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 41:56-57 ERV)
56 There was famine everywhere, so Joseph gave the people grain from the warehouses. He sold the stored grain to the people of Egypt. The famine was bad in Egypt,
57 but the famine was bad everywhere. So people from the countries around Egypt had to come to Joseph in Egypt to buy grain.
So, what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. While You Are Believing God, You Are Not Wasting Your Time!
Diligence during times of abundance can seem unnecessary, but that’s why it takes discipline to be great. You must be disciplined while others don’t see the need to be. You must be laser-focused during seasons while others are living haphazardly. It takes this type of focus to maximize the purpose and potential God placed in you.
Imagine what it was like to have seven of the most amazing, prosperous, and plenteous years of Egypt’s history, only to have to dutifully store up 20% of every harvest because Joseph said so. I am sure that many of the citizens of Egypt thought this was an exercise in futility. It took a great deal of time, energy, effort, and focus to execute the plan God gave Joseph. Guess what? It will take all of those things to execute the plan God gives you, and while you are doing it, others may question your determination but do not allow yourself to be distracted by the questions of others. You are working on something they do not understand because they did not hear what God said to you. As a result, they don’t know what you know, so they won’t understand what you are doing. Just do not allow yourself to be distracted by others. Run your race at your pace, with your grace.
While you are executing God’s plan, satan will do all he can to fill your heart and mind with thoughts of fear, doubt, and unbelief. Satan will do all he can to get you to think that you are wasting your time. But believe me, you are not. When the famine started, Egypt was the only nation that was prepared! Egypt’s patience and perseverance paid off big time, and you will be able to say the same.
Long-term Preparation requires discipline:
— Patience during preparation builds the character and strength needed for your destiny.
— While you are patiently preparing, the process may seem tedious and unnecessary, but when the season SHIFTS, you will be glad you submitted to the process God started in your life.
— There will come a day when you look back and thank yourself for not succumbing to the thoughts of doubt or the pressure to give up!
Stick with the process.:
— If you cut corners today, you will pay for it tomorrow.
— If Egypt had not stuck with the process for the 84 months of plenty, they would not have been prepared during the 84 months of famine.
When you cut corners in your season of preparation, you are hurting no one but yourself:
— God is not punishing you, He is preparing you. But if you fail to patiently endure the processing, you are hurting your future self.
— Your future YOU will thank you for the patience, diligence, and focus you display today!
— You will not be disappointed. Be patient. In the end, you will be glad you patiently endured. Remember, greater is coming!
— Remember that every act of obedience, no matter how small, is a seed sown into your future.
2. If God Does Not Keep You FROM IT, He Will Bless you IN IT!
God has ways of keeping you out of storms. But there are times when He simply gives you an umbrella so you can ride out the storm unscathed.
In John 17 (the true: “Lord’s Prayer”), Jesus prayed for us. He prayed that the Father would NOT take us out of the world. He said that we are IN the world, but not OF the world. He knew that we are different. So He did not want the Father to take us OUT of the world, but rather to allow us to shine as LIGHT in the middle of darkness. We are supposed to be HOPE in the middle of despair.
When the world is going through something (like the famine in Egypt or the recent COVID-19 pandemic), God does not have to take you out of the situation. He can bless you right in it.
— God can cause you to prosper when everyone else is struggling.
— God can cause you to have peace when all those around you are in fear.
— This is how He draws the lost to Him!
You are called to be the light of the world!
— When the world is struggling, you should get excited because it is your time to shine!
— God’s provision and protection are not dependent on external circumstances but on His faithfulness.
— Your peace and prosperity during difficult times are testimonies of God’s goodness and power.
— Embrace every challenge as an opportunity for God to showcase His glory through your life.
3. Diligence and Discipline Will Ensure You Are Prepared When Others Are Not.
You can be in the same place at the same time as others, but what is negatively impacting them does not have to negatively impact you. What crushes others does not have to crush you. Why? Because God is with you, and He was preparing you for this all along. This is where patience and perseverance come in. When God is preparing you, you often don’t see the need for the diligence and focus the Holy Spirit will lead you to operate in. But if you listen to Him and do what He says, when the season SHIFTS, you will be prepared when others are not.
A dedication to preparation pays off in the long run.
— If you are patient, and you go through whatever process God is leading you through, there will come a day when you will be glad you did.
— The patience of your today (and the focus required therein) will pay off in your tomorrow.
— Do what God is leading you to do today, even if it seems foolish, even if you don’t understand why. Because there will come a day when you understand what God is doing, and on that day, you will be glad you listened to God.
— When you listen to the Holy Spirit and you patiently do what He tells you to do, God can see to it that you are prepared for the fire when it comes. When that time comes, you will be able to walk through the fire unscathed. Not only that, but you can come out on the other side and not even smell like smoke (Daniel 3:26,27).
— The Holy Spirit’s guidance is your advantage, leading you to make wise decisions in every season.
— Your diligence today is the foundation for your breakthrough tomorrow.
4. People Need To See Something IN YOU They Do Not Have!
One of my favorite scriptures is 1 Peter 3:15. It says, “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” Whenever I quote this, I like to say, “No one is going to ask you to provide a reason for the HOPE they see in you if they can’t see HOPE! They need to SEE it in order to be drawn BY it!”
The nation of Egypt was in a position to sell grain to their own people and to the people of every surrounding nation. While others were struggling to survive, Egypt was thriving because they had the patience to go through the process God led them to go through. It paid off for them, and every surrounding nation saw HOPE in Egypt and how Egypt was prepared. Guess what? When you listen to the Holy Spirit and patiently prepare, year after year, there will come a day when others are unprepared, and you will be a shining beacon of HOPE. People will come to you as they flocked to Egypt. In a time of famine (natural or spiritual), you will be shining while others are struggling!
The world is looking for something different. If you look just like them, sound like them, and act like them, then you are no different from them, and your life will never DRAW them to God!
— If all people see in you are problems, they will never come to you because they have problems. They need to see something in you they do not have!
— People from the surrounding area came to Egypt because they were the only ones prepared for the famine.
God wants you to be different.
— God wants you to be light in the midst of darkness.
— God wants you to be hope in the midst of despair.
— Your distinctiveness as a believer should be evident in your peace, joy, and unwavering faith.
— Let your life be a living testimony of God’s love, power, and grace.
— Your steadfastness in trials will draw others to seek the source of your strength and hope.
In closing, patient preparation eventually pays off. What the Holy Spirit is leading you to do today, day in and day out, may seem futile. But don’t up. Don’t get frustrated. Don’t get distracted. The greater the assignment from God, the longer the preparation process. When the time comes and the seasons change, you will be the one who is unmoved, unfazed, and unbothered because God is your source. At that point, you will be in a position to lead others to your God because they will see something in you they do not have!
So remain patient. Greater is coming!
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I know my patience and perseverance will eventually pay off.
Therefore, I resist thoughts of fear, doubt, and unbelief. I refuse to get distracted.
I resist every urge to cut corners or take shortcuts.
I do what is right, I do it because it is right, and I also do it right, every time.
I remain focused, doing what You lead me to do every day, even when I don’t understand it.
My latter days shall be greater than my former days.
My labor is not in vain; You see every act of faith and obedience.
I embrace every challenge as an opportunity for Your glory to be revealed in my life.
I trust that Your timing is perfect, and I am being prepared for greater things.
GREATER IS COMING FOR ME! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
