TODAY’S DEVOTION (SUNDAY 20TH NOVEMBER 2022)
“Remember this, and show yourselves men; Recall to mind, O you transgressors.
Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure,’
Calling a bird of prey from the east, the man who executes My counsel, from a far country. Indeed, I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it; I will also do it.” Isaiah 46:8-11 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 324TH DAY OF OUR YEAR OF AMAZING GRACE!
This is the days the LORD has made, we shall rejoice and be glad in it. No matter what may be wrong in your life this morning, just know that our redeemer lives.
Take your eyes off from the issues for moment and thank God for keeping you alive.
I have come to realize that in God’s kingdom, we do not get our problems solved by fixing our hearts on them. We get them solved by fixing our hearts on God. That is partly what it means to trust in God.
The Bible says,
“You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.
Trust in the LORD forever, For in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength.” Isaiah 26:3-4 NKJV
If we fix our minds or hearts on God instead of on our problems, the result will be God keeping us in perfect peace. The power of YAH Himself will be unleashed into our lives. That is why the Bible says looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.
Life is all about who you are looking onto.
It is all about who you fix your heart or mind on. The power and presence of that person is what you will experience in your life. If the person is Christ, you will experience His power. If the person is a fellow human being like you, or the object of the circumstances you may be going through, you will perish by your problems.
We live in trouble times. A lot of us are going through things by even the hands of those we never expected will create us problems. But we have refused to fix our hearts and minds on them or the circumstances they are creating for us.
We have intentionally fixed our hearts and minds on God. That is why we look strong in the eyes of others, but they do not know that we are not. It is just of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed.
So, learn to fix your heart or mind on God when things are not okay with you. Do not fix them on the very things that are not okay except if you want to table them before God in prayer. The Bible says;
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 NKJV
ONE WAY WE TAKE THE PROBLEMS OFF OUR MINDS, AND GET CIRCUMSTANCES OFF OUR HEARTS IS THROUGH PRAYER.
There is the possibility of becoming anxious but the Bible says that will not be good for us. Instead of being anxious or worrisome, by prayer, supplication with thanks giving, we should make our request known unto God.
Another way we fix our hearts and minds on God instead of on our circumstances is through the word of the LORD that should be coming to us each day.
You see, one of the reasons the Bible says “man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceed out of the mouth of God” is because words that comes out of the mouth of God, especially when we are going through things in life, are like refreshing waters to a weary soul. They have a way of helping us fix our minds on God and obtaining the peace we need.
I believe, even the words we have been receiving from the LORD through this devotional each day, have been playing that role in our lives. It is my prayer that they play the role again and again this morning, in Jesus precious name. Amen!
We have been on a 30-day journey of faith with the Cry of the Spirit on practical wisdom. Today is the 20th day. We have been looking at the wisdom of the Holy One on cultivating successful interpersonal relationships.
We have been looking at how to bring into our physical lives the things that God have settled concerning us in the Heavenly places.
Yesterday, we said that apart from the Holy Spirit in our lives, interpersonal relations are instruments GOD can use to bring into our lives what He has settled concerning us in Heaven.
Today we will be considering the life of Joseph, as we look at the power of interpersonal relationships in helping to bring into our lives the spiritual blessings GOD has in-store for us in the heavenly places.
I hope we are ready!
There was an end God declared in Heaven concerning Joseph; things God pre appointed and set him apart for, long before he was formed in his mother’s womb. The first is, it was settled in Heaven that Joseph will be a prime minister or senate president in Egypt.
IT WAS ALSO SETTLED THAT HE WILL BE A MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE, A FATHER TO PHARAOH AND A SAVER OF LIVES.
All that was part of the end that was declared concerning him from the beginning. It was a spiritual blessing God finished concerning him in the Heavenly places. But like our devotional text puts it, people will be needed by the LORD to play roles that will make that possible on earth.
The text says;
“Remember this, and show yourselves men; Recall to mind, O you transgressors.
Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure,’
Calling a bird of prey from the east, the man who executes My counsel, from a far country. Indeed, I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it; I will also do it.” Isaiah 46:8-11 NKJV
The end God had declared from the beginning concerning Joseph, would not have been possible without the interpersonal relationships he had in his life.
If you look at his life, you will realize that the role of interpersonal relationships in helping us succeed or fail in life can be seen in what his brothers did in his life, the rescue that came from the LORD, and what some other people did in his life in Egypt.
Let us begin with the prison officer and one of the royal prisoners that met him there.
The head prison officer who made him head of all the prisoners and the man who took the story of his capabilities to Pharaoh were two interpersonal relationships he cultivated while in prison. I believe God used the circumstances of their lives to placed them in the life of Joseph at that time.
They were like brothers, born not just to quench his adversity but play small but significant roles for his greatness to happen.
It was possible for Joseph to withdraw to himself after all that had happened to him in life, and just decide not to be talking to anyone in prison. But he did not allow that to happen. He rather remained hopeful and kept on doing what everyone who want to cultivate a successful interpersonal relationship must do.
HE KEPT ON ADDING VALUE TO THE LIVES OF PRISONERS AND ANYONE HE FOUND THERE.
A successful interpersonal relationship is that one that is instrumental in assembling in your life on earth what God has finished concerning you in the Heavenly places. It is that relationship that will not yield to Satan to try to stop your march towards a glorious destiny. It is that relationship that can be used of the LORD to help you take giant leaps in life towards your divine destiny.
The head of prisons and the royal prisoner who took the story of Joseph’s capabilities to Pharaoh were one set of successful interpersonal relationships in the life of Joseph. But he never prayed and fasted to have them. He simply spent each day adding value to people’s lives to have them.
If you want to have a successful interpersonal relationship, you must develop the habit of adding value to people’s lives wherever you find them.
You must be like a sower, sowing value into people’s lives by helping them where you can. You must not be going about looking for who to help you but who you can help. That is what practical wisdom demands. Friend, it is still better to give than to receive.
Though not everyone you add value to their lives will yield a desire harvest back to you, like Potiphar and his wife who never yielded a desired harvest back into the life of Joseph after he added value to their lives for many years; we are not to grow weary doing good.
We are to keep doing good to all who cross our paths.
You may be wondering what a desire harvest is. Well, a desired harvest is a positive significant contribution someone make back into your life, after you have added value into their lives.
It is a weighty contribution that is capable of assembling in your life what God has finished concerning you in Heaven. But know that not everyone will do that after adding value into their lives.
PERSONALLY, THERE ARE PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY HERE IN KENYA, I HAVE ADDED VALUE INTO THEIR LIVES WHO NEVER YIELDED A DESIRE HARVEST BACK.
They yielded undesired harvest. They did things that if God had not helped me, I would have been no more by now. But we have decided to keep on adding value into people’s lives without letting any ingrate define us.
Potiphar and wife did not yield a desired harvest back into the life of Joseph after he added value to their lives. She dreamt of having sex with him after he added value to her life, and her husband sent him to prison unjustly after he added value into his life. Is that the feed back Joseph should get after making sure their business reached greater heights and they prospered? No!
The Bible says;
“The LORD was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. And his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD made all he did to prosper in his hand.
So Joseph found favor in his sight, and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had he put under his authority.
So it was, from the time that he had made him overseer of his house and all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the LORD was on all that he had in the house and in the field.
Thus he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand, and he did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. And it came to pass after these things that his master’s wife cast longing eyes on Joseph, and she said, “Lie with me.” Genesis 39:2-7 NKJV
As earlier stated, you should not be dreaming of having sex with a man who took your husband’s business from lower returns to uncommon greater returns. You should be recommending him to Pharaoh for top jobs.
And as Potiphar, you should not have believed what your wife said about such a person without proper investigation and verification of what she said to you, knowing the terrible consequences of her allegations.
THERE IS NO RECORD THAT HE CALLED JOSEPH TO HEAR HIS OWN SIDE OF THE STORY!
Some of us married men, especially those of us in authority who love our wives, do make such terrible mistakes. Our wives will tell us something about someone and we will hastily act on them without verifying what they said, leading to great pain in the lives of people.
You find some of us repeating the error of Potiphar and sending innocent Josephs into the prisons of life. But that was where destiny met Joseph.
God will always visit the innocent, no matter who makes life difficult for them.
Leaders should make up their minds not to make an innocent person suffer because of their mismanagement of things people say about them. God would still show up in the life of Joseph in prison because he was innocent, and Joseph will keep adding value into people’s loves because he was a wise man.
It is wisdom not to allow ingrates shut down your bowel of mercy.
It is wisdom not to allow those who return evil for good to stop you from adding value into people’s lives because of their terrible feed backs.
Joseph kept adding value into people’s lives, despite being in prison. The Bible says;
“Then Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were confined. And he was there in the prison. But the LORD was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners who were in the prison; whatever they did there, it was his doing.
The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority, because the LORD was with him; and whatever he did, the LORD made it prosper.” Genesis 39:20-23 NKJV
From the life of Joseph, it is clear that all things will always work together for our good whenever ingrates return evil for the good, we do to them. Any circumstances we find ourselves in life because of their wickedness will never be a curse to us but a blessing.
DO NOT FORGET THAT GOD WILL NOT FORSAKE THE RIGHTEOUS, NEITHER WILL HE JUSTIFY THE WICKED!
So, we should Just keep adding value to people’s lives and God will give us fresh interpersonal relationships that will be use of Him to Assemble in our lives what He had declared from the Beginning to happened in our lives, things He has finished concerning us before we were formed in our mother’s womb.
Lastly, Joseph added value into the life of the head of the prison he was in, then the life of every other prisoner until two prisoners arrived from the palace of Pharaoh, his unknown place of assignment.
Like he had been doing, he added value into their lives by interpreting their dreams, and one was used to bring him to the fulfillment of God’s will for His life.
The Bible says;
“Then the chief butler spoke to Pharaoh, saying: “I remember my faults this day. When Pharaoh was angry with his servants, and put me in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, both me and the chief baker,
we each had a dream in one night, he and I. Each of us dreamed according to the interpretation of his own dream.
Now there was a young Hebrew man with us there, a servant of the captain of the guard. And we told him, and he interpreted our dreams for us; to each man he interpreted according to his own dream.
And it came to pass, just as he interpreted for us, so it happened. He restored me to my office, and he hanged him.”
Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him quickly out of the dungeon; and he shaved, changed his clothing, and came to Pharaoh.” Genesis 41:14 NKJV
Joseph never returned to the prison. He rather stepped into the manifestation of the things Heaven declared from the beginning concerning Him; things that were not yet done from ancient past.
He stepped into them through the interpersonal relationships he got by adding value into people’s lives, not by taking value out of them. There is so much we can still glean, but that is who much we can take for the day.
You see, we may add value into the lives of many, but only one may be used to bring us to the place of significance in life.
The message here is, assembling into your life the things that God has finished concerning you in Heaven will require successful interpersonal relationships.
Getting them is not just by bowing the prayer knee (which is important) but by leading a life that adds value to other people (not a life that takes value). It is only those who spend their days adding value to other people’s lives that will receive value from the LORD; only them will receive interpersonal relationships that will perform GOD’s pleasure in their lives.
LET THIS SCRIPTURE BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR US TODAY!
“Then Pharaoh took his signet ring off his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand; and he clothed him in garments of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck.
And he had him ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried out before him, “Bow the knee!” So he set him over all the land of Egypt.
Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no man may lift his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.”
And Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphnath-Paaneah. And he gave him as a wife Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On. So Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt.” Genesis 41:42-45 NKJV