Mensa Otabil - The Blessing of the Lord
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Welcome to day number 20 of our fresh start. We are trusting God that this year He will manifest His blessings upon our lives in such a way that people will see it and acknowledge His grace and mercy upon us.
So, we go to Genesis chapter 39:2 and 3: "The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man, and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. His master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand." Joseph had a very tough life, but God's blessing compensated for all the trials and difficulties he faced. When he looked back at his life, he could see the hand of God and the favor of God, so much so that the pain that had brought him into Egypt was forgotten because of the blessing that God brought through his life.
What do we learn from Joseph in this passage? The first thing is that the Lord was with Joseph. God's blessing starts with His presence with us, and that's why we started Fresh Start this year, praying and seeking the face of the Lord. We want the Lord to go with us into the new year. That's why we cross over, that's why we pray, that's why we fast, and that's why we stay in the presence of the Lord. God's presence must be with us, and the presence of the Lord in our lives can turn our adversity into prosperity, into blessing. God can turn our tears into laughter; He can turn negatives into positives, and that's what His blessing does in our lives. I pray that His presence will go with you, with me, and with each one of us throughout this year. May the presence of the Lord never depart from us.
The second thing we notice is that because of the presence of the Lord in the life of Joseph, he was very successful. He came in as a slave, sold by his own brothers out of jealousy. Life should not have been good for him, but even as a slave working in the master's household, it was evident that he was a blessed person, and God blessed everything that was in his hand. So much so that even in slavery, he was promoted into leadership.
Isn't it amazing that a person who is despised can be so honored, even in the most unexpected ways? This year, maybe you will also find yourself like Joseph, in a tough place, in a hard place, with people conspiring against you. You have to trust that wherever you are, in whatever condition you find yourself, God will make you successful. He will turn the negative into positive. If His presence is with you, He makes His blessing evident in your life. May the blessing of the Lord crown your efforts with success.
The third thing we notice is that the hand of the Lord that was on Joseph was visible to everyone, including his boss. You must understand that Joseph worshiped the God of Abraham, the God of the Bible, but his master, Potiphar, did not worship the God of the Bible and probably did not even recognize the name of the God of the Bible. What kind of a God of a slave would a master from Egypt recognize? Yet, when they saw the success in Joseph's life, it was evident that something extraordinary had made Joseph successful.
The blessing and presence of the Lord were visible to all, even to people who didn't believe in God. That is what we are trusting God for: that what He wants to do in your life will be visible to all, including your boss. People who don't believe in God and those who don't value your Christian faith will often see with certainty that you are a blessed person, a blessed man, and a blessed woman. May the blessing of the Lord be visible over your life in 2023.
Let's pray. Say with me: "Heavenly Father, You are with me wherever I am. Let Your grace produce visible success in my life. In Jesus' name, amen and amen."