//Kenneth W. Hagin

In the middle of the big-league baseball season, players gather for the annual midsummer classic all-star game. Only players who are a cut above the others are chosen as all-stars.

As Christians, we each have been chosen by God. He made it possible for everyone in the world to live with Him. But each of us must choose whether to accept being chosen by Him. To do that, we only need to accept His Son, Jesus Christ, as our Lord and Savior.

God chose us because He has something for each of us to do that only we can do. He has given each of us abilities and skills to develop and use to reveal Him to others. When we combine those talents and skills with His supernatural power, we can operate on a level that's a cut above the average. In other words, we can become God's all-stars.

All-stars have favor. People give them preferred treatment. When we become God's all-stars, we have His favor. That means we can expect things to turn out right for us. We can expect to enjoy God's benefits and blessings.

In the natural, an all-star is willing to pay the price to reach that level and to remain there. In baseball, the all-stars come to practice early and stay late. They spend extra time on batting and fielding. They work out off-season to keep their edge.

When God sent the prophet Samuel to find and anoint the next king of Israel among Jesse's sons, the all-star the Lord had selected wasn't there. The future king, young David, was out doing what was necessary. He was paying the price to be an all-star by being faithful to his given task—tending sheep. (See 1 Sam. 16:1, 11–12.)

God has chosen you—you're an all-star. But to remain an all-star, you have to keep paying the price. Some people desire the good things of God and His promises. They desire His favor and want to be an all-star. But they don't go the extra mile to continue qualifying as an all-star for Him.

To remain on God's all-star team, we must do certain things.

1) Pray

One thing we must do is pray. This is more than just starting off the day with, "Lord, thank You for blessing me today, amen." It means spending time in prayer. We see a good example of this in Daniel chapter 6.

Daniel stood out so much from the other leaders that the king was going to put him in charge of his whole kingdom. Those other leaders tried to find some charge to bring against Daniel, but they couldn't. So they convinced the king to sign a decree forbidding anyone to pray to someone besides the king for 30 days. The penalty for disobeying that decree was being thrown into a lions' den. Let's look at Daniel's response.

DANIEL 6:10 (NKJV)
10 Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went home. And in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days.
When Daniel heard the decree, he stayed faithful to the Lord by continuing to pray as he always did. And God delivered him by sending an angel to shut the lions' mouths (see Dan. 6:4–10, 22). Daniel was faithful in his prayer life, and he remained an all-star for God!

2) Keep Your Mind on the Word

To stay an all-star for God, we must also read and meditate on His Word. Romans 10:17 says, "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." My dad used to say, "Faith comes by hearing and hearing and hearing God's Word." It's so important for us to hear the Word of God continually! There is power in hearing the right things. What we hear will either build our faith or weaken it.

3) Be Loyal and Kind

Another thing we need to do to remain an
all-star for God is to treat people the way we want to be treated.

PROVERBS 3:3–4 (NLT)
3 Never let loyalty and kindness leave you! Tie them around your neck as a reminder. Write them deep within your heart.
4 Then you will find favor with both God and people, and you will earn a good reputation.

Treating people with loyalty and kindness brings favor. In Colossians 3:13 (NLT) God says, "Make allowance for each other's faults, and forgive anyone who offends you." Many people don't want to do that. They would rather accuse other people than forgive them. We need to forgive those who offend us. Remember: the Lord forgave us, so we must forgive others!

4) Serve One Another

To stay an all-star for God, we must also serve in the church and serve one another.

MATTHEW 20:26–28 (NLT)
26 "But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant,
27 and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave.
28 For even the Son of Man [referring to Jesus] came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many."

Some people have a selfish attitude when they think about serving others. They ask, "How is this going to benefit me? What will I get out of it?"
To be an all-star for God, you must learn how to serve. True baseball all-stars aren't on the team to serve themselves. They have to fit in. It doesn't matter to them who gets the glory as long as the team wins.

To walk in God's favor and blessings, you must do what is necessary to remain an all-star. Pray, read the Word, and treat people the way you want to be treated. Be loyal and kind to others, serve in the church, and serve one another. Work hard and go the extra mile. Then you will stay an all-star for God!

FAITH IN ACTION

The Recap

• Pray // Stay connected to the Father by communing with Him each day. He loves hearing from you.
• Meditate on the Word // Find scriptures that cover your situation and meditate on them continually. You will grow in your faith!
• Be Loyal and Kind // Practice being loyal and kind to people. As you do, God will bless you.
• Serve One Another // Look for ways to serve the church and your fellow believers. Serving is the heart of Christ.