By Thomas Denegre (9/25/2019)
There are dark seasons in our
lives that just don’t seem go away. The
misery, the disappointments, the despair lingers on with no relief. You wonder if it will ever end. In the story
of Joseph (Book of Genesis) we hear the story of a young man’s dark journey. He
was betrayed by his brothers, sold into slavery, and placed into prison based
on false charges. Through this long
ordeal Joseph maintained his faith, obedience, and integrity with God to become
the number two leader in Egypt, but more importantly he saved and prospered the
nation of Israel.
As a former U.S. Navy Pilot,
Commander, and business owner I too can share the long journey of
darkness. As a successful publisher of
print magazines, I found myself changing careers when the internet killed the
business. For ten long years I struggled
to changed careers, of which, five years being unemployed and losing a
marriage. I went from a family of four
to just myself.
Fear was my enemy and so was
the accuser who called me defeated and loser.
No one came to my aid. Friends and
family didn’t help. The wife left me.
Church friends stayed away. I remembered
sharing my blight with 30 Christian men and not one prayed for me nor assisted
me. One Christian man didn’t want to be
near me because he thought I was contagious. Talk about feeling alone,
abandoned, unloved, and uncared for. I was lonely and felt defeated, but like
Joseph, God gave me a better life. So, I
like to share the lessons l learned from Joseph and from Our Father.
LESSON ONE: Jesus said, “But if you live in life-union with
me and if my words live powerfully within you—then you can ask whatever you
desire, and it will be done.” (John 15:7 TPT)
Like Joseph, God’s favor was
upon me. I consumed the Word of God, so it became part of my heart, mind, and
spirit. I ignored fear and instead encountered
Jesus. I went from an intellectual
concept of Jesus, to knowing his true presence, kindness, mercy, generosity,
and love. He told me, “I
love you more than my life.” By being in life union with Jesus and
having his words living powerfully within me, I easily discerned the fears of
this world against the life-giving words of Jesus. While I still encountered more trials, I knew
they were speed bumps. There was someone
who cared for me. I had hope.
LESSON TWO: “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the
Most-High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He
is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Psalm 91:1-2
My trust was in the Lord and
no one else. Clearly everything failed
in my life; my money, my business, my friends, my family, my church, but not my
God. I memorized and owned Psalm 91. All
the time I spent intimate moments with Jesus in the secret place of the
Most-High. Here I learned my identity
was not shaped by this world, but by my Father, because I believed and
confessed that Jesus was my Lord, I became a son of our Father God. While the
enemy called me loser, my father called me saint, beautiful, warrior, son,
beloved, most favored, lovely, and the delight of my eyes. My value, worth,
purpose, and dignity came from God and God alone. How blessed is His name! My father named me
Fearless, Courageous, and Lover. How blessed I became.
LESSON THREE: Then the word of
the Lord came to Elijah: “Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith
Ravine, east of the Jordan. You will drink from the brook, and I have directed
the ravens to supply you with food there.” 1 Kings 17:2-4
There comes a time when
salvation will not come where we are standing, but through a series of guided
movements. By living in life union with
Jesus, it becomes easier to know and obey his word. God directed Elijah to move
to another location to be feed by the ravens.
Again, he was directed by God to live with a widow on a meager portion
of oil and flour. Just enough food for
the day and nothing more; for a whole year! This is what Jesus meant when he
taught us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11).
Much like American football, I
was like the receiver who was directed by the quarterback to catch the ball in
new locations. Sometimes there were collisions, dropped balls, setbacks, and
penalties. Regardless, I knew my God had
a perfect place for me. Every day was a
new beginning and the Lord gave me enough bread (encouragement, love, affirmation,
favor, hope, strength) for the day to persist. After several embarrassing
failures, I found my new career, my new wife, and most importantly, my enriched
life with God.
Whether we are in our darkest
days or even our best, I learned that living in life union with Jesus and
having his words living powerfully within me, gave me the trust, wisdom,
courage, fortitude, knowledge, identity, and favor to live a prosperous
life. It is so true when Jesus said, “the
thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come
that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” (John
10:10)
In summary here are the three
lessons to take hold of for an abundant life in Jesus.
- We are called to live in life union with Jesus and have his words live powerfully within our minds and heart.
- Trust and obey the Lord with all humility. Your identity with the Lord will strengthen you.
- Faith takes action and courage. God often calls you to move out of your comfort zone to receive your salvation. Take courage and go!
