OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL - Tuesday, 07/05/2013 BY PASTOR E.A. ADEBOYE

TUESDAY 7 MAY, 2013

FAVOUR EARNS TRUST

MEMORY VERSE

But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison. Genesis 39:21

READ

Genesis 39:20-23

Gen 39:20 And Joseph's master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king's prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison.

Gen 39:21 But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.

Gen 39:22 And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph's hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer of it.

Gen 39:23 The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the LORD was with him, and that which he did, the LORD made it to prosper.

MESSAGE

The favour of God is a manifestation of God's presence. During his trial, Joseph was sold into slavery but God was with him. If God is with you, wherever you go, He goes. Also, if He is with you, the situation that is trying your faith does not and cannot drive God away from you. Whether you feel God's presence or not, as long as you are in His will, be rest assured that He is with you. As long as you cling to Him, nothing can separate you from God. This explains why you must seek His presence for the rest of your life.

When God is with you, you will enjoy favour. Favour usually comes with several other benefits. Let us see some of them. From today's reading, we see that favour makes you to earn people's trust including that of your enemies. Can you imagine that the chief warder, who was paid by the state to oversee Joseph's punishment in the prison yard, was the same person who entrusted control of the prison and its occupants to him? Having found favour in his sight, Joseph was no more seen and treated like a prisoner but as an unofficial warder. He suddenly began to trust Joseph. In life, what you will become and even the heights you will attain are partly dependent on how much trust is reposed in you. Will you commit sensitive assignments into the hands of those you do not trust? I doubt it. This season, to reach your goal, you will ride on the trust of people including those meant to supervise your oppression in Jesus name. In additional to this, we see that favour makes men to trust you even to their detriment. If Joseph had released some prisoners into the wild, the government would have held the chief warder responsible. That could have cost him his life. Yet, he trusted him to his detriment. In your unpleasant situation, the favour of God will cause men to entrust you with great assignments. They will entrust more responsibilities to you including their lives without knowing what is motivating them to do so. On the other hand, are you trustworthy?

KEY POINT

Looking at the life of Jesus, it is obvious that what God wants to do on an international level He would start at a very little corner.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR

Judges 19 - 21