New Paths for New Directions!

I found it interesting that a famous prophetic person said that he feels lonely. He has family and is on a church team. He founded a prophetic training school and found his place on earth where he belongs. His statement is causing me to reevaluate when we feel lonely or feel we have no family. Maybe these feeling are being used by God to keep us focused on a heavenly connection that will be fulfilled when we transition to the resurrected life. Maybe these deep longings in us are not that we are disconnected from others but God drawing us closer. Could it be the Holy Spirit calling card to come away and connect deeper with God?

You see there were times that Jesus pulled away from his apostles and the crowds to spend time with God. Could the restlessness and discontentment be the nudging of Holy Spirit to draw away and refocus on God’s kingdom goals? When God is shifting us to new levels or new directions, it can be lonely and confusing.

Right now, many of us seem to be going in a different direction than those we have followed for years. This can feel like we are losing our connections, but this could be God shifting us to a different perspective. I am not saying I am right and they are wrong. Just like a diamond has many different sides, I think Holy Spirit is revealing different perspectives to get us ready for the influx of people who will be coming to Jesus. In this tsunami of people coming into God’s kingdom, God will need the many faceted gifts to build a strong net that can protect people and produce disciples.

Joseph – Prideful or Naive?

There is a teaching is going around saying the Joseph was prideful and short sided when he used the famine in Egypt to enslave the Egyptians. It caused the Egyptians to resent the Hebrews.  I can see that perspective, but I see a different view of Joseph’s life.

I see Jospeh as innocent, protected and naïve. Because he didn’t have pride or jealousy in his heart, he thought everyone would be excited about his dreams. Being protected and favored by his father, placed him in a protected bubble that caused him not to see his brothers’ jealousy toward him. Why do I see it this way? When I was married, my Christian husband would cheat at a dice game we were playing with friends. I wondered for a year why I couldn’t win any of these games. Then one day, my sister told me that my husband and our friend were cheating. Because that would never occur to me to cheat, I couldn’t see what was going on. Being naïve can cause blind spots in your view of life.

Joseph wasn’t perfect. He reported to his father, Jacob, a bad report about his brothers. This could be seen as loyalty and protection for his father or he was a snitch. Joseph didn’t fight with his brothers who threw him in a pit or when they sold him as a slave. He didn’t try to run away when he was a house slave and didn’t take his master’s wife when offered this enticement. None of these reactions reveal a heart of pride. Years later when he had the chance to pay his brothers back for the betrayal instead in forgave them and saw God’s plan of protection on his family. Notice he did test his brothers about how they were treating Joseph’s brother, Benjamin. He was checking his brothers’ hearts.

Was Joseph’s Strategy Short Sighted or Protective?

Jospeh was thrown in prison because his mistress lied about him to his master, Potiphar. This should have caused the death of Joseph, but God’s mercy was on his life, and he was sent to the king’s prison. Even in the king’s prison, Joseph had favor and was put in charge of the other prisoners.

When two prisoners had dreams, Joseph had the gift to interpret dreams. In return he asked to be mentioned to Pharaoh to be released from prison. When the baker and cupbearer’s dreams happened, the cupbearer forgot to mention Joseph to the Pharaoh. But this was all in God’s plan. Two years later, Pharaoh had a dream and the cupbearer remembered Jospeh’s gift to interpret dreams. Joseph not only had the interpretation but the strategy on how to act on the dream.

Some people are teaching that Joseph’s strategy was short sighted and caused the Egyptians to resent the Hebrews. But God spoke to Abram about his descendant’s future. Genesis 15:13-14 NIV says, “Then the Lord said to him, ‘Know for certain that for four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved and mistreated there. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions.’” Joseph’s strategy allowed the Hebrews to grow into a great nation so they could take the promise land.

The Wrap Up!

Why am I pointing out how people see things differently? We need to be able to step out beyond are old structures when God provides a different view. That does not mean we don’t honor those we follow but we need the freedom to follow God’s leading when our perspective is different. We all have the ability to walk with God and hear His voice with the help of the Holy Spirit. We may be called to change direction but that doesn’t mean the old pathway is bad or wrong. These times can be confusing and lonely because we are going a different direction than others who are in our lives. God is building a net that requires diverse ways of accomplishing His will. We need to be careful to follow God’s leading for our lives.

There are times and season when we have to get out of the boat and walk on the water when Jesus speaks to us. God is allowing a shaking in the Body of Christ and the world. He is refining us as gold which reveals the wrong mindset and hidden wounds. This is not to condemn us, but God is using it to protect us by removing these hinderance. In this new season, God is connecting us to different people and groups that we may not have chosen in the natural. This requires letting go of our old expectations and allowing God to direct our steps. Just like Joseph, our job is to keep the right attitude and trust that God loves us and will work everything out for our good.

Prayer

Father God,

May our past experiences, traumas, and connections not hinder what You have for us. May we have on our God’s glasses to see our lives and paths through Your perspective. We give the Holy Spirit permission to guide, teach, and correct our paths. Jesus, You have provided the way to a victorious life. We ask You keep us on that path as our Lord and Savior. Let us draw near to You, Father God during these shifting times and season of loneliness.

Scriptures: Genesis 37, Genesis 39, Genesis 50:18-21, Genesis 44 & 45:5-8, Genesis 39, Genesis 40, Genesis 41, Zechariah 13:9, and Romans 8:28.