They Said I am Very Poor

"THEY SAID I AM SO POOR"
They said, "I am so Poor, so Poor I can't lives in a Two Bedrooms flat apartment, so Poor. Yes! I am so Poor but enjoying my Hands, Legs and Body. Ibrahim Gbadamosi Babangida is so rich, so rich, living in 50Bedrooms ambassador house, he has EVERYTHING, he was well respected among all his counterparts, he has a wrists watch companies in Switzerland, he was so rich, but Paralyzed, his hands are useless, his legs are useless, his body is too heavy for him to carrying it up and down just like me. I am so Poor but enjoying my bones and body.... I am so Poor but Happy and take life easy, I do not have anything but I have Joy.
They said, "I am so Poor, so Poor, Poverty is smelling all over me, I am so Poor, I couldn't buy a Bicycle. Yes! I am so Poor, so Poor, I couldn't afford to buy a Bicycle but your Country President, Muhammad Buhari, is so rich, so rich, he has the economy, he has the treasury of the country in his hands, the whole central bank monies is in his hands. The whole world knows him, he ate and took photographs with the world leaders, he could afford private jets, he has friends around him, when he cough, ten thousand people can attend to him, but has no health, he couldn't move, neither feed his mouth by himself anymore, his body is too weak for him to control but I am so Poor, so Poor, I don't even have a Bicycle, neither friends or anyone to talk to but I have a good health, no diabetes, no mouth smelling, no body odour, no wobbling legs, no blind eyes, no kidney problem, no tuberculosis, no asthma, no sickness, no no no, no nothing, I am so Poor but BLESSED with good health.
You have cars, jeeps, houses, lovely families, good job, friends and loved-ones around you, YES! YES!! Yes!!! You have EVERYTHING. You are living Paradise on the EARTH, eating on a golden table, sleeping on a waterbed, living in a mansion full of air conditioners, using technology toilet, you have EVERYTHING, but let me tell you, you are just PRIVILEGED.
You could be that BEGGAR on your street.
You could be that roadside pure water sellers.
You could be that mad man eating from the dustbin.
You could be that boy from a hopeless background.
You could be that errand girl roaming the streets without slippers.
You could be that driver.
You could be that cleaner.
You could be that dirty girl you are calling USELESS girl.
Time and Opportunities define us.
Be humble.
Whatever you are today is a privilege.
You could be me.
I could have be you.
God knows EVERYTHING.
Chief MKO Abiola was so rich yesterday, he could afford to buy the world yesterday, but today, he is dead and all his memory and comfort has totally gone. He has been buried and forgotten.
Be humble and STOP looking down on People.
I am so Poor, so Poor, so Poor, there is no money to buy food, I have no foods, I eat what I see not what I like, so I am so slim and thin because I have no food, I am so Poor, but you are so rich, you have plenty food to eat and WASTE, you are so rich, you have all manners of foods and meats in your freezers, you are so rich, so you are so fat, so fat, so big and full.
When I die, my Body shall producing six thousand maggots and worms because I am so slim and thin, so tiny because I have no food but when you die, your Body shall producing ten millions of maggots and worms because you are so big, so fat, so full because you have EVERYTHING! EVERYTHING!! EVERYTHING!!! for yourself.
God is a good organizer, He organized EVERYTHING very well.
The Poor man will die one day AND the rich also will die one day.
Be humble.
Be generous.
This world does not belong to you.
One day.... You will die and leave EVERYTHING to the hands of the unknown.

THE BRIDGE IS OUT

A preacher was driving home one night with his wife and two daughters in the car. It was raining and dark and because of the intensity of the rain he could hardly see past his headlights. On the way he had to drive over a huge bridge. There were signs posted all along the bridge that said "DO NOT PICK HITCH-HIKERS." There was an institute for the criminally insane near the base of the bridge and sometimes people would escape from it and try to hitch a ride.
On this particular night, as he turned his car on to the bridge, he had to drive exceptionally slow because he could hardly see the road. Somewhere near the top of the bridge a man suddenly appeared in the headlights. He was soaked, standing in the middle of the road with his shirt off frantically waving it over his head and screaming.
This preacher's wife began to say, "Oh please don't stop, try to drive around him!" But the man was unavoidable and there was nowhere for the car to go to miss him. So he had to stop the car and as soon as he did, the man slapped his hand down on the hood of the car and was screaming at the top of his lungs.
The preacher looked over at his wife and said to lock the door after him and not to unlock it until he returned. His family was now crying and pleading with him not to get out of the car. He opened the door and stepped outside...He was immediately soaked from the rain. As he approached the front of the car to grab the man, all of a sudden he could make out what the man was screaming, "THE BRIDGE IS OUT! THE BRIDGE IS OUT! A BUS LOAD OF KIDS JUST WENT OVER!" As these words registered in the pastor's mind, he looked back in the car at his wife and two daughters. He wrapped his arm around the man and wept in gratitude. The preacher stood there with the man for the next half-hour in the middle of the road, waving his jacket above his head screaming."THE BRIDGE IS OUT! THE BRIDGE IS OUT!"
For a lost and a dying world,
"THE BRIDGE IS OUT!"
For a people heading to a Christless Eternity, 
"THE BRIDGE IS OUT!"
where are the men and the women who will stand in the middle of the road and forbid people to perish ?
HELL HAS OPENED IT'S MOUTH WIDE AND MANY ARE SPEEDING INTO IT
Where are those who will stand in the gap, on the streets, the highways and the byways to forbid multitudes with the Gospel of JESUS CHRIST from going to such a horrible place ?
SPREAD THE GOSPEL
Lovely Thoughts For Lovely
People Just Like You.
Always Remember
JESUS Loves You . .....
Share this message to all your friends, both Saved and unsaved 
THE BRIDGE IS OUT !
GOD BLESS YOU !
By Tobi Sunday

Is Jesus God?

Have you ever met a man who is the center of attention wherever he goes? Some mysterious, indefinable characteristic sets him apart from all other men. Well, that’s the way it was two thousand years ago with Jesus Christ. But it wasn’t merely Jesus’ personality that captivated those who heard him. Those who witnessed his words and life tell us that something about Jesus of Nazareth was different from all other men.

Jesus’ only credentials were himself. He never wrote a book, commanded an army, held a political office, or owned property. He mostly traveled within a hundred miles of his village, attracting crowds who were amazed at his provocative words and stunning deeds.

Yet Jesus’ greatness was obvious to all those who saw and heard him. And while most great people eventually fade into history books, Jesus is still the focus of thousands of books and unparalleled media controversy. And much of that controversy revolves around the radical claims Jesus made about himself—claims that astounded both his followers and his adversaries.

It was primarily Jesus’ unique claims that caused him to be viewed as a threat by both the Roman authorities and the Jewish hierarchy. Although he was an outsider with no credentials or political powerbase, within three years, Jesus changed the world for the next 20 centuries. Other moral and religious leaders have left an impact—but nothing like that unknown carpenter’s son from Nazareth.

What was it about Jesus Christ that made the difference? Was he merely a great man, or something more?

These questions get to the heart of who Jesus really was. Some believe he was merely a great moral teacher; others believe he was simply the leader of the world’s greatest religion. But many believe something far more. Christians believe that God has actually visited us in human form. And they believe the evidence backs that up.

After carefully examining Jesus’ life and words, former Cambridge professor and skeptic, C. S. Lewis, came to a startling conclusion about him that altered the course of his life. So who is the real Jesus? Many will answer that Jesus was a great moral teacher. As we take a deeper look at the world’s most controversial person, we begin by asking: could Jesus have been merely a great moral teacher?

Great Moral Teacher?

Even those from other religions acknowledge that Jesus was a great moral teacher. Indian leader, Mahatma Gandhi, spoke highly of Jesus’ righteous life and profound words.[1] Likewise, Jewish scholar Joseph Klausner wrote, “It is universally admitted … that Christ taught the purest and sublimest ethics … which throws the moral precepts and maxims of the wisest men of antiquity far into the shade.”[2]

Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount has been called the most superlative teaching of human ethics ever uttered by an individual. In fact, much of what we know today as “equal rights” actually is the result of Jesus’ teaching. Historian Will Durant, a non-Christian, said of Jesus that “he lived and struggled unremittingly for ‘equal rights'; in modern times he would have been sent to Siberia. ‘He that is greatest among you, let him be your servant’—this is the inversion of all political wisdom, of all sanity.”[3]

Many, like Gandhi, have tried to separate Jesus’ teaching on ethics from his claims about himself, believing that he was simply a great man who taught lofty moral principles. This was the approach of one of America’s Founding Fathers, President Thomas Jefferson, who cut and pasted a copy of the New Testament, removing sections he thought referred to Jesus’ deity, while leaving in other passages regarding Jesus’ ethical and moral teaching.[4] Jefferson carried around his cut and pasted New Testament with him, revering Jesus as perhaps the greatest moral teacher of all time.

In fact, Jefferson’s memorable words in the Declaration of Independence were rooted in Jesus’ teaching that each person is of immense and equal importance to God, regardless of sex, race, or social status. The famous document sets forth, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights …”

But one thing Jefferson didn’t answer: If Jesus falsely claimed to be God he couldn’t have been a good moral teacher. But did Jesus really claim deity? Before we look at what Jesus claimed, we need to examine the possibility that he was simply a great religious leader?

What is Jesus Christ Doing Now?

That’s a good question. What would your answer be? If you’re not sure, we hope this brief article helps you understand the moment-by-moment involvement of your living Lord Jesus in your life to the end that you grasp the reality of his presence and are energized by it.

Sad to say, too many Christians have never been taught what Jesus Christ is doing today, and every day since he became the “Lord” and the “Head” of the Church, which is made up of the members of his Body. We all know that he died for us, was raised from the dead, ascended to heaven and is now “seated” at God’s right hand. But does that mean he is “just chillin’”? No way. He is even busier than he was when he lived on the earth, and Mark 5, for example, is a great chapter to illustrate what kind of days he had then. Whew!

Jesus studied the Hebrew Scriptures and understood all the prophecies about his life, death, resurrection, ascension, and future kingship of the world. He fulfilled all those prophecies relevant to his first coming on the earth by being obedient all the way to his torturous death on the cross. Because of his obedience to his God and Father, Jesus was highly exalted as Lord of Heaven and Earth, and seated at God’s right hand (Phil. 2:8-11).

In biblical times, the right hand was the hand of blessing, authority, and power, as opposed to the left, which was the hand of cursing. This is where we get our common phrase, “right hand man.” A right hand man does not sit around, but is very vigorous in carrying out the orders of the one he serves. This relationship is typified in the Old Testament account of Joseph and the Egyptian Pharaoh.

Because of what Joseph did to save the people of Egypt, the Pharaoh gave him all authority in the land of Egypt. As Joseph said, “God has made me lord of all Egypt” (Gen. 45:9). Pharaoh gave Joseph his signet ring (which symbolized his all-encompassing power and authority in Egypt) and had him ride in a chariot as his Second-in-Command. Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, but without your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt” (Gen. 41:44). Pharaoh was still Pharaoh, but he had given all authority to Joseph and fully equipped him with the power to carry out his work, thus making Joseph functionally equal with him.

God has done the same thing with Jesus Christ. He gave Jesus “all authority in heaven and on earth” (Matt. 28:18), and made him “Lord” (Acts 2:36). God is still God, but Jesus is now functionally equal with Him, and that was God’s idea. Jesus now has everything he needs in order to carry out his function as second-in-command, God’s “go-to-guy” and right hand man.

So what is the Lord Jesus Christ doing now? Let’s take a look. Where? Not in Peoplemagazine, or even Sports Illustrated. We want to know what the Word of God says.

Jesus Christ is now the Head of the Church.
(20) Which he [God] exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,
(21) far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.
(22) And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church,
(23) which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Jesus Christ is building his Church by pouring out the gift of holy spirit to all those who believe.
(46) Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,
(47) praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
(32) God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact.
(33) Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.
Jesus Christ is interceding for us as our mediator.
(24) but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood.
(25) Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede [entugchano] for them.
Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died– more than that, who was raised to life— is at the right hand of God and is also interceding [entugchano] for us.
Jesus Christ hears our prayers and responds to us.
(23) So they proposed two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias.
(24) Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen
(25) to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.”
(26) Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.
(59) While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
(60) Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
(8) Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it [the “thorn in his flesh”—those who were persecuting him] away from me.
(9) But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
Jesus Christ is giving grace to all believers.
But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.
Jesus Christ is strengthening and protecting his people.
But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.
I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
Jesus Christ is giving revelation to the members of his Body.
(11) I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up.
(12) I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ is giving ministries to Christians.
(11) It was he (Jesus) who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
(12) to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up
(13) until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
(4) Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function,
(5) so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
(6) We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.
(7) If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach;
(8) if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
Jesus Christ is the Commander of the angels.
(4) So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.
(5) For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father”? Or again, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son”?
(6) God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you
(7) and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.
Jesus Christ is eagerly anticipating raising all dead Christians and giving them and all living Christians new bodies when we meet him in the air.
(20) But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,
(21) who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
(15) According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
(16) For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
(17) After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
(18) Therefore encourage each other with these words.

http://www.biblicalunitarian.com/articles/faq/what-is-jesus-christ-doing-now-2

Can You Trust God With the Details of Your Life?

Do all things really work together for good? Genesis 50:20  Consider the following:

*A baby is born with serious birth defects. The doctors tell the distraught parents she won’t live more than a few hours. When the parents take the baby home, the doctors tell them not to bring her back because there is nothing they can do. A few months later she dies.

*In the Central African Republic, roving gangs of Muslims with machetes and guns have killed hundreds of fleeing Christians. “They are slaughtering us like chickens,” one man said.

*Feeling the call of God, a man and his wife and their young son move to Benghazi, Libya so he can teach in the International School where he is greatly beloved by his students. He sends his wife and young son home to the US while he stays behind to be with the students through their midterm exams. One day while he is out jogging near his home, some men in a black vehicle pull up and start shooting. They drive away, leaving his dead body on the street. He was only 33 years old.

*A young man with a heart for God starts seminary, dreaming of the day when he can serve the Lord. Three months before graduation, his wife announces she is leaving him. “I don’t want to be a pastor’s wife.” She divorces him and walks out of his life.

*A police officer stops a man known to be a drug dealer. It happens on a busy downtown street and a crowd gathers to watch the unfolding drama. There is a struggle and somehow the drug dealer grabs the officer’s gun. Someone in the crowd yells, "Shoot him, man.” He does, at point-blank range, in the face.  The officer was in his early twenties.

*A youth group returns from a week of summer camp. When they are only one mile from home, the bus crashes as it exits the freeway, hitting a concrete abutment and rolling over. Dozens are injured. The youth pastor, his wife, and their unborn baby are killed in the crash along with one of the adult counselors, a mother of five children.

These stories are all true. I am sure you could add many others to the list.

Of all the questions that trouble the hearts of God’s people, none is the greater than the question Why? No matter how many sermons we hear or how many Bible verses we memorize, the question returns again and again.

Why did this happen?

Why did this happen?

Lord, why didn’t you answer our prayers?

When we see the pain of a fallen world, we wonder, “Where is God?” Over the centuries the greatest minds have wrestled with the problem of pain and suffering and still the questions come:

Why me?

Why now?

Why this?

A few months ago when we started our series on Joseph, I said that we were going to ask and answer nine crucial questions. These are fundamental questions that we all have to answer sooner or later. Some of them we will face many times. Here are the first eight questions:

Do you know why you were born?

Do you know who you are?

Are you willing to wait for God?

How big is your God?

Are you ready to face your past?

Do you want to be set free?

Are you satisfied with God?

How will you be remembered?

Here is the ninth and final question:

Can you trust God with the details of your life?

We all have to answer these nine questions

As we have journeyed through Joseph’s story, I have been impressed over and over again that the real hero of Joseph’s story is not Joseph. It’s God. Joseph’s life illustrates perhaps better than any other story in the Bible a profound truth:

“For we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28 NKJV).

In many ways Joseph’s whole life is the Old Testament illustration of this profound New Testament truth. Deep in our hearts we know that Romans 8:28 must be true.

Still the questions hang in the air. We wonder why things happen the way they do, why a teacher in Libya is shot and killed, why the bus didn’t make it to the church, why the baby was born with such disabilities.

The real hero is God!

Why do these things happen? Why do they happen to good, decent people? Why do they happen to people who love the Lord?

Providence Defined

There is a doctrine that helps us understand. If it does not answer every question, at least it provides the only possible basis for understanding. It is the doctrine of the providence of God. In English the word “providence” has two parts. It’s pro and video put together, literally meaning “to see before.” Though the word itself is not found in most modern translations of the Bible, the concept is certainly biblical. It refers to “God’s gracious oversight of the universe.” Every one of those words is important. God’s providence is one aspect of his grace. Oversight means that he directs the course of affairs. The word universe tells us that God not only knows the big picture, he also concerns himself with the tiniest details.

Here are five statements that unfold the meaning of God’s providence in more detail:

He upholds all things.

He governs all events.

He directs everything to its appointed end.

He does this all the time and in every circumstance.

He does it always for His own glory.

God doessn’t roll dice

The doctrine of God’s Providence teaches us several important truths: First, God cares about the tiniest details of life. Nothing escapes his notice for he is concerned about the small as well as the big. In fact, with God there is no big or small. He knows when a sparrow falls and he numbers the hairs on your head. He keeps track of the stars in the skies and the rivers that flow to the oceans. He sets the day of your birth, the day of your death, and he ordains everything that comes to pass in between. Second, he uses everything and wastes nothing. There are no accidents with God, only incidents. This includes events that seem to us to be senseless tragedies. Third, God’s ultimate purpose is to shape His children into the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29). He often uses difficult moments and human tragedies to accomplish that purpose.

Many verses in the Bible teach these truths, including Acts 17:28 (“in him we live and move and have our being”), Colossians 1:17 (“in him all things hold together”), Hebrews 1:3 (“He upholds the universe by the word of his power”), Proverbs 16:9 (“The heart of man plans his way but the Lord establishes his steps”), and especially Psalm 115:3, (“Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases”).

Providence is the "invisible hand” of God

The doctrine of God’s providence is really a combination of four other attributes:

Sovereignty—He is in control

Predestination—He is in charge of how everything turns out

Wisdom—He makes no mistakes

Goodness—He has our best interests at heart

In the words of R.C. Sproul, “God doesn’t roll dice.” Nothing happens by chance. Ever.

Think of providence as “the invisible hand” of God moving through the circumstances of life.

Providence Illustrated

With that as background, we turn to consider the story of Joseph one final time. It goes something like this. Because Joseph was the favored son of his father Jacob, he was the object of envy by his many brothers. The day came when his brothers conspired to sell him to the Midianites who happened to be passing by. They splashed his “coat of many colors” with the blood of a goat in order to make it appear that he had been killed by a wild animal. They showed the coat to Jacob, who believed their lie and sorrowfully concluded that Joseph was dead.

Meanwhile Joseph was taken to Egypt by the Midianites. There he was sold again, this time to Potiphar, who was head of Pharaoh’s security force. Genesis 39 tells us that Joseph gained favor with Potiphar because the Lord was with him to bless him. Eventually Potiphar put Joseph in charge of his entire household. This was a high honor for a Hebrew slave. Because he was competent, confident, and good-looking, Potiphar’s wife approached him about having a sexual affair. Joseph refused, pointing out that he could not betray Potiphar and he would not sin against God. The woman persisted, to the point that one day when everyone else was gone, she attempted to pull him down on her bed. Joseph fled from the scene, leaving his cloak behind. Humiliated by his refusal, she accused him of rape. It was a false charge, of course, but Potiphar believed his wife and had Joseph thrown in prison.

In prison Joseph prospered once again and gained the respect of his fellow prisoners and of the guards. This happened because the Lord was with him to bless him. Eventually the cupbearer and the baker were thrown in the same prison and Joseph befriended them. One night they both had dreams they could not interpret. But Joseph was able to interpret them with the Lord’s help. The dreams came true exactly as Joseph had predicted—the baker was hung but the cupbearer was released. Joseph asked him to remember him after he was out, but he didn’t.

A Hebrew slave became Egypt’s Prime Minister!

Two years passed and Pharaoh had a dream that he could not interpret. That’s when the cupbearer remembered Joseph’s amazing ability and mentioned it to Pharaoh who ordered Joseph brought before him. Joseph correctly interpreted his dream and was rewarded by Pharaoh, who made him the Prime Minister of Egypt. Not bad for a Hebrew slave who had been sold into slavery by his brothers!

Eventually a famine settled on the Near East. Jacob told his sons to go to Egypt and buy some grain. They go and in the process meet Joseph—only they don’t know it’s Joseph. This happens twice. Then Joseph reveals his true identity. They are shocked and then scared because they betrayed him and now he is in a position to get even. But Joseph doesn’t do that. In fact, he stuns them with these words:

And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest.  And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt (Genesis 45:5-8).

But that’s not the end of the story. The brothers go back to Canaan and tell their aged father that Joseph is still alive. He can’t believe it, but eventually they convince him to come to Egypt with them. He makes the trip and is reunited with the son he had given up for dead many years ago. Then he meets the Pharaoh who offers to let Joseph’s family settle in Egypt for as long as they like. The family settles in Egypt and lives in peace there for many years. Finally Jacob dies at the age of 147. Now it’s just Joseph and his brothers. They fear that with Jacob’s death Joseph will be free to take revenge on them. So they tell Joseph, “Oh, by the way, before Dad died he told us to tell you to treat us kindly.” It sounds like just one more deception to cover their guilt.

Joseph saw God everywhere!

Listen to Joseph’s response. These are the words of a man who believes in the providence of God.

But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today” (Genesis 50:19-20).

How could Joseph talk like that after all that happened to him? The answer is simple:

He saw God everywhere!

Look how Joseph says it: “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.”  Both sides of that statement are true. “You meant evil against me”—what the bothers had done was indeed evil and Joseph doesn’t sugarcoat the truth. They are 100% responsible for their sin. “God meant it for good”—this doesn’t mean that evil isn’t evil. It just means that God is able to take the evil actions of sinful men and use them to accomplish his plans. Joseph saw the “invisible hand” of God at work in his life. He understood that behind his conniving brothers stood the Lord God who had orchestrated the entire affair in order to get him to just the right place at just the right moment in order to save his whole family.

Providence Applied

Joseph is saying, “Though your motives were bad, God’s motives were good.” Though it took years and years for God’s purposes to be clear, in the end Joseph saw the hand of God behind everything that had happened to him.

Think about the implications of that statement:

At just the right moment his brothers threw him into the cistern.

At just the right moment the Midianites came along.

At just the right moment he was sold to Potiphar.

At just the right moment Potiphar’s wife falsely accused him.

At just the right moment he met the baker and the cup bearer.

At just the right moment the cup-bearer remembered Joseph.

At just the right moment Pharaoh called for him.

At just the right moment he was promoted to Prime Minister.

At just the right moment Jacob sent his sons to Egypt.

At just the right moment the brothers met Joseph.

At just the right moment Jacob’s family moved to Egypt.

At just the right moment Pharaoh offered them the land of Goshen.

At just the right moment they settled there and prospered.

All of this happened at “just the right moment” and in “just the right way” so that the right people would be in the right place so that in the end everything would come out the way God had ordained in the beginning. God never violated anyone’s free will, yet everything happened as he had planned. That’s the providence of God in action.

At just the right moment Joseph was thrown into prison

When Charles Spurgeon preached about Joseph’s life, he repeated the details at great length. Then he pointed out that everything in Joseph’s life had to happen in a particular way. He spoke of the chain of circumstances that led Joseph from the pit to the palace at just the right time. Then he concluded that “God is to be seen in small things.” He also used a wonderful expression that I find personally encouraging. He spoke of the “minutiae of providence.” If we look with the eyes of faith, we can see God’s fingerprints everywhere.

I began this sermon by saying that the final question from Joseph’s life is,

“Can you trust God with the details of your life?”

But that’s not quite the right question. We need to change one word.

God is to be seen in small things

Not “Can you?” but “Will you?”

“Will you trust God with the details of your life?”

There’s another way to say this. Either you run the universe or he does. A lot of people try to run the universe, but it never works out very well. Or you can bow before the Lord and say, “You are in charge. I am not. I will trust you with every detail of my life.”

He Maketh No Mistake

In the 1920s a young man named A. M. Overton became the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Baldwyn, Mississippi. I happen to know a little about Baldwyn because we lived for seven years in nearby Tupelo. Baldwyn is a small community in north Mississippi on the road between Tupelo and Corinth. Back in the 1920s Baldwyn was just a tiny place. In 1932 Mrs. Overton was pregnant with their fourth child, but when it came time for delivery there were complications and both she and the baby died. During the funeral, the preacher officiating the service noticed Pastor Overton writing something on a piece of paper. After the service the minister asked him about it, and he handed him the paper with a poem he had just written. The poem was unknown for many years until someone set it to music. It eventually went around the world. The poem is called “He Maketh No Mistake.”

My Father’s way may twist and turn

My heart may throb and ache,

But in my soul I’m glad to know,

He maketh no mistake.

My cherished plans may go astray,

My hopes may fade away,

But still I’ll trust my Lord to lead,

For He doth know the way.

Tho’ night be dark and it may seem

That day will never break,

I’ll pin my faith, my all, in Him,

He maketh no mistake.

There’s so much now I cannot see,

My eyesight’s far too dim,

But come what may,

I’ll simply trust and leave it all to Him.

For by and by the mist will lift,

And plain it all He’ll make,

Through all the way, tho’ dark to me,

He made not one mistake.

That will be the testimony of every child of God. When we finally get to heaven, we’ll look back over the pathway of life and see that through all the twists and turns and seeming detours that he was with us all the way.

Until that morning comes and the sunlight of God’s presence fills our faces, we move on through the twilight still believing that though life is hard, God is good. In the end we will say with all the children of God as we look back on our earthly pilgrimage, “He made not one mistake.”

Fear not!

We have a great God!

Stay tuned. There is more to come, but we will have to wait until we get to heaven. Joseph will tell us the rest of the story in his own words.