God Has a Plan!

Even if everything around you looks dark and gloomy, please know that God has a plan for your life. But sometimes, God needs to do a work in us before he can work through us. Joseph knew the truth of that statement! Join me today for an encouraging word to boost your week.

Transcript

Hello there, friend! Welcome to Motivation Monday. Today I want to bring you some encouragement to help set you up to have a good productive and fruitful week.

I want to encourage you today that even if everything looks dark around you, God has a plan for your life. He sees you, he hears you, and he knows exactly what you're going through. And today I want to encourage you that your struggle is not without reason. God has a plan. Today I want to encourage you to take confidence in the Lord and to see him as your place of refuge. Proverbs 14:26 says:

“In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence,* 
And His children will have a place of refuge.” Prov 14:26 CSB

The word *Confidence in Strong’s Concordance means: Sure and firm hope, trust, security. Doesn’t that sound like a great place to be? When we live like we believe that, it gives others around us hope as well. If you are wondering what your purpose is, know that God wants all of his followers to be a blessing to someone else. 

But sometimes, we have to come to a place of allowing God to work in us before he can work through us. Joseph was a great example of that. He went through 17 years of hell before being used by God. Joseph didn’t receive his promise until 17 years after it was given to him as a teenager. What was that promise? As a teenager, Joseph dreamed that all his family would bow down and worship him. But at the time, he didn’t have the emotional or spiritual maturity to deal with that knowledge. He shared it with his family in such a way that they scoffed at him. My paraphrase of their reaction is: “Who do you think you are? You think we’re going to bow down to you? You snotty-nosed brat! Not us! No way!”

The immature way in which Joseph handled the promise when it was given to him set him up for some tough years ahead. Joseph ended up being betrayed by his brothers, who threw him into a pit, then sold him into slavery. He was taken to Egypt and sold there to Potiphar. He did a good job managing Potiphar’s household, that is, until Potiphar’s wife took a fancy to Joseph. When Joseph refused to sleep with her, she accused him of trying to take advantage of her. 

That accusation sent Joseph to prison for several years until Pharaoh found out he could interpret dreams. Pharaoh sent for Joseph, who gave Pharaoh the interpretations of his troubling dreams: Joseph predicted seven years of plenty, followed by seven years of famine. As a result, Pharaoh made Joseph second in the land and put him in charge of making sure they wouldn’t starve to death. 

Speaking of Joseph, Psalm 105:19 says,"Until the time his prediction came true, the word of the Lord tested him.” That was 17 years of intense testing. Joseph had to journey through these dark places because God was molding his character into something that God could use to save the people. The Lord refined Joseph's character until he became the man God needed. 

God saw Joseph’s future and He saw how amazing Joseph could be. He saw Joseph's potential even when he was still an arrogant teenager. God also saw Joseph's heart and how he would always lean toward honoring God, no matter what happened to him. And God worked with that until Joseph reached emotional and spiritual maturity 17 years after the promise was given.

Has God given you a promise years ago and now you feel abandoned? Does it feel like you're in the pit? Does it feel like you're in prison? Sometimes we have to go through the pit and the prison to reach the palace. Today I want to encourage you to be patient. God isn't finished with you yet. Yield to him, honor him above all else, and let him do his work in you. The promise is coming, as sure as the rain.

It might feel like you're in the desert, but blooms always come after the rain, even in the desert. Let’s circle back to Proverbs 14:26–27. In the Passion Translation, it reads:

“Confidence and strength flood the hearts of the lovers of God who live in awe of him, and their devotion provides their children with a place of shelter and security. To worship God in wonder and awe opens a fountain of life within you, empowering you to escape death's domain.” (Prov. 14:26-27 TPT)

Isn't that good? When we love God and live in awe of him, confidence and strength will flood our hearts, giving us a sense of shelter and security. That’s what it says! It also says that worshipping God with a sense of wonder and awe brings life to us. That’s so good.

It’s also the secret behind the words of Jesus that we find in Matthew 7:7–12. Jesus said "Ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Who, among you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him. Therefore, whatever you want others to do for you, do always the same for them. For this is the law and the prophets.”

When we show God our love, He, in turn, wants to show us His love for us. I want to encourage you today to stand firm in the difficulty that you're in, to be patient and don’t give up. Never give up! And share with God exactly whatever it is that you need. After that, believe that he has heard you and that he will provide.

Psalm 103:11–13 reads:

For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
 so great is his faithful love
 toward those who fear him.

As far as the east is from the west,
 so far has he removed
 our transgressions from us.

As a father has compassion on his children,
 so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him.

Yes, my friend, The Lord’s compassion for you is great. It might seem tough now, but He has a plan and that plan is to mold you into who He needs you to be. 

Today is Monday. It’s a new opportunity to take the next right step. It’s an opportunity to worship God with a fresh sense of surrender. It’s an opportunity to be a blessing to someone else. What will you do with your week?