Welcome And Acceptance Series Recap

Hello my friends and welcome to Everyday God for Your Every Day with Kathy, a space where we'll discuss real practical ways for life with God, especially for those days when life is hard, complicated, and messy. How do we apply biblical principles such as God's love, mercy, grace, and wisdom to our daily grind? Well, join me each week as we do just that together. So wherever you may find yourself today, please know that you are seen, held, accepted, loved, and never alone. So let's get to it. So with that, we are going to start our episode. And we are continuing on acceptance. So we're gonna kind of try to wrap up our acceptance series, although we're not gonna wrap it up yet because I think episode 10 or 11 is going to be our wrap-up. So we've so far covered acceptance of God's love. We've covered acceptance of who we are, acceptance of our identity in Christ. We talked about acceptance of grace, which took two episodes because let's face it, it is what brings us to Christ. It is what essentially gave us salvation, and it is what helps to transform us, to become more like Christ. And it is the power of Christ in us that enables us to be sustained and ultimately to really thrive and survive really difficult aspects of our lives. So now we're gonna talk about acceptance of God's authority in our lives and God's will for us. So when I think about that, I think, okay, acceptance of God's authority in our lives and God's will for us. So I'm gonna do something a little bit backwards. So we're gonna talk about just God's will for us really quickly. For the majority, I would say, of my adult life, I have questions. I would like pray every day. God, just tell me what your will is for me. Like, tell me what your will is for me. Tell me what your will is for me. And I will tell you when I finally kind of got, ooh, okay, it's all over the Bible and it's right there. I'll never forget it was the beginning of the pandemic. Now, you guys have heard me discuss the pandemic a lot. I'm just gonna say the pandemic was, I know it was a global event. It was something that I do believe that changed the trajectory of our lives, especially the church, especially for, you know, Christ followers like me, my life in terms of really growing my faith in God, growing my faith in Christ. And in this concept, you know, Jesus came so that I would have an abundant life, so I would live an abundant life. And to live an abundant life means to live your life with God, to walk with him daily, not just to bring him in to certain portions of your life, but to fully integrate him into every component of your life. That to me really, really, I mean, the work started prior to the pandemic, but I would say the pandemic kind of blew the doors open for me. So it was the beginning of the pandemic. I was watching, I think some I was watching a show, but it was it was Natalie Grant, and I can't remember anybody else. I maybe Charlotte Gamble was there. I'm not sure, but I can only remember Natalie Grant, who's a Christian singer. And they were on Zoom and they were talking about, you know, God's will, especially like during the pandemic, people were afraid. I mean, if we think about like this was six years ago, like people were fearful. You had the news, I do believe was fear-mongering, with so like every day you had this like count instead of a countdown, you had like numbers going up in terms of how many people were dying. And many thought that it was the end of the world. It certainly was the end of the world as we knew it. But she said something that changed my life. So, Natalie Grant, I would love to think that you're listening. But if you are, if anybody knows you is listening, God used you to really help kind of free me from a lot of legalism. And you said that you used to ask the same question. And I believe, if I remember correctly, that you said that it was your husband. Natalie said it was her husband, that shared First Thessalonians 5, verses 16 through 18 with her, which 1 Thessalonians 5, 16 through 18 says, to rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and to give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. I mean, can you imagine? Like I'd been, I'd read the Bible multiple times. I'd been praying and walking with God. And I was like, what? And I think that was her kind of reaction when her husband shared First Thessalonians 5, verse 16 through 18 with her. It was like, oh, it says it right there. I just need to rejoice always. I mean, and by the way, that rejoice always is a little hard. But it's having not only an attitude of gratitude, which means it is to practice gratitude, because the word rejoice really is a verb. It is to have joy, to command yourself to have joy and then to pray without ceasing. I have told y'all before, like I wondered like, how does one pray without ceasing? And I learned you stay in communion with God, you stay in fellowship with God, which means that we are in constant communication with him, because that's what prayer is. Prayer is not just simply coming to God with a host of requests. Prayer is, yes, we bring our request to him because he is our father, but it is also to talk to him, to listen to him. It is to prostrate ourselves before our king, before our father, before our master, and to say, Lord, have your way in me. And then to give thanks in all circumstances. Again, the practice of gratitude, because here's the thing. If I am practicing gratitude, then I will have joy. I've, you know, I really wondered about that a lot. Describe like joy versus happiness, which we understand. And I believe that as believers, at least for me, how I've experienced it, is that there have been moments in my life where things are not, you know, hunky dory, things are not awesome. Things in that moment in my life are not great, but I've experienced the joy of God. I've experienced the joy in knowing that I am not doing life on my own. I've experienced the joy of God sending a word for me through scripture, meaning, oh my gosh, in the midst of everything that's happening in the world, Lord, you are thinking of me. Who am I that you are so mindful of me? Who are we as human beings that you are mindful of us? I've experienced joy in just looking at my kids and seeing that they are an extension of God's love for me. I've experienced joy in just having a friend. You know, I don't do community well. I've I've talked about that before, but a friend all of a sudden reaching out saying, Hey, I was thinking of you, and I know that that was God. Or that I could call somebody and talk to them about what's going on in my life. That is what joy is. Remembering who God is and the things that He has done in our lives. That to me is joy, even in the midst of worry or in the midst of trouble. And to give thanks in all circumstances means that I can wake up even though I don't, you know, how this bill is going to be paid, or even though I don't have my mother today, or even though this, you know, I may be going through a divorce, or, you know, I may have lost something or I may have lost someone, I can still give thanks because I know that my God is with me, because I know that he will never leave me nor forsake me, because I know that I need only be still and my God will fight for me. It is that. And then so when we think about that, I'm like, oh, God's will for us is not that complicated. And then acceptance of God's authority in our lives. Now I can tell you, that's why on the list, you know, we accept God's love, we accept who Christ says we are, then we accept who we are, and then we accept God's grace. And then ultimately we have to accept God's authority in our lives, and then it'll be much easier for us to accept God's will for us. And I've talked about 1 Thessalonians. I mean, there are multiple things that ultimately that God wills for us. But if we're doing that, then it means that we are willing and we will be obedient because we'll be listening to him, because remember, we'll be praying without ceasing. We will have the mindset already so that we know in our own will, our own desires will align with God's will for us. Today, my pastor said, when you believe in something, it changes your behavior. And the example that he provided was we know that today it's gonna rain, right? We're expecting thunderstorms and rain. So you bring an umbrella. And I thought, well, that's that's that's a rather simple example, but it does. Like when you truly believe in something, it changes your behavior. So you don't even have to try to be intentional about it or just strive. There's no need to because it starts with you believing. So I'm gonna say that accepting God's authority in our lives must first start with believing who God says he is. And I was like reading all of these things that I've written in the past, and there's quite a bit, and I saw this entry a couple of weeks ago. And of course, I thought, oh, how appropriate for this podcast? What if the state of expecting or expectations were a part of my humanity? What if pain or this thorn in my flesh were meant to be part of my story? What if this need, which also often drives me to my knees to seek an audience with you, is just what you are using to transform me? What if this thing which humbles me, exposes my weaknesses, triggers me, haunts me, is the very path that is leading me to you? What if this story is about more than the seen and the felt? What if there was a greater story unfolding? What if there were unseen movements, actions, steps, decisions, conversations being had pertaining to this story, my story, but yet bigger than me and my story and all unknown to me? What if our confusion, our seeking, our angst were all a part of the narrative? All a part of this plan that is being manifested, all of it bigger than me, beyond me, involving me, yet none of it controlled by me. These are hard questions that as a Christ follower, I've asked multiple times, not just, not just at one point in my life, but I ask that often. Where I am currently, what I am doing, I've asked similar questions. I am someone that has a need to understand. You know, my seeking to control, I'm a bit of a control freak. Well, I can say recovering because I am, I have relinquished a lot of that. I have a need to conform all things within my scope of influence. If we think about it, the ongoing battle, this continuous tension between the flesh and the spirit is essentially a battle for control. It's the flesh's perpetual pursuit of its own sovereign control over our lives. And then you have the spirit's desire to yield and surrender to God's sovereignty. So you have the flesh saying, I'm in control, I am sovereign. And then you have the spirit, which ultimately is yielding and surrendering to one who truly is sovereign, and that is God. This is the endless battle that, if we think about it, first started in the garden. It started with the question with the serpent did God really say not to eat from the tree? Hmm. Did God really say that? And then Eve's response, which was, well, he said we could have all of these, but we couldn't eat from this because we would surely die. Oh, you wouldn't surely die. God does just doesn't want you to do it, you know, just to eat from it because you would, you know, you would end up being like him. And then came the decision to, well, I'm gonna eat because I think, you know, it says in scripture that it was not only pleasing to eat, but also to gain wisdom. So if we think about it, at that moment there was a decision to do what I wanted to do, what I felt was the right thing, versus what my father, my creator, my master had said. So that battle didn't end in the garden. It has continued and continues to this day, which is the reason why Christ had to die to begin with. I think as human beings on this side of heaven, we will perpetually, that is a battle that we will perpetually have, which is to want to fight for control. That's why it says in scripture that we must die to self. To be a Christ follower means that I have chosen, made a decision to die to myself, to say I am no longer captain of my own soul, but I now surrender and bow to the true captain of all our souls. And that is Christ. That is God. Before we even again talk about like accepting God's authority in our lives, we need to discuss and confirm how it is that we view God. I know how I view God in my life, but the question then to you is who is God to you? And I want to tell you, like, listen, if you don't know yet, it doesn't preclude you from listening to this. It doesn't preclude you from saying, oh, this is not exclusive. It doesn't say, well, just because I don't know who God is yet, just because I might still be wondering, just because I don't know, means that I'm not saved and I'm just done. No, because here's the thing the fact that you are listening right now, the fact that you searched whatever word you put in your search engine and you ended up here in this place means that God's grace is working in you and is compelling you to ask certain questions, to seek or to knock so that you might find him. So we must first concede that God is who he says he is. And if you've not listened to the names of God and all that it reveals about him, because I am going to reference some of that, I would suggest that you listen. We must first concede that he is who he says he is, and that is he is the great I am. He is the maker of all things, all things have their being through him. He is the God. There is none other, there is no other God but him. We must recognize that God is not only the creator of the universe, but we must also accept Jesus Christ as our Savior. We must accept and acknowledge that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. He says it in scripture. Old Testament points to him, New Testament, all about him. He didn't come again, as he said, I didn't come to condemn the world. God sent Jesus to save the world through him, the name by which all men are saved. So we we gotta accept that. We can't do life with somebody if ultimately we don't accept and recognize who they are. Because then you're not gonna do life with them. And we must accept that Jesus is God. He is our God, and that is he is our master as well. I don't have a problem saying that God is my master. He is my master. Believe me, I need that. I am fully aware of how much I need Jesus, how much I need my God in my life. You know, sometimes that's that can be a hard thing for us to accept. Again, it was it was hard for Eve and Adam, in essence, in the garden. So it's a hard thing to accept. And as someone, again, who has walked with God, I was born, I would say, you know, in the church. I mean, I've I've not known a life where I didn't know of God's existence, that I didn't know God. But that doesn't mean that I walked with God or that I accepted God's authority in my life. No, that I will tell you has come in like at different levels. Right now, I am living a life and in a way at a level of acceptance of God's authority and will for my life, unlike any other time of my life. The only other time I could I remember being in that would have been like almost eight years ago, or I would guess nine years ago when we left our house because I believe that that's what God had called me to do. We sold our house. There was no need to. We were in a sweet spot. Oh my God, beautiful mortgage. You know, we'd done our house over. It was the nicest house in the neighborhood at the time. We were content, we were happy. I wasn't seeking anything else. God said it's time to go. And it took me a minute, and I remember writing out all that I wanted in a new house. God asked me to, and I did. And then, you know, we sold the house, sold it at a steep discount, and I didn't want to do that either. And God said, Hey, you're gonna need me to do a much bigger favor for you. So I need you to do this. And we did. And we didn't go into another house. We didn't, we sold our home and we didn't have another house to go to. And we lived with my cousin for a few months, and then we moved into a residence in for 13 months, where money ultimately ran out. And I had the time had taken on, had been promoted at work and taken on huge responsibility, all while living in a residence in with my family, often asking myself, what in the world did I do? And daily going back to God, especially on days where, quite frankly, we didn't have any money. I mean, can you imagine living at a residence in, paying for two rooms in in Florida, South Florida? Ain't cheap, especially during prime season. At one point, I was paying like more than$200 a day. That's a lot. And there were days, I'm I'm not gonna lie to you, I cried and I called on to God. I'm like, listen, if I made a mistake, if I thought I heard something that I did not hear, Lord, I'm okay. I'm okay with making a mistake. Oh my God, what did I do? There were days where I thought, okay, there were no money on the credit cards. There's no money in the bank account. And I thought, okay, well, if you've ever lived in a hotel, by the way, they will charge you every few days and then put in there are days I was like, oh my God, they might kick us out. They might kick us out. Like, oh my God, they might kick us out. Just not just the thought of being now homeless with my family. Ultimately, it would have been my decision that got us there for no good reason because we didn't have a reason to sell our house, but the embarrassment because of the title and the position I held in my company and just me being as egotistical as I am, I would have been embarrassed. And the fact that, by the way, people, people in my family thought that I was crazy, that we were crazy, but especially me because they knew it was me, that I was crazy to have done that, that I was insane. And I'm not gonna lie to you, there were days where I thought I might have been insane to do that. And I held on to God, like I mean, for dear life, because at that point there was nothing. I mean, we tried going to. You know, rent an apartment because that would have made more sense. People like, just rent an apartment. None of it worked out. None of it worked out each time that we tried to do it because that's not what God wanted. God wanted a level of brokenness. The reason I'm, I'm, you know, I didn't really mean, I didn't plan on sharing that bit of my life with y'all yet, but apparently that's where it's going. So it was hard for me in that moment to accept God's authority in my life or to accept the fact that this loving, wonderful God who had blessed me, who had just, I mean, favored me, would put me in this position where my kids were sharing one room. That days where I thought I might be homeless, you know, why would you have me here, Lord? I'm not gonna lie to y'all. I questioned, but I kept going back to the only one I had. Who else do I have in heaven but you? There's none I desire besides you. That was my relationship with God, y'all. I couldn't have walked in that season. I couldn't be in that moment to accept God's authority over my life and what he wanted from me at that moment, which was not what I wanted for myself, which was not what I wanted for my family, and to accept it and to say that God, only your grace can get us through this. Only your grace can help me through this. And it was for his glory and for my God. So that when ultimately we came to our new home, that there wouldn't be a day from that moment that I would not know, or I wouldn't tell others that God brought me this home, that this was not me, that I would not experience. There was one thing that God told me. I didn't even know what this house was going to look like because the other house that I thought that God was sending us to, it was disappointment after disappointment. And then we started looking for homes. And I was like, God, how will I know? How will I know? My husband thought it was another house, but I was like, God, how will I know? Tell me, tell me, how will I know? And there was one thing he told me, exceedingly abundantly more than you could ever imagine or hope for. See, clarity was not a specific vision. The clarity that God sometimes gives you in the valley is a promise, a promise that He will give you more, that He will do more. And the faith that we need to have sometimes, all the time, is the faith that was credited to Abraham, which is that Abraham believed that God could do what he said he would, that even a dead womb in his in his wife, Sarah, that God could bring life from nothing. That is the God that you need to know and understand, that his authority over your life means more than whatever it is that you want to control, that his will for you is good, and that his promise for us all is exceedingly abundantly more than we could ever ask, hope, or imagine. And sometimes it doesn't look like the way that you want it to look, and sometimes it doesn't feel like the way that you want it to feel, and sometimes, quite frankly, the world will tell you that you are foolish, that the world will tell you that you are crazy, but God, but God, but you gotta know who this God is, and you have to believe who he says he is. I I've shared a whole lot more than I wanted to share, but I do believe that there's someone that needed to hear that, and maybe I needed to hear it again, because sometimes we forget. We forget what God has done or we forget who this God is, that He is the God of abundance, He is the God of exceedingly, He is the God of more, He that's who He is. Sometimes, you know, as Christ followers, we walk around sheepishly, we walk around broken, forgetting the power that is within us in the things that we have seen God do in our lives. I needed to share that with you. That I'm not somebody who just decided to do a podcast. And no matter how many times I've I tell y'all that I didn't and no desire, that I'm doing it because I'm compelled to, because God's grace saves me, saves me, because God's grace has given me exceedingly abundantly more than I could ever ask, hope, or imagine. Not only in this home that I is undeserved and more than I ever thought we would have, not only in the family that I have, not only in the marriage that I had, even in its brokenness, what God has done, not only in this career that I was blessed to have, in the walking away of a life that I loved and a career that I again was blessed to have, even in my exodus, even in my emptiness, God has done exceedingly abundantly. So when we talk about God's sovereignty and providence, you know, acceptance of God's authority and God's will, I want to try to simplify it. Because sometimes it can be a bit much, and I get that. But let's see what the Bible says about God's authority and his will in order to do what we must. I want us to think about like the person of God, the fact that he is both sovereign, meaning that he has absolute authority over everything. He has absolute authority and dominion over all things, all powers, all creation, over all nations, over everything, both seen and unseen. He is the supreme being, you know, like there's this, that's who I roll with. You know, that's who my God is. And that can help. That by the way, not can help. That helps. In making decisions or in saying that I surrender to understand that I'm rolling with the supreme being of the universe, that makes all the difference. Secondly, scripture also speaks of God's divine providence, meaning God's purposeful, sovereign guidance over all things, to ultimately work everything towards the good of those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose. See, this idea of sovereignty, we can understand, right? Because we as human beings, we're used to sovereign entities or authority figures in our lives, whether it be a king, a ruler of a nation, a president, a prime minister, whatever. We're familiar with the concept that's completely familiar to us. However, the concept of providence, on the other hand, is a more nuanced one. It's far less black and white. It's definitely a lot more complex. This idea that within God's sovereignty and human choice is God's providence, ensuring that even in our seemingly random acts born of our own will, that there's somehow this much bigger plan that's at play. So to this day, the best teacher that I think, to me at least, who's clearly explained this idea of, you know, providence and God's sovereignty by simplifying that dynamic, is Dr. Tony Evans. So I'm gonna quote him. Dr. Evans says that God's providence is the way that God arranges things to achieve his sovereign purposes, while God's sovereignty is his rulership, right? So providence is how God hooks things up. This is how he integrates things, connects things, detaches things, arranges things in order to wind up at the ultimate goal to which he is moving. So that means that God's providence is the arrangement that facilitates his sovereignty, right? Because God has given us free will. So how does God give me free will and I do these things, but yet he can still accomplish his good purposes, he can still accomplish his will. Well, let's go back to a title that I shared in God's names, which is that God is the Alpha and the Omega, meaning the beginning and the end. And scripture also tells us that God reveals the end from the beginning, meaning he knows already the end from the beginning. So, because of that, God already knows and he created us. Remember, there is nothing about you or about me or about anybody that you know that is a surprise to God. None of it is surprising to him. So, in that, he's already seen all of it. And then being God, the mastermind. By the way, it is important that I again emphasize and repeat what I said on the last episode. It is impossible for us as human beings to understand the ways of God. Okay. I'm trying to simplify something that, quite frankly, is still boggling to me. And I am not the brightest of minds. I mean, I'm fairly I can be pretty brilliant. But again, the most brilliant minds, God will confound them because he's God. So we must first begin with that. As Solomon said, the beginning of wisdom is the fear of God, the reverence, the awe of God. To know that this God, you can't, you can't, you can't package him, you can't wrap him up, you can't put him in a five-step or 10-step thing. You can't. He is beyond that. He is limitless, he is boundless. Someone who is the beginning and the end means that he is infinite. And we cannot understand that. But let us try to understand a little bit about providence and God's sovereignty. Because he is sovereign, he is ruler of everything, he knows everything, he is present, he's always, he's everywhere, he's everywhere all at once. He knows the things that we're going to do, the evil things that we do, the sins, the ways that we hurt other people, the ways that other people hurt us, the scars that they will leave, the wounds that they will open, the bleeding that will happen, the shrinking of ourselves, the suppression of memories, the violence, the robbing of innocence. He knows all of it. He knows all of it. But here's the thing: sometimes I hear people say, Well, if he's such a good God, why do so many bad things happen? We are living in a fallen world and you have free will, you have choice. You know, we can't have it both ways. Sometimes people will say, Well, if he was such a good, you don't want to believe in him. So if God was, if he was like, a lot of us would want to be. Like, I y'all couldn't have me for God. I mean, I know that I couldn't have me for God, because I would be smiting people left and right. I know that. And see, God's grace tells me that's wrong. But my flesh is like, if you, if you don't want to listen, if you don't want to do, like, be gone. I mean, that's how I can be as a person. That's sometimes my default. And if we're all being honest, that's a lot of our defaults. Just watch how some of us be driving. Oh, you cut me off, I'm gonna cut you off. I mean, come on. That's how humanity can be. But if we go back again to John 3:17, that God did not send Christ to condemn the world, but to save it. Throughout the Old Testament, that has been God's mission to save. There are a lot of us who wouldn't do that, who would pick and choose, or I'd just do away with all of y'all, including me, by the way. It would be easier to start all over again. I mean, for anybody who's ever renovated a house, sometimes, you know, them bones are not so great. And it's just much easier to demolish the whole thing and build a brand new house. But he didn't he didn't choose to do that. He didn't choose to do away with us. And thank you, God, thank you, Jesus. Thank you that you saw fit, that you're more gracious than I could ever be, that any of us could ever be, and you decided to save us. So it is that God, that sovereign God, although in his sovereignty, uses humanity's weaknesses, our own flaws, our hurts, the way we hurt others, to still within all of that, to work with our brokenness, to still accomplish his good purposes. You know, if we think about like really the great works of providence, I think of, you know, from the Bible. Yes, I think of myself, I think of others that I know, but I think of the Bible, I think of Joseph. Those of you that may be unfamiliar with the story of Joseph from Genesis. You know, of course I can think of Esther, I can think of David, but we're gonna focus on Joseph for the for the time being. But if we think about Joseph, Genesis is pretty cool. Ask God to help you get through the genealogies because I'm not gonna lie, that can be a little hard to take. But the Bible is super cool, especially when you think of it as a love story of this God who loves you so much that he has been, I mean, through generations, has really been working to get you back home to him. All right. So Joseph is his dad's favorite son. I mean, loves this boy and loves him so much. By the way, he plays favorites and makes, you know, the older brothers hate him. And so for those parents that might be listening, please do not favor your children. Other kids will see it. You know, I tell my kids all the time, I don't have a favorite. I just have favorites at different points, and all of them have been a favorite, depending on the day and depending on the time. But I don't have a favorite. So they're all my favorites, or none of you are my favorites. It all depends on the day. But, you know, this is kind of a cautionary tale of please do not play favorites because your other children, oh, you can build some serious resentment and hatred. And he gives him a coat of many colors. And Joseph has these two dreams. Essentially, the two dreams are the same: that he sees himself and he sees others bowing before him. Now, little did Joseph know at the time that this was ultimately a prophecy of what would happen. But the same prophecy, this dreams that he has, and he then feels compelled to go share with his brother and with his own dad, who, by the way, his dad rebukes him to what, what, so you know, me as your father and all your older brothers are going to bow before you, which, by the way, based on societal norms, would have been not the thing at all. But he shares this, and this ultimately becomes, seemingly at least, his undoing, because he shares this with his brothers, and that just kind of fuel this already existing resentment that they have, this jealousy born from knowing that their dad really truly favors him. So his brothers are sent out to watch the sheep or whatever. And ultimately, you know, his dad sends him to go check on the brothers to see how they're doing. So as they see Joseph approaching, kind of have this scheme to kill him. They see this, you know, these merchants coming and they decide to sell their little brother into slavery. So God obviously gives Joseph this dream that this will happen. And it's it's we know that this will be true, because of course we have the benefit of knowing the story. So he shares the dream that God has given him. What will happen? And ultimately, that starts this kind of journey into suffering for Joseph. He's sold into slavery by his brothers. And then when he gets to Egypt, he is sold to Potiphar, and then he finds success. You know, in this kind of okay, it's slavery, uh, he's away from home. He finds success with Potiphar, and he's now in charge of Potiphar's house. But listen, Joseph is this strapping hunk of a guy. You know, he's handsome. And Potiphar's wife is like, ooh, I'm attracted. She's the boss's wife. She has her designs on Joseph, and she tells him as much. And then Joseph is like, no, because Joseph's a good dude, okay? He is also God fearing. So Joseph's like, no, I'm not gonna do that. Like, my boss, my master, like, trust me, I would never do that to him. And one day, Joseph is being Joseph. He happens to be in the house, and the wife is alone with him, again, makes her advances, and Joseph rejects her and she doesn't take that well. You know, nothing like a woman's scorn. She grabs his coat and he runs out and she holds it and she decides to falsely accuse Joseph of rape. And she tells Potiphar, this slave, this Hebrew that you that you brought into our home had his way with me. So can you imagine? So now Potiphar sends Joseph to prison. Let's think about this. What's happening to this boy at this point? He is taken from the only home nation country he's ever known. He is sold into slavery, not by strangers, but by his own blood, flesh and blood, by his brothers. He now finds favor in this home and he's making the best of a lousy situation. And now, because he did the right thing, and I need y'all to remember this, he did the right thing, and now he still ends up in prison. So we're gonna pause here. We're gonna parking lot for a second. I need y'all to understand something. You can be in the middle of God's will, you can be doing God's will, and things not work out in what you think is your favor. I know this. I know this firsthand. Joseph knows this. You know who else knew this? Jesus. God's will for Jesus was to come to the earth, be rejected by his own people, to be denied and betrayed by his very own followers, people that he chose, then be crucified, be beaten, by the way, before he even got to be crucifixion, he was beaten, tortured, ridiculed for us, for us. That was God's will that he would suffer all of this for us, and that he would die. He would die, he would take on sin and be separated from God the Father for the first time ever in all of time, so that we would be saved. So, yeah, I mean, Paul, who was Saul, who became Paul, wrote two-thirds of the New Testament. God's will for him was multiple imprisonments and ultimately to be martyred for the gospel, for you and me, for our ability to be able to have Galatians and Philippians and Ephesians and Romans, which tells us that God works all things for our good. Philippians 4, six, which tells me not to be anxious about anything. But in every situation, through prayer and petition, bring my request to God with thanksgiving and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard my heart and my mind in Christ Jesus. Do you know what Paul's suffering has brought the Gentiles? Not only the Gentiles of old, but us, the church of today, the freedom, grace. So you can be in the midst of God's will and suffer. So let's finish Joseph's story. So Joseph now finds himself in prison. And I mean, the Bible doesn't tell us what would be going through his head, but I can tell you as someone who was in a residence in, I wasn't in prison, but I was wondering, what am I doing here? God, like, how did it get here? I listened to you. Was I wrong? And doubting. You know, faith doesn't mean a lack of questions or doubt. Faith means that in spite of our doubts and in spite of our unbelief and in spite of our questions, that we bring those to God and we say, I'm gonna believe that you are this God. You are who you say you are, and you can bring life from nothing. And you can take something that is dead. You can take even my own mistakes, you can take my own failures, you can take my own weakness, you can take my own transgressions, and you can make more out of them. You can make exceedingly abundantly more out of my nothing. So Joseph is in prison, and oh, here comes two new prisoners. One is Pharaoh's cupbearer, and the other one is Pharaoh's baker. So they are in prison and they have dreams, and they are trying to understand what this dream is, and they share their dreams with Joseph. And Joseph says, Oh, tells him exactly what the dreams mean, which is cupbearer, guess what? Within three days' time, you will be, you know, lifted up from this lowly place of prison that you're in, and you will be reinstated back to your former, you know, glory of being Pharaoh's cupbearer. Oh, and by the way, Baker, within three days' time, you're gonna be impaled. You're gonna be, you're gonna be dead. Turns out exactly as Joseph interpreted the dreams, it came to be. Joseph says, Hey, listen, Kapara, I need you to promise me something. I need you to remember me when you get out there. How many of you have been in that, you know, in that situation? When you've helped somebody out and you're like, hey, when you get there, remember me? Like you did a solid for them, right? You did the right thing. And then guess what happens? Yeah, you you guessed it. Nobody remembers Joseph. He sits in prison for a couple of more years, still being Joseph. Bible tells you this. God was with him. So he found, guess what? Guys, he found favor in prison. The same way I found favor while I was in the midst of that season where we didn't have a home. You know, I found, oh my God, the most awesome housekeepers, Heidi and Marie and a cat. They made our time at the residence in more than bearable. They made it home. Heidi would bring us avocados. I would be able to pray with her. I shared our story with them, and they took care of my family and they took care of us. And I will forever be grateful for that. God sent his own angels during that time for us. And Kitty, I was this black cat. I cannot tell you days like this cat was like an amazing cat. I mean, the most, and by the way, she was a she. I think she was a she. I'm not sure, I think she was a she. She acted like she owned the place. And I found favor with her. She loved me. I loved her. And somehow that cat being there was favor for me and for my kids. It just made the residents in home. And I can't tell you like how many times there would just be like favor we would find with these people. And it was because God was with us in the same way that God was with Joseph. So comes one day, all of a sudden, oh, Pharaoh, you know, he has a dream. And he calls, you know, all of his wise men, his counsel. And as he's sharing this dream and he wants someone to interpret it, Cutbearer is like, oh, light bulb. There was this guy. When you had me in prison, Pharaoh, we had dreams, and he interpreted both the Baker's dream and my dream. And exactly how he interpreted it is how it came to be. And guess what? They call Joseph up. Pharaoh tells him his predicament, the dream, and God tells him, equips him to interpret the dreams correctly, which is that Egypt is going to experience seven years of plenty, but then it will be immediately followed by seven years of famine over not just Egypt, but you know, surrounding nations, Joseph is then named as the second in command and all of Egypt only, second to Pharaoh. We look at where Joseph came from, all that he endured to prepare him for what God had for him. See, because we even saw this with David, that if David had become king when he was a young boy, when he was originally ordained as king, he wouldn't have been the king that to this day. We wouldn't be talking about David. We wouldn't have the Psalms. We wouldn't have a man after God's own heart if David hadn't gone through running for his life from Saul, if he hadn't gone through the 15 years of essentially wilderness that he did before he was put on the throne. Joseph wouldn't have been Joseph, the same Joseph who pretty much later on encounters his brothers as they come, who then, because of his position in Egypt, saves Israel. This is the precursor to the, you know, eventual exodus out of Egypt. I mean, the Bible is just amazing. You know, when his brothers are afraid because their dad has now died, and they think, okay, our dad died. Now Joseph's gonna have his way with us. Because remember, Joseph is second to Pharaoh. He is the guy in Egypt. So they think, well, he's definitely gonna avenge himself now because dad's dead. And they go and they really plead. He weeps and he tells them, don't be afraid, because what you meant for evil, God has used for good and to save many lives. That is the reason why we can accept and we should and we ought to accept God's authority over our lives and his will for us. Is that God will use what others met for evil in your life for good, for his glory and for your good, that yes, in your suffering, and yes, in your pain, you may not see it, but there is purpose. And I know that sometimes in the midst of that suffering, it doesn't make things easier. But knowing that I am suffering, knowing that I am in pain, and then there is one who knows and who sees me in my pain and who is near to the brokenhearted, who is near, who is the God of all comforts, I can rely on him. Because here's the thing: he's their alternative. People who don't believe in God suffer. People who don't believe in God have things that are thrust upon them. I don't know how they do it. I can't even imagine it. But those of us who really get to call God our God, our Father, and who surrender and who accept his grace, who accept that he loves us, even though we cannot understand or fathom that kind of love, who accept who we are to him, which is his beloved, his children, that is who he has called us, and who accept ourselves. That, listen, I am full of sin and I am broken and I am flawed, but God is still my God, and that he can work through my weaknesses and who accept his grace, that it is by God's grace, not by might, not by power, but by your spirit that I am able to do the things that I am able to do, that I am able to survive the things that I'm able to survive, that I can be transformed, that I can be fruitful, that I can be compassionate, that I can not only love you, God, but I can love myself and then I can love my neighbor, that I can extend the same grace that God has given me, and I can extend it to the one next to me. It is that way that we can accept his authority over our lives, that even though things may not work out the way that we want them to, even though we might be in a season that we don't understand, that we don't like, that quite frankly there is suffering and we don't see the end. We don't see the end. I am surrounded by uncertainty, Lord. But God, but God, but God. And preparing for this, I mean, I wrote so much, y'all, I can't even tell you, and I haven't even used a third of what I wrote, but God, right? There are a couple of things that I want to share with you that I wrote that I think is important. So I talked about the original serenity prayer. You know, it was written by Reinthold Neiber, who's who's a Protestant preacher, Protestant theologian. He wrote it in what they believe is the early 1930s. I'm gonna read it to you. Says, God, give me grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, courage to change the things which should be changed, and the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other. So if you notice something, it says the courage to change the things which should be changed. Because not all things that are happening to us, no matter how unpleasant that they might be, should be changed. Because the reality is sometimes through our brokenness, through our pain and suffering and trials, that is how we get to meet God, and that is how we get to be fortified, and that is how our faith grows. And it continues and says, living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time, accepting hardship as a pathway to peace. Living one day at a time has never been me. I was always one who lived in the future. Every day I would say, I can't wait for. I was always planning, you know, I'd finished doing one thing and then I was on to the next. In this season of my life, I've learned the wisdom and the peace and the rest that comes in living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time. See, that's where the rejoice always comes in. For me to rejoice sometimes, even in the simple things such as, you know, the roses on my patio or the chirping of the birds in my neighborhood, and just watching God's wonder. If you ever question how great and mighty and wonderful God is, just look at nature. Nature testifies of God's greatness, of his creativity, of his imagination, of just how amazing our God is. And then it continues taking as Jesus did this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it, trusting that you will make all things right if I surrender to your will, so that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with you forever in the next. Amen. So we talked about this line, taking as Jesus did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it, trusting that you will make all things right. See, that's the accepting, accepting of God's authority, accepting his will, that even in the midst of the brokenness, even in the midst of men's schemes, even in the midst of violence and in awfulness, that God will make all things right, and taking the sinful world as Jesus did. Sometimes I have to I have to personalize that. I customize it. I say, taking me as Jesus did, sinful me as Jesus did. So I say taking this person, this sinful person as Jesus did. And that helps me to take on the heart and the mind of Christ. So there's a reason I'm sharing this with you because Scott Path says this, and I hope I, you know, I said his last name. Well, if I didn't, I apologize in advance. For Naibauer, it is God's grace that determines the final course of history rather than our own actions, enabling us to accept the reality that the outcomes of our actions are often out of our hands. God is God. I've had to surrender that the outcome is up to God. My job is to be willing to do what God has called me to do, just the willingness, because I can't even do it on my own. God's grace will enable me to do it, but I just got to come and be willing to do it and be obedient. But I'm gonna tell you that I'm learning something even more in this season, that my willingness is not gonna be passive aggressive. My willingness is not gonna be resignation. My willingness is gonna be like Paul. My willingness is gonna be with enthusiasm, not because I'm enthusiastic about doing things that quite frankly I'm uncomfortable with, quite frankly, I don't like, quite frankly, I don't get because I'm not a master of it, quite frankly, because, you know, insecure about it. Mm-mm, mm-mm. No, that I am gonna be willing because there's this line that I love from a song that says, How can I respond to you in any way that's less than all I have to give? I've been reminded of that a lot, but I was my pastor reminded me of that today. How can I respond to the one who has given me everything with less than all I have to give? Who cares about me sharing parts of myself that quite frankly I don't I don't want none of y'all to know about? Who cares? Who cares about my pride taking a hit? Who cares? Who cares about the discomfort in me not doing something perfect? Who cares? Who cares about the fact that I'm not gonna have it all together? Who cares? Because Jesus loved me, y'all, because Jesus was cut, I got to be grafted, I got to be called a beloved, because Jesus loved me, I get to be one of God's children. Because Jesus loved me, I know, I know that I am loved. I don't think you understand, or maybe you do, to know, to experience love in the way that I have is worth everything. It is worth everything. I want to emphasize: God doesn't need for us to surrender onto him, his own power. He already has it, he's already sovereign. Meaning, our surrendering to God or not doesn't add nor does it take away from who God is, who he has been and who he will always be. God is God. Why then surrender to God? Because the benefit is to us, because that's where we find rest, because that's where we find real power, because that's where we find where we belong, because that is home. This everyday God for your everyday means that again, I need you to look at the artwork. We are children and we surrender and we hold the hand of who holds us together and who is leading us on this journey of life, who enables us to accomplish exceedingly abundantly more than we could ever ask, hope, or imagine. So thank you again for joining me on this incredibly lengthy episode, which I didn't think was going to be this long, but we will close out in prayer. Lord, thank you. Thank you for being the captain of our souls. Thank you for being the loving God that you are. Thank you for just being awesome. Thank you for being indescribable. Thank you for being the lover of our souls. Thank you, Lord, for gracing us with your grace. Thank you for loving us the way that you do. Father God, I pray for every single person who is listening, every person who has listened, and everyone who will ever listen. Father, I pray that they would all be, just as I am reminded, that we would all be reminded that we are not alone, that we have not been left to our own devices to just roam and wander aimlessly, but that your grace calls us to ask, to seek, and to knock with the promise that you will be found. And in turn, that we will be found. Father God, I thank you for the work that you are doing, for the lives that you are touching, for the hearts that you are transforming, for the hearts of stone, the hardened hearts, Lord, that you are giving hearts of flesh, for the tenderness of your mercies, Lord, for your favor that you are pouring out on all of us. Father God, I thank you for the power of prayer, that it is the power of prayer that has got me here, not even my own prayers, but that of my mother's and everyone else that you have orchestrated to pray for me and to pray on my behalf. So, Lord God, it is with this, Lord, that I ask that you would walk with us, Lord, the remainder of this week, that you would be with us, that we would feel your presence, oh Lord. And it is in your holy and matchless name, Jesus, we pray. Amen. And I look forward to seeing you guys again. And I will be publishing some prayers as promised this week for Thursday, which will be the National Day of Prayer. Have a blessed one.