. Connections you can’t see yet are forming. Paths that don’t even exist to the natural eye are opening. Seek God, not the perks. Refuse to compromise, and be willing and obedient.

Favour isn’t waiting for a sunny day. It’s working right now.

Keep going. You’re closer than you think.