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God’s Favor in Trials

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We all have Purpose. No matter What

The Lord created purpose in all of us and whether recognize this or not, we are meant to give Him glory in every area of our lives. However, what may keep us from realizing this is multifactorial relating to present or past circumstances, backgrounds, upbringings, values, etc. Across time we can analyze so many examples of the responses of those who went through trials, the driving force behind the response, as well as outcomes. God is in the midst, and he sees and knows how trials, in various degrees of difficulty impact our stories. He sees, knows, and takes into consideration our predispositions, personalities, and other culminating factors that make us who we are.

Although there may be happenings and circumstances that are not apart of His will, He wants us to know that He sees, He cares, and He can still use our stories if we make ourselves willing and available. Acknowledge that we live in a fallen world, but even still, God is triumphant over the plans and schemes of the enemy. It is up to us decide where we hold our attention, because ultimately this will determine our response which has the power to give God the space to determine the outcome for our victory.

The story of Esther and Joseph are fascinating to study side by side in noting how God used their diverse backgrounds and circumstances to fulfill His purpose. In the face of difficulty and seemingly impossible situations, they became strengthened in character and resilience in their willingness to remain faithful to God. Let’s delve and take a closer look at Joseph’s life in part one lives through what Scripture reveals and in part 2 dive into how this also relates in the story of Esther.

Joseph's Story

Joseph grew up, very privileged in his father, Jacob’s, household. He had eleven siblings and amongst them all, he was the favorite of the patriarch and he knew it. It’s possible that his upbringing as the favored child influenced the way he viewed himself in his own eyes. He was, to say the least, a tad too cocky, however, being the favorite of 12 sons to his father, he also may not have seriously considered this to be a flaw of character.

In his father’s household, Joseph was the first born to Rachel, Jacob’s favorite wife, who for some time had difficulty conceiving. Jacob openly acknowledged him with more favor than all of his brothers and even created him a special coat of many colors signifying this. Joseph wore this coat everywhere and bragged to all of his family of dreams he had of himself being exalted amongst them including one where they down to him. At this, even Jacob, questioned Joseph for revealing this but even still Joseph remained either unconscious or not convicted by his prideful manner and Jacob continued to openly play favorites. His brothers were jealous and angry, to say the least, and upon chance, outside the protective covering of his father, Joseph was attacked by his brothers then sold into slavery.

Joseph had always known that he was meant for something great, and that His dreams were from God. Yet never shying from boasting, he mishandled the vision he received from the Lord, and eventually paid heavily for this. We can learn here to use wisdom in how we handle the promises of God such as in who we share our visions with and how we view ourselves. God humbly chooses to manifest His power and glory through us, flawed as we are, but for the blood of Jesus that purifies us. We should also have a humble attitude knowing ultimately that we are only stewards of the abilities, talents, and gifts that God has entrusted us with.

Yielded Heart

Regardless, God is not the author of suffering, and it was never His original design for Joseph to be sold into slavery or go through all of the hardships that he endured. But despite this unexpected turn of events, devastating as this was, Joseph’s attitude and response represents the human capacity to preserve under all circumstances and despite odds, produce growth through strength of character that develops. Joseph suffered for a season of time after what his brothers did to him, but he did not allow the injustice and hardships he found himself in time and time again create a victim mentality in him. In everything, the posture of His heart was set towards honoring God in word, deed, and attitude.

Remember Potiphar’s wife? Unvirtuous as she was, she recognized great virtue and talent in Joseph. He was so excellent in all that he did, that Potiphar put him in charge of all of his household, so much so to the point that he did not concern himself with anything apart from his meal plan. She soon found out after her unsuccessful attempt to lure him to bed with her, that he was not only strong in deed but in character. With boldness and a clear conscious, willing her to have the same attitude, he refused her. This cost him his position as he ended up falsely accused by her and thrown in prison.

The posture of Joseph’s heart, set towards God in everything, allowed God’s favor to rest on him despite the challenges he endured. Joseph’s colored coat may have been destroyed by his brothers, but God’s mantle of purpose and destiny still rested on Him. He may have been falsely accused, shamed, thrown into prison, but He still had God’s seal of approval, blessing, and favor.

In everything, the posture of His heart was set towards honoring God in word, deed, and attitude.

Behold Him

There are seasons we may walk through in life that this may not seem so apparent, as such with Joseph, but remember that our outward circumstances past or present do not determine who we are without our permission. It also does not define or determine where we are headed without our consent. Joseph held on to the dreams of his childhood. He held onto the hope that he would be all who God had called him to be no matter the cost and no matter the obstacles and challenges he faced. He developed into and became the person of his dreams during the season he endured forced servitude and unjust persecution. This process did not occur overnight. Joseph prideful manner took a turn, and perhaps God allowed the circumstances he encountered to prune and refine Him. In our lives, every situation and circumstance, whether good or bad, should not be taken for granted as opportunities for growth.

If we keep our eyes fixed on God, everything will work out for our good and for His glory. God’s glory is not something we should expect to behold some time in the future. We have access to behold His glory even in our suffering at the present time. This access is dependent upon a yielded heart. There is glory in surrender.

Our outward circumstances past or present do not determine who we are without our permission.

Whatever you behold and what you set your attention on is what will shape and mold your character. Joseph endured various trials and chose to remain faithful and set his eyes on God. He had an attitude of excellence in everything that he did, maintained integrity, and showed himself faithful to the gifting God had placed on him. He truly exemplified how every situation and circumstance is an opportunity for growth. He could have allowed the unfairness of his circumstances create a root of bitterness in him, but rather he developed forgiveness and humility through his journey as later we read about how he blessed his brothers and entire family household after their reunion.

Whatever you behold and set your attention on is what will shape and mold your character.

God's Favor

Rather than being served, as he may have envisioned himself in his earlier days, Joseph learned the importance and honor of having a servant’s heart. He chose not to lose hope in suffering while many times for doing the right thing. Joseph is shown to persevere, never complain, excel in all he did, and continue holding on to the vision he firmly still believed belonged to him. If we choose to remain faithful to God in the midst of opposition, not only will he give us the strength to endure but we will gain the opportunity to learn to trust Him and become more like Him.

All in all, Joseph’s circumstances helped shape him into the leader he would become. In yielding rather than fighting the process, God’s favor was able to flow freely and manifest in his life even when it seemed least apparent. In our lives we can take this lesson knowing that we can trust God in all circumstances. With this revelation the apostle Paul wrote:

12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

– Philippians 4:12-13

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Strength in Weakness

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Today I would like to talk about God’s strength in our weaknesses. When Christ was hanging on the cross, many who saw Him thought that He was weak. He was in a very vulnerable position but even in the midst of this trial His eyes remained focused on the Father. This was the height of His surrender, no matter the cost.

Fear in Weakness

We all have weaknesses and shortcomings. Think of one that you may be facing in your life currently. How does it make you feel and respond? Usually, people tend to feel more on the terrible side of the spectrum. It’s possible that they become intimidated, feel unworthy, incapable, incompetent, and innumerous ways that reflect symptoms of insecurity and low self esteem. Then because of their weaknesses and how they feel about them, they respond accordingly most likely out of fear, especially fear of failure. Yet most often then not, the idea of failure is based on perception when hoped outcomes are not seen or expectations are not met. In response, one may try to conceal the product of failure. 

They may also try to conceal any self characteristics or actions that they believe are responsible for this. This is usually brought out of shame, so that even though they try to improve upon the weakness, the shame still holds them back, as they start believing things like their value is hinged on their success or ability not to “fail” or not to have the weakness anymore. As a result, who they are and what they do may become products of fear rather than a product of a healthy sense of self and identity. They may decide not to live outside of the box that they feel their vulnerabilities and inadequacies create for them. Eventually, this inevitably stunts their growth as a person as they will only ever live within their comfort zones, always fighting to overcome weakness while remaining fearful. 

There is no way to overcome weakness in fear, no matter whether we try to improve ourselves by it, because we will always be overshadowed by the feeling that we are not enough. In truth, that is correct. In it of ourselves we are not enough. God created us to be carriers of His glory, and to have Him dwell within us and us in Him so that we can find fulfillment in Him. That’s how much He loves and values us despite our weaknesses. Ultimately, His perfect love casts out all fear.

When we realize how much we are loved, our focus becomes no longer on how well we perform, but about our relationship with Him. It was never His intention for us to be created with weakness because we were only ever supposed to live, move, and have our being in Him. In Him we are satisfied, in Him we have meaning and purpose in life. In Him we live, move, and have our being (Acts 17:28) and through Him, we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength (Philippians 4:13).

Response to God

Therefore, we are not victims to anyone or anything not even to weakness. Instead of reacting in fear from weakness God has given us access to take hold of His strength regardless of any circumstance that we might be facing. It is where we choose to shift our attention that will determine our response. 

First and foremost, we should always focus on who God is instead of focusing on ourselves and believing lies about our identity. That is what the enemy is after, our identity. If he can keep us from knowing who we are in Christ, he knows we will always be stunted. But he does not determine that, we do. It’s our choice to believe whomever and whatever and the only way that we can come into alignment with what God believes about us is if we first believe on who He says that He is. The Word of God reveals God’s nature in every page by revelation the Holy Spirit imparts. When you start acknowledging and accepting who God is through His Word, He will start revealing Himself in us and how He sees us and has called us to be. In Him we find our identity, not in our weakness, and firstly we should respond by focusing on who He is.

In our weakness we should also respond with joy. Paul even is known to say that he rejoices in weakness.

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials

James 1:2-4

As human beings living in this world, falling into various trials is inevitable, because the world itself is in a fallen state and has been shrouded in weakness ever since the fall of mankind. Rejoicing in trial is not glorifying the idea, and stooping to remain in weakness, as if a martyr, but rather because of the truth that we are not of this world, do not have to be subjugated to a fallen state, and that we are overcomers. We rejoice knowing that God has given us power and authority over trials, weaknesses, and temptation, not because we wrestle against flesh and blood,

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Ephesians 6:12

We can rejoice in the Lord because He has given us victory over the enemy and every obstacle in our lives that we have and are yet to face. When we rejoice, it takes us out of a victim mentality into absolute confidence that we are already on the winning side. 

This particular weakness that they faced and that mankind has faced ever since the fall is the weakness of sin. Once Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the garden, mankind came into a fallen state and their relationship with God was severed. However after Christ came and broke the curse of sin,

There is now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

Romans 8:1

We are meant to overcome sin and when it enters through temptation, think of the Lord’s prayer  how it focuses on God first and then ends with the prayer to

lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Matthew 6:13

Ultimately, our focus should be on God instead of ourselves. When we give glory to Him and promote His will instead of our own on a daily basis, our weaknesses will diminish in our eyes and won’t become so daunting. 

So how about sickness? This is also a weakness pervading people of God today. Again, we should always focus on God over the problem, knowing that we are already healed by His stripes in the Spirit realm. Our faith should aim to move boundaries in the Spirit realm, even though it may have something to do with something in the natural. In the Word of God it says that

whatever we bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever we lose on earth will be loosed in heaven

Matthew 18:18

Even though there may be a weakness manifesting in the natural through an ailment of our physical bodies, we can be confident that we are spiritually backed up by heaven’s army and that

No weapon formed against us shall prosper.

Isaiah 54:17

Even though there may be a physical affliction, know that the weakness is not with you, but that it’s with the enemy trying to pin his loss and defeat on you. But here is the deal, we have already won through the blood of Jesus Christ. We do not identify with the weakness of the enemy but in the strength of Christ, taking upon himself our weakness, so that we may overcome our weakness in Him because

by His stripes, we are healed.

Isaiah 53:5

When we have weaknesses God is our strength, and for this we can rejoice. However, that is not to say that we should let our guards down. We should remain prayerful and diligently be led by the Spirit instead of the flesh. 2 Corinthians reads,

we are glad whenever we are weak but you are strong; and our prayer is that you may be fully restored.

2 Corinthians 13:9

It’s not enough to rejoice, we should also be prayerful and believe for full restoration from weaknesses. David said,

but who can discern their own error? Forgive my hidden faults, keep your servant from willful sins, let them not rule over me, then I will be blameless, innocent of great transgression.

Psalm 19:12

After Christ sent us His Holy Spirit (see more here), He empowered us to live godly lives and take on His identity. We don’t have to feel overcome by sin or sickness, instead we are overcomers because Christ already took our weaknesses and transgressions upon Himself as he hung on the cross. We need to keep our focus on Him and the sacrifice that He made for us so that regardless of our response we can respond in joy.  In the next post, we will discuss how this will help us walk more boldly and confidently walk in trust, faith, and obedience.

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Purification: Esther’s Inner Beauty (Part 2)

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Before Esther became Queen, she probably never expected God would use her to help save His people. Yet, this was her destiny that she was in preparation for long before it was fulfilled. Her preparation kept her ready to do the will of God and altered the course of history. So how did Esther’s preparation process look like and how can we relate it to our Christian walks in fulfilling the callings God has for us? In this post, we will discuss the first crucial steps in preparation that we as believers should go through.

A queen in training, Esther was one of the beautiful virgins brought to the palace for the beauty pageant. Like all the rest, she would have to go through lengthy preparations before her one night with the King. Let’s take a closer look at the process that would prepare Esther for her destiny as Queen.

Healing and Purification 

Purification was the first step in the preparation process Esther went through which included 6 months of myrrh and oil. During that time period, many of the women probably dealt with cracked, dry skin, wrinkling, sunburn, sores, and other various skin conditions that would benefit from all the treatments they would receive. Think of all the oils, olive, myrrh, cassis, honey to name a few, that they would soak and be massaged in to help heal and moisturize the skin not to mention leave a pleasant scent behind. So as you can very well tell, the preparation process before meeting the king was essential. This is also true in our lives today that we should prepare ourselves for our King and the one who matters the most, Jesus.

Let us rejoice and exult and give Him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready.

Revelation 19:7-9

Esther had a year of spa treatments to prepare but we have our entire lifetimes. In Esther’s case, the transformation that occurred was apparent in the natural, however as believers, our transformation occurs spiritually from the inside out. 

Jesus brings this transformation process when we seek him and usually involves purification. Esther had to go through several months of this for her one night with the king to seal a relationship with Him as Queen. For us, it’s the other way around, in which Christ seals us to Himself first and out from this we become purified when we choose to abide in Him. It’s a process that we have to be mutually involved with alongside the Holy Spirit who guides and molds us as we go through the process. 

In this post, we will discuss how purification involves separating, submitting, and ultimately abiding in God, which is involved in all of them. Let’s take a closer look at these three components.

Separating

Separating is when we choose to detach our identities from the world and carnal nature, which support feeding and elevating the flesh so that ultimately we become a god to ourselves, living only to please the desires of the flesh. This is contrary to what God wants for us and leads us to ignoring conviction from the Holy Spirit to turn away and separate ourselves for Him. God brings conviction of sin through love and not condemnation. Without acknowledging the love of God, sin would be  impossible to separate from. Acknowledging and accepting the love of God enables us to turn to Him. As we turn to Him, He enables us to turn away from sin. Sin separates us from God and blinds us from the truth of who He is and who He has called us to be. He is a Holy God and cannot abide with sin. Therefore we need to be repentant and turn away from sin by turning towards Him and seeking His face. 

It’s common to think that to turn to God means to first  turn away from our sin. Though this is true it is not the first step that we should be taking. Turning to God fundamentally means believing in Him and His Truth. When a sinner first gets saved it is not because they were able to completely come out of sin but because they choose to believe that Jesus died and rose again to redeem him/her to the Father. When they turn to God, they are rejecting the lies of the world and their sinful nature and are embracing their new identity in Christ.

For if anyone is in Christ Jesus he is a new creation. Old things have passed away, behold all things have become new. 

2 Corinthians 5:17

If you feel separated from God, there is a high  probability that there are certain sins that you may be struggling with that are blinding you to God’s reality that He loves you and took upon Himself your iniquity.

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.

Isaiah 53:5

Here this verse does not just infer healing from sickness in the body, but also sickness in the soul  as well. This includes familiar sins, addictions, weaknesses, etc. We can not separate ourselves from these chains ourselves. It’s only through the redemptive blood of Jesus that we can be set free and perceive God’s reality, that nothing can ever separate us from His love.

For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38

Separation is an identity mindset that involves turning to God and seeking His face and believing who He says we are.

Sin

To do this we need to believe the truth about all God says that we are. Your reality is made up of your perceptions and if not shaped by the Word it will turn to the world and human wisdom for answers. Yet the Bible says that

There is a way that seems right to a man but really leads to death and destruction.

Proverbs 14:12

There is only one way that leads to purity and that is through the blood of Jesus. No one in it of themselves is good. No matter how many good deeds done, or kind words spoken, human nature is sinful.

For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

Romans 3:23

The blood of Jesus was shed for the remission of sins and without it, we could never be forgiven and come before a holy God. Think back to the Old Testament when they sacrificed animals and smeared the sides of the altar with the blood among several of the other rituals that presented offerings and sacrifices for sin to the Lord. By this, people were heavily aware of the penalty for their sins and that the justice of God required payment. There were various rituals that involved some kind of grain, flour, or animal but ultimately, whatever was presented to the Lord had to be pure, untarnished, and without blemishes. Why did it matter so much that something spotless, and in the case of animals, innocent have to be sacrificed and offered to the Lord? One of the reasons is that the animal would take the place of a guilty part from an individual to an entire community, receiving the penalty of death through the sacrifice. The blood of the animal, it’s life source, I believe was smeared on the sides of the altar as a reminder that its life was given as a result of sin. Because it was unblemished, innocent, and made holy from being placed on the altar, it symbolically exchanged this to the people/person for their guilt and deserved punishment. This was a sign of how the Israelites were to be made right with God. 

When Jesus came he ultimately was the last official Lamb that would stand in our place for the penalty of our sin. The wrath of God was placed on Christ when He died for us so that we could be made pure, holy, and blameless before Him when you decide to believe and follow Him. 

Submitting

Once you are separated from the world and carnal nature, knowing who you are in Christ based on the finished work of the cross, you can begin the submission process. This is allowing the Holy Spirit to prune and refine you, bringing correction and conviction. In His love for us, He corrects us, and we show our love back through obedience. Obedience is not only following correction to not do something, but also instruction for what to do. The Word of God declares,

The Lord disciplines those that He loves and chastises those He receives.

Hebrews 12:6

and Jesus also said,

If you love me you will keep my commands.

John 14:15

Following correction and instruction is a choice, but at the same time we need to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit for these to be clear. The Holy Spirit brings conviction and brings us to repentance. When we repent the blood of Jesus purifies and cleanses us for all unrighteousness so that we are dead to sin. The Holy Spirit then raises us to life in Christ, giving us the power to overcome any temptation or sin we face. We can crucify the flesh, and live by the Spirit by renewing our mind with the Word of God consistently and submitting to His correction and instruction. 

Just like separating, submitting is impossible to do on our own and if we have not first set ourselves apart for the Lord through separation, this would be like trying to sanctify ourselves and rely on works to make us right with God. Through submission, the Lord purifies us to be who He has called us to be and how we are to live our lives. Burn out and backsliding usually result when we do not submit to the Lord and try to sanctify ourselves through works. Trying to abstain from temptation without first yielding to the prompting of the Holy Spirit also leads to pride and self righteousness because then we start dictating for ourselves what is right and wrong and interpreting the Word of God based on what we want to believe about it. Yielding means repenting of sin, acknowledging our need for a Savior, and choosing to obey His Word regardless of the sacrifices needed to be made. We see this in action before Christ went to the cross saying,

Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.

Luke 22:42

It was Jesus’ destiny to go to the cross and to rise from the grave. He could not have achieved any of this if He first did not choose to submit. 

Abiding

While submission is a choice made on our parts, abiding is a state of being that the Lord facilitates when He sees that we are fully submitted to His will.

If you abide in  me and my word abides in you ask whatever you wish and it shall be done for you.

John 15:7

When we first submit by doing the will of God, in return He likewise fulfills our heart’s will and desire. Through abiding in Him, our own will and desires become more and more refined to be like His will and desire for us. We’ll find ourselves praying His will, plans, and purposes for our lives! As we come closer to Him through this process it becomes second nature to go through the process of separating and submitting. Obeying Him no longer would be a burden but rather a delight and also, because we are in Him, we are more likely to genuinely follow Paul’s example with this:

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

James 1:2-4

When we abide in Christ, He gives us the strength to preserve during times we face trials and have our faith tested. To get this place we first have to choose to separate our identities from the flesh and this world and submit our wills to His will through obedience. This ultimately will enable us to just be who He has called us to be.