Daily Grace At Jesus` Feet

February 2, 2010

Apostle Paul testifies in Romans 8:28 that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purposes. The credibility of a statement lies on the origin of the statement. Apostle Paul gone through volumes of life challenges and hardships in his life. In one occasion, Paul says, “For Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties (2 Corinthians 12:10). He endured prison, humiliation, hardships, great pressure beyond his ability to endure in the province of Asia as well (2 Corinthians 1:8). In spite of all his difficulties, he carried the Gospel around the globe, fought the good fight, kept the faith, and finished his great race (2 Timothy 4:7). He gave a credible statement in Romans 8:28 and the statement is absolutely trustworthy because this comes from a true warrior who endured all hardships for Christ sake and still believed every one of those difficulties turned out good for him. God calls each one of us to fulfill His purposes for our lives. Are you suffering any hardship today? Does someone trying to harm you? Is there someone a hurdle for your growth at your work? or Are you discouraged by envious and uncooperative people around your work or ministry? Do not worry God is with you! If you love your God and carry out His plans for your life to fulfill His purposes to the best of your ability, do not fret or fear, those barriers before you will become greater blessings! those hardships will be turned in to honors for you. We read an incredible story of a man who always did his best with unwavering commitment to his faithfulness to God, yet suffered so many hardships, forgotten and forsaken by his own brothers, endured prison, evil snares; his prime time of youth was soaked with not pleasures but pains, but became a number 2 authority in Egypt and became a blessings to those who were barriers to him. Joseph was his name! We read about this great man of God in Genesis chapters 37 and 39-50. In this story, Joseph comes in to picture when he was 17 years old (Genesis 37:2) and we also read that he became a prime minister to the great nation of Egypt when he was 30 (Genesis 41:46). In the span of 13 years, the teasing, toil, and training he went through turned out as a treasure of blessings to him and made him a great man in the most powerful nation at that time and a blessing to his family. Joseph’s life was filled with sorrow, humiliation, jealous and evil people around him. Yet he was successful because he was with God and God was with him. As we can see in Genesis 37, Joseph was obedient to his father, did not fight back his brothers, did not escape slavery, did not compromise with sexual sinful act with the wife of his master even though he was tempted by her day by day (Genesis 39:10), helped the king’s chief cup bearer and baker in prison, showed kindness to his enemies or brothers and did not retaliate, and honored his elderly father in Egypt. No wonder God was with Joseph. God turned all his hardships to good since Joseph loved and stayed true to his calling. We read repeatedly in this story, “The LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did (Genesis 39:2, 23).” The simple reason why God was with Joseph is because Joseph was with God. Amid all your issues of life, are you with God? He will turn away every barrier in your life as a blessing to you! Even after he became a second-in-command in Egypt and had the opportunity to retaliate his brothers, he said, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good (Genesis 50:20).” If people meant evil against you; God will make it work good for you. Remember in all situations God will overrule! Finally, to wrap up Joseph’s story, we read in Genesis 41:41-43, “Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the entire land of Egypt.” Then Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his hand and placed it on Joseph’s finger. He dressed him in fine linen clothing and hung a gold chain around his neck. Then he had Joseph ride in the chariot reserved for his second-in-command. And wherever Joseph went, the command was shouted, “Kneel down!” So Pharaoh put Joseph in charge of all Egypt.” God honored Joseph! See the way God honors those who endure hardships and barriers for God’s sake.

The Japanese have always loved fresh fish. But the water close to Japan has not held many fish for decades. So to feed the Japanese population, fishing boats got bigger and went further than ever. The further the fishermen went, the longer it took to bring the fish. If the return trip took more time, the fish were not fresh. To solve this problem, fish companies installed freezers on their boats. They would catch the fish and freeze them at sea. Freezers allowed the boats to go further and stay longer. However, the Japanese could taste the difference between fresh and frozen fish. And they did not like the taste of frozen fish. The frozen fish brought a lower price. So, fishing companies installed fish tanks. They would catch the fish and stuff them in the tanks, fin to fin. After a little thrashing around, they were tired, dull, and lost their fresh-fish taste. The fishing industry faced an impending crisis! But today, they get fresh-tasting fish to Japan. How did they manage?

Barriers in our lives are a form of camouflaged Blessings! So do not be fooled!

Prayer: Father, use these hardships to melt me, mold me, and make me a kind of vessel that you desire. Let me barriers be a blessing to me and others. In Jesus Name…..Amen!

May you have a Blessed Day!