MEMORISE:
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28
READ: Genesis 50:19-22
19 And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?
20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
21 Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.
22 And Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he, and his father's house: and Joseph lived an hundred and ten years.
MESSAGE:
If we could see things the way God does, our lives would be far better. Sometimes, criticism comes because God wants to make you more popular and influential. Some people may even harm you because God wants to promote you. If you cannot see things from God’s point of view, you may miss the coming blessing. As long as you remain in love with God, you can rest assured that all things are working together for your good. Ephesians 1:3-6 says the purpose of God for your life had been settled before the foundations of the world. All the things you have gone through and people you have met in your life- whether good or bad, are part of the purpose of God for you.
I find the story of Joseph (Genesis 37-46) very instructive. He was one person who saw things from God’s point of view. His father loved him greatly and gave him a coat of many colors- prophetic of where he was going. His brothers became jealous of him because of his dreams of greatness and they sold him into slavery. If his brothers had accepted him, they would not have sold him into slavery, he would not have arrived in Egypt, and neither would he have reached the throne. If he had not gotten to the throne, his brothers would not have come to bow to him as God had shown him many years before.
Joseph saw things from God’s point of view; he knew that if he could just stay holy, everything happening to him would eventually lead him to the throne. He never let his wilderness experience take away his hope or make him sin against God. At every stage of his ordeal (as a slave in Potiphar’s house and as a prisoner), his leaders attested to the fact that God was with him.
God is working out His purpose for your life. Those who hate you and those who love you are part of the plan. Stay holy, keep trusting Him; your reward is just around the comer. Galatians 6:9 says:
“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”
KEY POINT:
As long as you are still in the will of God, don’t worry; everything around you is working for your good (Romans 8:28).
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Matthew 3
Mark 1
Luke 3
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 30: WHEN WE WALK WITH THE LORD.
1. When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.
o Refrain:
Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
2. Not a shadow can rise, not a cloud in the skies,
But His smile quickly drives it away;
Not a doubt or a fear, not a sigh or a tear,
Can abide while we trust and obey.
3. Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share,
But our toil He doth richly repay;
Not a grief or a loss, not a frown or a cross,
But is blessed if we trust and obey.
4. But we never can prove the delights of His love
Until all on the altar we lay;
For the favor He shows, for the joy He bestows,
Are for them who will trust and obey.
5. Then in fellowship sweet we will sit at His feet,
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way;
What He says we will do, where He sends we will go;
Never fear, only trust and obey.
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