Today, we continue our series entitled “Laser Focus,” emphasizing living with a Laser Focus on the Fixed Purpose God established for us before the world began.
(Proverbs 4:25 TPT)
Set your gaze on the path before you. With fixed purpose, looking straight ahead, ignore life’s distractions.
Scriptures for today:
(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.
(Ecc 3:1 ERV)
There is a right time for everything, and everything on earth will happen at the right time.
(Gen 41:46-49 ERV)
46 Joseph was 30 years old when he began serving the king of Egypt. He traveled throughout the country of Egypt.
47 During the seven good years, the crops in Egypt grew very well.
48 Joseph saved the food in Egypt during those seven years and stored the food in the cities. In every city he stored grain that grew in the fields around the city.
49 Joseph stored so much grain that it was like the sands of the sea. He stored so much grain that it could not be measured.
Setting the Stage.
Joseph was in position as the Prime Minister of Egypt; God favored him, and he got to work. For the next seven years, it was just as God had revealed to Joseph — a time of abundance. The land produced bumper crops. Joseph devised a plan (led by God) to store a portion of the crops in strategically designed sites and executed the plan. Instead of building the national reserve in one location, which would later require an elaborate distribution system, Joseph targeted specific cities throughout the nation that could serve as local distribution points during the years of famine. These cities collected a portion of the surplus from the surrounding fields (20%, as God had directed) and prepared themselves for the time to come. The wisdom of God upon Joseph’s life would make Pharaoh and Egypt abundantly prosperous during the time when other nations were unprepared.
So, what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. Receiving what God said is one thing, but it takes focus and patience to execute the plan.
I pulled the following from a Harvard Business Review article:
“If you run a Google search for “A mediocre strategy well executed is better than a great strategy poorly executed,” you will get more than 42,600 references. Where the idea comes from is not certain, but in 2002, in the aftermath of the dot-com bubble, Jamie Dimon, now CEO of JPMorgan Chase, opined, “I’d rather have a first-rate execution and second-rate strategy any time than a brilliant idea and mediocre management.” (The Execution Trap, Roger L. Martin)
Getting the idea from God is awesome. Divine revelation is designed to give you an advantage in this world. God gave Pharaoh and Egypt the advantage over neighboring nations when He gave Joseph the revelation of what was going to happen next. However, establishing an executable plan based on what God said takes thoughtful and prayerful consideration. Furthermore, once the plan is in place, it takes disciplined execution to do it.
Maybe God has spoken to you about your future, and you believe it. Perhaps you took it to the next level, and the Holy Spirit led you to develop a plan. That’s great. But now comes the hard part. You have to execute it with diligence, dedication, perseverance, patience, and a tireless commitment to excellence. This part (the execution) is often not glorious.
Do you have the discipline to EXECUTE the plan God gave you?
Quick thoughts on this:
— Divine revelation requires careful planning and disciplined execution.
— Following God’s plan isn’t always glamorous; it demands consistent effort and perseverance.
— The true test of faith is in the application—moving from planning to doing.
How this applies to you:
— Stay committed to your God-given goals, even when progress seems slow.
— Cultivate patience as you implement God’s plan in your life.
— Remember, effective execution of God’s vision often requires overcoming numerous obstacles.
— Consistency in following through on God’s guidance can set you apart from others. You must execute daily, even if the process seems mundane.
— Discipline in execution ensures you are ready to seize new opportunities God provides while being faithful to what He already said.
2. Delayed gratification is a lost art.
People today want everything NOW! The problem with that is the fact that God is NOT in a hurry. God takes the long view. God reveals things to you that may not happen for years. God gave Joseph a dream when he was 17. Joseph did not see a breakthrough in manifesting the dream until he was 30. And the actual dream would not come to pass until he was about 39.
No one wants to acknowledge that God’s dream may take over 20 years, and within that span, portions may take years as well. The “storing up grain” phase took seven years. Think about that for a moment. After Joseph had waited 13 years to get to where he was, he would have to execute God’s plan in a disciplined fashion for seven long years. Digest that for a moment. That is 84 months of disciplined execution, just so they could be in a position to withstand another 84 months of famine. This is the type of discipline and patience God is looking for from us, and it is also why many Christians miss out on God’s best. They lack discipline and patience.
Quick thoughts on this:
— In a world that craves instant results, the Biblical principle of waiting on God’s timing is countercultural.
— Joseph’s example of storing grain over seven years teaches us the value of long-term preparation and divine foresight.
— True spiritual maturity is often reflected in one’s ability to delay gratification and trust in God’s timing.
How this applies to you:
— To walk with God for the long haul, you should develop a mindset that values long-term rewards over immediate gratification.
— Trust that God’s timing is perfect, though it may seem slow.
— Learn to appreciate the waiting period as a time for growth and preparation.
— The patience developed through waiting on God can lead to greater spiritual and personal maturity.
— Embrace the discipline required to stick with God’s plan, even when the benefits are not immediately visible.
3. Vision retrains you while you are waiting on God.
While Joseph was leading Egypt to store up 20% of the grain during the seven years of abundance, it is easy to see how the exercise could have seemed futile. I can see people saying, “This is stupid! We have an abundance. We are enjoying year after year of overflow. We are getting a bumper-crop after a bumper-crop. It does not matter if we store up 20% of not.” This is why discipline and patience are so important.
Solomon said, “Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint, but blessed is he who keeps the law.” (Prov 29:18). Another translation reads, “Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction.” God provided the vision and the prophetic revelation when He revealed to Joseph what would happen next. But it was then on Joseph to provide exceptional leadership through those seven years of plenty in order to execute God’s plan so Egypt would be ready for the seven years of famine.
People with vision (prophetic revelation from God) DON’T do everything.
— Their vision restrains them.
— Their vision keeps them focused.
— Their vision makes their life simple.
People with NO vision (NO prophetic revelation from God) are people without restraint.
— They don’t know where they are going, so they are willing to try anything.
— Since they don’t know where they are going, they think any path will take them there.
— These people aimlessly wander through life, trying one thing after another, hoping something “sticks.”
Paul said, “Everything is permissible for me—but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible for me”—but I will not be mastered by anything.” (1 Cor 6:12 NIV)
— Just because you CAN do something does not mean you should.
— People with vision know what they should do and focus their efforts therein; they have disciplined execution!
— People without vision lack the direction to make the right decisions—decisions that will take them down God’s path for their lives.
Joseph had God’s vision and the discipline to execute God’s plan for seven long years. It takes discipline and patience to execute for the long haul and to remain focused on the details while you do. Disciplined execution is one of the major keys to Godly success.
Quick thoughts on this:
— Vision provides direction and prevents us from making aimless decisions.
— Keeping the end goal in mind helps maintain focus and restrains impulsive actions.
— Joseph’s strategic actions during the years of abundance were driven by the vision of upcoming famine.
How this applies to you:
— Let God’s vision for your life guide your daily decisions and actions.
— Use the vision to keep yourself disciplined, especially when distractions abound.
— Divine vision can simplify your life by clarifying what you should and should not engage in.
— Holding onto God’s vision helps you resist the urge to give up when faced with adversity.
— A God-given vision provides peace and assurance, knowing that your efforts align with a divine purpose.
That is enough for today.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I thank You for revealing portions of my future to me in visions.
You give me dreams while I am sleeping and open visions while I am awake. You speak to me directly through Your Word and Your Spirit, and You also speak to me through other people.
As You speak to me, You cast VISION for my life. I get to see what You see for me.
This VISION restrains me, and this restraint is good. Therefore, I keep the VISION before my eyes daily.
I meditate and medicate on it day and night. I am convinced it shall come to pass in the fulness of Your timing.
I refuse to deviate from Your path. I will not be distracted or derailed from my destiny.
The VISION you gave me gives birth to detailed plans.
Once I have a plan, I declare that I have the discipline to execute Your plan, no matter how long it takes.
Living this way, with this type of discipline and focus, I know GREATER IS COMING FOR ME.
I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
