My Season of Preparation: What Joshep Taught Me About This Campaign

Yesterday, I went to go visit the family at Faith International with Pastor Anthony King, and I walked out knowing without question that God is putting me in these places to speak directly to this season of my life and this campaign. Every church I enter I come out with more and more clarity about this campaign.

This week the message was about Joseph and God’s economic plan (it's a five week series but I was only able to catch the 1st and 3rd weeks) but it wasn’t just about money for me. It was about preparation, favor, integrity, alignment, and responsibility. And for me, running for office, building systems, and carrying the weight of community expectation, I heard it LOUD AND CLEAR.

What I heard was is this: You cannot lead people through famine if you have not learned how to prepare in plenty.

Let me restate this for the people in the back of the room: I grew up watching my family keep two deep freezers. Always full. Not because we were rich. Because she was intentional. When money was flowing, we didn’t splurge. We stocked up and bought extra meat on sale and froze it.

And I remember the Memphis ice storm in the 90s we didn't have power for two weeks. City shut down. People scrambling.

And we were outside barbecuing.

Not because we were lucky. Because we had prepared, that is leadership.

Preparation is quiet. It doesn’t announce itself. It doesn’t look impressive, and people think you are crazy until everything goes wrong. Then it looks like wisdom.

You cannot lead people through famine if you have not learned how to prepare in plenty. You cannot create stability in a crisis if you only start thinking when things are already breaking. I am always thinking two and three steps ahead and focusing on what is happening now. Good leaders don’t panic when the storm hits. They planned before the clouds showed up.

That’s how you protect people. That’s how you steward responsibility. That’s how you lead.

This campaign is not just about winning an election, it's about inspiring a movement. It is about being trusted with authority. And trust is built long before power is ever given.

Pastor King laid out five keys to activating favor, and every single one of them is shaping how I’m running this campaign.

1. Honor: How You Treat People Determines How Far You Go

The first key was honor.

Not position. Not titles. Not visibility. Not ego. Honor.

Joseph honored his father. He honored authority. He honored relationships. Even when people mishandled him, he did not mishandle his character.

That is a word for politics.

Because it is easy in campaigns to:

• become dismissive

• become transactional

• become arrogant

• or start moving like people “owe you” something

I refuse. My ego is not in this AT ALL.

I am running a campaign rooted in respect for elders, dignity for working people, and honor for every voter regardless of influence or affiliation.

No shortcuts. No disrespect. No entitlement.

Because honor is not a strategy, it is a posture. And God only promotes leaders who can be trusted with people.

2. Integrity: Who You Are When No One Is Watching Still Counts

The second key was integrity.

Pastor King said it plainly: Integrity is what you do when nobody is watching.

That hit.

Because in campaigns, there is constant pressure to:

• cut corners

• manipulate narratives

• overpromise

• perform instead of build

• posture instead of produce

But Joseph refused shortcuts. Joseph refused to compromise, he refused bitterness, and so will I. This campaign is being built clean with transparency and people-centered.

Because I am not just trying to win a seat. I want to earn votes. I am trying to steward trust.

And if I cannot be trusted in private, I should not be trusted in public.

3. Understanding: You Can’t Govern What You Don’t Comprehend

The third key was understanding.

Not just information. Not just knowledge. Understanding. Bad leaders talk too much and don't listen for understanding. And that is precisely why I am running an 80% data-driven campaign, why I study policy, why I sit in meetings and listen, why I read online comments from constituents, and why I build systems that work for people.

Because passion without understanding is noise.

And good intentions without comprehension can still cause damage.

Joseph did not just have dreams, he understood the systems, and he understood economics, timing, and structure.

Because District 35 does not need another personality. It needs a problem-solver.

4. Value & Contribution: Favor Responds to What You Carry

The fourth key was value and contribution.

Joseph’s gift made room for him, his ability solved problems, and his contribution created access. That is not accidental. That is design.

And it is why I do not lead with résumé. I lead with results, and I have data to show my impact, not a list of positions that I have held. You can run fast on a treadmill and go nowhere. Sometimes people look busy, I build a strategy to work hard, not smart.

I am running as:

• a workforce architect

• a systems builder

• a technology practitioner

• a community operator

• a pipeline creator

Not because it sounds good. But because I know my value and what I bring to the table. I like to build coalitions because we can do so much more working together and not creating friction.

Value is not what you say. It is what you deliver.

And I intend to deliver.

5. Relationships: Nothing Powerful Is Built in Isolation

The final key was relationships and this one is uber important. Joseph’s elevation came through people not platforms, isolation or ego but people.

The butler. The cupbearer. Pharaoh.

Process always moves through people and that is exactly how I am running this campaign:

• door by door

• church by church

• conversation by conversation

• relationship by relationship

Because you do not build trust at a distance. You build it in proximity.

This is why I show up, why I listen, why I sit with people, why I stay after, why I follow up and why I write notes. Because favor flows through relationship.

And leadership is relational before it is positional.

The Real Lesson: Process Is Not Punishment. It Is Preparation.

Joseph endured betrayal, delay, misunderstanding, isolation, false accusations, and hidden seasons, but not because God forgot him, but because God was building him, and that is the truth of this season for me. The long nights, quiet work, unseen labor, pressure... this is not opposition, this is formation.

And I am grateful.

Because I do not just want to be elected, I want to be ready to be the best State Representative, ready to govern one day one (I actually wrote my 90-day plan a month ago, and I am working backwards into it through my campaign platform).

Why This Matters

We are entering uncertain economic times we are seeing layoffs, instability, transition and strain. And God does not raise Josephs in easy seasons. He raises them in critical ones. Preparation is a meeting opportunity.

And when preparation meets opportunity…manifestation happens.

This sermon did not just encourage me. It anchored me.

It reminded me that:

• process is not delay

• favor is not accidental

• leadership is not cosmetic

• and preparation is not optional

This campaign is not about position; it is about purpose. It is not about the title. It is about trust. It is not about me. It is about stewardship.

The future can’t wait and neither can preparation.