Today, we continue our series entitled “Laser Focus,” with the point being that we should live with a Laser Focus on the Fixed Purpose God established for us before the world began.
This is the main scripture we will be looking at this year:
(Proverbs 4:25 TPT)
Set your gaze on the path before you. With fixed purpose, looking straight ahead, ignore life’s distractions.
We are also looking at these scriptures as we consider the life of Joseph.
(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.
(Galatians 6:9 NIV)
Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
So, what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. God Dreamed About You & His Dream is a Blueprint for Your Destiny.
— I want you to pause, consider, and contemplate the fact that the God who sits on the circle of the earth actually takes time to think about YOU! Let that sink in.
God had a dream for Joseph. Joseph did not come up with the dream; it was birthed in God’s heart. This dream defined Joseph’s life. Guess what? What was true for Joseph is true for you! God has a dream for your life! God dreamed about you before you were born!
— You were born ignorant of God’s dream for your life. Once you are BornAgain, the Holy Spirit begins to reveal it to you. Through the Holy Spirit, God places His dream in your heart and mind. Once He does, God’s dream becomes “a divinely implanted sense of a purpose working through the ages which nothing under the sun but God alone can satisfy” (see Ecc 3:11 AMPC).
— Joseph received the dream at age 17, but it did not come to pass until he was 39. While I am teaching you about fixed purpose and laser focus, I also have to teach you to add patience to your faith (Hebrews 6:12). Everything God said will come to pass, but not until the fullness of His timing!
— Joseph had to keep his dream before his eyes! You must do the same thing. You must “set your gaze” on God’s dream and refuse to be distracted (Prov 4:25). Keeping the dream before your eyes will also help you maintain your patience, and you wait on God’s timing!
— This morning, while I was still in bed, I was meditating on things I know God has promised me but have not happened yet. So, while I was lying in bed, I imagined Joseph lying in bed in Potiphar’s house or in the prison. In both cases, Joseph knew God’s dream was still alive, but he had to learn how to make the most of his present situation while he waited for his change to come. Many of us find ourselves in situations like this, and we can learn from Joseph. He kept the dream alive in his heart. This is how we can maintain our focus and avoid being distracted.
2. Learn from Joseph how to stand in faith long enough for God’s dream to come to pass.
— Embrace the revelation that God had a dream and purpose for your life before you were even formed, just as He did for Joseph.
— Trust that God’s dream for you is designed to align with His global plan, making you a vital piece in the overall mosaic of His Kingdom.
— Realize that the dreams and desires in your heart are often God’s way of revealing His plans to you, placed there by the Holy Spirit.
— Understand that the journey to fulfilling God’s dream for your life may take time, just as Joseph’s did (for him, it was more than 20 years), requiring faith and patience.
— Keep God’s vision (His dream) for your life everpresent in your thoughts and actions, using it as a guide and motivation through every season.
— Know that just as long as you cooperate with God and stand in faith, the fulfillment of God’s dream for your life is inevitable. It’s not a matter of if but when, as His plans are always accomplished in His perfect timing.
— Stand firm in the knowledge that God’s dreams for you are larger and more significant than you can imagine, designed to bring you into a place of influence and blessing.
— Cultivate a lifestyle of persistence and resilience, inspired by the belief that God’s purpose for you is worth every challenge and obstacle.
— Remember, setbacks are not to break you but to build you, preparing you for the destiny God has ordained.
— Anticipate divine appointments and strategic connections that God will orchestrate to bring His dream for your life to fruition (I will talk more about this later in the series).
— Celebrate every small victory and sign of progress along the way, recognizing them as confirmations of God’s active presence and promise in your life.
3. Be Aware that the Journey Towards Your Purpose Will Involve Opposition, but it Cannot Stop You!
(Gen 37:1820 ERV)
18 Joseph’s brothers saw him coming from far away. They decided to make a plan to kill him.
19 They said to each other, “Here comes Joseph the dreamer.
20 We should kill him now while we can. We could throw his body into one of the empty wells and tell our father that a wild animal killed him. Then we will show him that his dreams are useless.”
— The attack is against the dream! You are facing so much opposition because God’s dream for your life is huge!
— The greater the assignment, the greater the attack. And the greater the assignment, the longer the preparation period will be for it!
— Satan does not care about you. He cares about the dream God has for you. The enemy is not really fighting you. He is fighting God’s purpose for your life. The attack is against the dream. Joseph’s brothers want to kill him, but if you read the text carefully, what they really wanted to kill was the dream!
— People rejected Jesus, and they will reject you. Just remember that when they do, they are not truly rejecting you. They are rejecting the God in you, and they are attacking His purpose for your life!
— The enemy’s poison cannot stop your purpose. Nothing anyone does can ever stop what God planned! Just remain in faith and hold on to your patience. In the fullness of time, it SHALL come to pass!
— Reuben wanted to save Joseph. He said, “Let’s not kill him. We can put him into a well without hurting him.” Reuben planned to save Joseph and send him back to his father. But God did not let him. See, what is happening TO YOU is sometimes happening FOR YOU! Sometimes, there are people who want to HELP GET YOU OUT of your SITUATION. But God WON’T ALLOW THEM TO. Because YOUR SITUATION is actually PROPELLING YOU INTO YOUR DESTINY!
— God will ALLOW PAIN to PROPEL YOU to where you WOULD NOT GO VOLUNTARILY!
— Joseph would have never fulfilled the dream at home! What his brothers meant for evil, God was going to use for good!
4. God has a Way of Making All Things (even bad things) Work Together For Good!
— Joseph faced opposition from his own brothers (who sold him as a slave), from Mrs. Potiphar (who falsely accused him of sexual harassment), and from the butler (who forgot about him when he got back to the palace). But in each case, the opposition helped usher Joseph into God’s will at just the right time.
— Don’t think that opposition means you are outside of God’s will. Sometimes, opposition and rejection are signs that you are aligned with God’s purpose, as seen in Joseph’s life and Jesus’s ministry.
— Learn to see rejection by others not as a setback but as a redirection toward God’s greater plan for your life.
— View every painful experience and every setback as a divine setup, moving you closer to the fulfillment of God’s dream.
— Embrace the idea that what others mean for evil, God can and will use for good, transforming stumbling blocks into stepping stones towards your destiny.
— Realize that sometimes, God allows discomfort and challenges to push you towards where He wants you to be, just as Joseph’s trials positioned him for greatness.
— Be prepared for seasons where it seems like help is being withheld. During these seasons, understand that God is teaching you to rely entirely on Him, guiding you towards a reliance on His strength and not human intervention.
— Maintain a community of faith that stands in prayer with you, offering support and encouragement in times of opposition.
— Invest in relationships that nurture and affirm your God-given purpose, distancing yourself from negativity and those who fail to understand your calling.
— Cultivate resilience by embracing challenges as opportunities for growth, understanding that they are part of the journey to fulfilling God’s dream.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I stand in awe of Your divine plan for me, acknowledging that You dreamed about me long before I came to be.
I commit to keeping the vision You have given me at the forefront of my mind, letting it guide my steps and decisions every day.
I understand that the path to fulfilling Your dream may involve opposition, but I choose to see these challenges as opportunities for growth and testimonies.
I trust in Your perfect timing, knowing that what You have promised will manifest at the appointed time, just as it did for Joseph.
I declare that no opposition, no matter how fierce, can derail the destiny You have set for me.
I rest in the assurance that even when I face rejection or misunderstanding, it’s not me they reject but the calling You’ve placed upon my life.
Father, I believe that every trial and every setback may not be something you initiated, but it is something You can turn around for my good and Your glory!
Father, I celebrate the victory in advance, knowing that with You, I will overcome every obstacle and emerge stronger, ready to step into the destiny You have ordained for me.
I stand in faith, believing GREATER IS COMING FOR ME! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
