Today we continue our series entitled, “Faith and Patience Volume IV — The Wonder Twins”. I have laid the foundation for faith. Now I am doing the same for patience. I like to teach by both precept and example. I am using Joseph as a good example of our need for patience.
As we get into today’s message, I will share two quotes from the last message that I believe will help us prepare our hearts to receive what God has for us today.
I said:
“It takes a certain level of maturity to walk with God in a certain level of mystery… walking with God requires accepting a certain level of mystery and being comfortable with a certain level of discomfort while you’re waiting on God to do what he said he would do.”
“If you don’t develop faith and patience, the expectation you have for the JOY of your tomorrow can actually ROB YOU of the JOY of your today!”
We are seeking to learn from the different phases of Joseph’s life. Each phase (paternal, pit, Potiphar, prison, and palace/Prime Minister) has significance to this series and to our lives. Today we will look at the Potiphar phase again.
(James 1:2-4 TPT)
2 My fellow believers, when it seems as though you are facing nothing but difficulties see it as an invaluable opportunity to experience the greatest joy that you can!
3 For you know that when your faith is tested it stirs up power within you to endure all things.
4 And then as your endurance grows even stronger it will release perfection into every part of your being until there is nothing missing and nothing lacking.
(Gen 39:1-6 CEV)
1 The Ishmaelites took Joseph to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar, the king’s[a] official in charge of the palace guard.
2 So Joseph lived in the home of Potiphar, his Egyptian owner.
3 Soon Potiphar realized that the Lord was helping Joseph to be successful in whatever he did.
4 Potiphar liked Joseph and made him his personal assistant, putting him in charge of his house and all of his property.
5 Because of Joseph, the Lord began to bless Potiphar’s family and fields.
6 Potiphar left everything up to Joseph, and with Joseph there, the only decision he had to make was what he wanted to eat.
So what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. God predestined you.
A key aspect of learning to wait on God is knowing that God has a plan for your life. You are not a mistake. There is a sovereign God who made predetermines plans for your existence. If you truly believe this, you also have to believe that you are prewired for your purpose. You are predisposed to your destiny and you don’t even know it. But as you live your life, you discover things about yourself that you seem natural to you. Others struggle with these things, but you don’t, because when you are doing what you were born to do you never feel more alive. It’s like your purpose is the underlying fuel for your life’s passions and energy.
You are born without an understanding of your purpose. You were born ignorant of your divine assignment. But as you attempt to live life with God, He begins to reveal TO You the things that were prepared FOR you, but were concealed FROM you! Once God does this, once He gives you glimpses of the future He planned for you, you spend the rest of your life becoming what He revealed. You spend the remainder of your days in pursuit of your purpose.
2. You must keep God’s dream for your life alive in your heart.
Joseph was betrayed by his brothers and sold off as a slave, all because God gave him a dream. The attack was against his assignment. Thankfully, instead of getting bitter, he got better. Instead of being the young arrogant kid who strutted around his family property with a coat of many colors, he accepted the seeming setback, he embraced the opportunity to make the most of the situation he was in, he kept the dream alive in his heart. We would do well to learn from the last two points I made there.
a) Make the most of the situation you are in.
Joseph woke up one day as a slave. It was not what he wanted. It was not what he expected. But like most of us, he had to deal with pain and disappointment on the path to his purpose. And like anyone who has ever been successful, he did not allow disappointment to derail him from his destiny. Joseph made the most of his time in Potiphar’s house and God favored him while he did. Joseph provided the natural. God provided the super. As a result, Potiphar noticed that there was something special about the young man.
My point is that when you find yourself in a situation you did not expect, plan for, or desire, you can either shut down, or you can press through it. If you decided to keep going, you will quickly discover the power of God’s grace. The grace of God on your life can empower you to do things you never thought you were capable of. All while you are waiting on God. All while you knowing that your current state is not your ultimate fate.
Joseph was doing things in Potiphar’s house that he was never given an opportunity to do at home. Learn from Joseph. You may be waiting on God to do something greater. But while you wait you should make the most of the season you are in. Life is lived out in times and seasons, in levels and stages. If you don’t maximize the one you are in, you won’t get promoted to the next. This is part of learning how to live by faith, while you develop patience.
b) Never allow God’s dream to die in your heart.
Joseph kept God’s dream alive in his heart. At no point did he ever give up on what God said. In this series, we will see that Joseph endured many painful setbacks, but he kept the dream alive in his heart. You and I must do the same. No matter how painful life gets, no matter how much opposition you face, and no matter how dead the dream seems, God’s dream for your life can never DIE in your heart, unless you allow it to. And even then, you will find years later that God will come back and resurrect those dead dreams. Because while you gave up on God, He will never give up on you or the dream He has for your life! Be patient. It SHALL come to pass in the fullness of time.
3. You have been PICKED for your PURPOSE!
The time Joseph spent in Potiphar’s house was all part of the plan. Let’s back up to something God said to Joseph’s great grandfather, Abraham.
(Genesis? ?15:13-14? ?NLT??)
“Then the Lord said to Abram, “You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, where they will be oppressed as slaves for 400 years. But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and in the end they will come away with great wealth.”
??
God already knew that the Israelites would go into Egypt, that they would wind up as slaves, and that they would be delivered from slavery. Joseph was the person CHOSEN by God to lead his family, his bloodline, into Egypt.
While Joseph was in Potiphar’s house he was learning how to function within the Egyptian system. He was learning Egyptian ways. This was all part of his purpose/assignment.
My point is that there are times when weird things happen, things that you did not expect to happen, things that you did not want to happen. When these things happen you must remember that God is still God. He still has a plan. His plan is still working. What is happening TO you is actually happening FOR you. God will see to it that it all works together for your good (Rom 8:28).
God was working while Joseph was working at Potiphar’s house. Guess what? God is working while you are working at home. While you and your children are under quarantine. While you are helping your kids do schoolwork remotely. God is still working! God’s plan is still valid. Be patient. In the fullness of time, it shall come to pass! Why? Because you have been PICKED for your PURPOSE! This is all part of it.
That’s enough for today.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I know I am not a mistake. You made plans for me before the world began. I was born ignorant of those plans. But thankfully I was Born-Again. Your Spirit now reveals TO me what You planned FOR me. As He does, I live my life in pursuit of my purpose. I live my life with a tireless dedication to become the person You revealed. I declare that I will. I will do it by Your grace. I will do it for Your glory. Because I will never stop growing, working, developing, or believing. I will arrive at Your overall expected end for my life! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
