This Sunday we continued our series on Favor by exploring what it means to have favor with man. Luke tells us that Jesus "grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man" (Luke 2:52). While we've spent much of this series talking about God's favor toward us—His delight, love, and covenant faithfulness—we shifted our attention to the reality that favor also exists in our relationships with people.

One of the biggest takeaways for me is that favor with man is less about charisma and more about character. Throughout Scripture, favor seems to grow around qualities like wisdom, humility, integrity, faithfulness, stewardship, and service. We often ask, "How do I get people to notice me?" but the better question may be, "How do I become the kind of person people can trust?" Many of the opportunities, partnerships, responsibilities, and o ...