I am not my own...
In the book of Genesis we find the account of the life of a young man named Joseph. He was one of the babies of the family. A young man who was deeply loved by his father, and despised by his older brothers. Joseph was a dreamer of dreams. Joseph dreamed of his brothers (and father and mother) bowing down to him. As you can imagine, this made the brothers ANGRY when he shared it with them. How dare he think he would ever be greater than them!!! He was the runt of the litter - a young upstart that needed, to their way of thinking, be put in his place. What they didn't think was that maybe - just maybe - it could have been God giving Joseph those dreams. So, the brothers hatched a plan. They decided their best bet was do get rid of him altogether, so after much talk about what should be done they settled on selling him into slavery. And off Joseph went with the slave traders to Egypt...
Joseph, I'm certain, wouldn't have chosen to be sold into slavery and spend YEARS there - some of which were as a prisoner. He knew he'd had dreams. He knew he was called. What he didn't know was how that call was going to be fleshed out. I'm sure it looked a lot different than what he may have planned in his heart. What happened, though, is the years of slavery and imprisonment worked to make him the man he needed to be in order to be who he was called to be. As a young boy dreaming dreams he was not ready to rule the land of Egypt. Fast forward to the time when his brothers were before him in Egypt - in need of food. He told them that God had sent him before them.
God did it. Joseph had learned, I'm certain, that he was not his own - he belonged to God.
Belonging to God - AND submitting yourself to that belonging - means He gets to call the shots in your life. You take your hands off your own will and walk in obedience to Him. It means you go - AND FLOURISH (thrive) - BLOOM - where He plants you, whether or not you are where you would have chosen to be.
Often times He places us where He needs us to be - places that seem hard, unsettling, bigger than imaginable, because He need us there. Sometimes it is for a season of time. Sometimes it is for all of our time. Either way it is God's call - not yours - and you submit yourself to that. In Joseph's case, the land of his slavery and imprisonment transformed into the land of the fulfillment of God's call on his life. The land where the worst of the worst had happened to him became the land of the best of the best. A land of restoration, renewal and redemption.
So, what is the point?
The point is - WE DON'T KNOW GOD'S PLAN OR HIS WAYS OR HIS THOUGHTS. We get a glimpse...a glimmer...a dream...a calling. Then we are told (commanded, actually) to obey...to submit...to allow Him to do His work. It is almost always painful and hard - this process of being molded by God's loving hands. It is also beautiful, awe-inspiring and humbling. It is ALWAYS worth it.
The Lord called me into ministry in 2000. At that time I had big dreams and hopes and plans for how I thought my calling was going to flesh itself out. I never could have imagined the twist and turns I was going to take. I never would have asked for quite a lot of it. But 17 years later, I can say with complete confidence that I'm still right in the middle of His call... His plan (which is good). I'm not where I thought I would be, but I'm right where I'm supposed to be. Even with all I've been through with Him, I still have to remind myself to submit to His loving hands and allow Him to work things out.
These things I know (I've learned), and am confident of:
1) He has good plans for His kids.
2) He is completely worthy of my trust.
3) He loves me more than I can begin to imagine.
It takes a lot of trust to allow Him to do what He wants to do in your life. If you take the leap into that amazing trust, you will never be sorry for it. I promise.
Joseph, I'm certain, wouldn't have chosen to be sold into slavery and spend YEARS there - some of which were as a prisoner. He knew he'd had dreams. He knew he was called. What he didn't know was how that call was going to be fleshed out. I'm sure it looked a lot different than what he may have planned in his heart. What happened, though, is the years of slavery and imprisonment worked to make him the man he needed to be in order to be who he was called to be. As a young boy dreaming dreams he was not ready to rule the land of Egypt. Fast forward to the time when his brothers were before him in Egypt - in need of food. He told them that God had sent him before them.
Genesis 45:7 (Joseph said) "God has sent me ahead of you to keep you and your families alive and preserve many survivors."
God did it. Joseph had learned, I'm certain, that he was not his own - he belonged to God.
Belonging to God - AND submitting yourself to that belonging - means He gets to call the shots in your life. You take your hands off your own will and walk in obedience to Him. It means you go - AND FLOURISH (thrive) - BLOOM - where He plants you, whether or not you are where you would have chosen to be.
Often times He places us where He needs us to be - places that seem hard, unsettling, bigger than imaginable, because He need us there. Sometimes it is for a season of time. Sometimes it is for all of our time. Either way it is God's call - not yours - and you submit yourself to that. In Joseph's case, the land of his slavery and imprisonment transformed into the land of the fulfillment of God's call on his life. The land where the worst of the worst had happened to him became the land of the best of the best. A land of restoration, renewal and redemption.
So, what is the point?
The point is - WE DON'T KNOW GOD'S PLAN OR HIS WAYS OR HIS THOUGHTS. We get a glimpse...a glimmer...a dream...a calling. Then we are told (commanded, actually) to obey...to submit...to allow Him to do His work. It is almost always painful and hard - this process of being molded by God's loving hands. It is also beautiful, awe-inspiring and humbling. It is ALWAYS worth it.
The Lord called me into ministry in 2000. At that time I had big dreams and hopes and plans for how I thought my calling was going to flesh itself out. I never could have imagined the twist and turns I was going to take. I never would have asked for quite a lot of it. But 17 years later, I can say with complete confidence that I'm still right in the middle of His call... His plan (which is good). I'm not where I thought I would be, but I'm right where I'm supposed to be. Even with all I've been through with Him, I still have to remind myself to submit to His loving hands and allow Him to work things out.
These things I know (I've learned), and am confident of:
1) He has good plans for His kids.
2) He is completely worthy of my trust.
3) He loves me more than I can begin to imagine.
It takes a lot of trust to allow Him to do what He wants to do in your life. If you take the leap into that amazing trust, you will never be sorry for it. I promise.
Lord, may we submit our lives to you, and when we try to take the reigns remind us of that submission so that we may submit again.
