She was a young
lady, full of expectations and lofty dreams about how her future as the wife of
handsome and enterprising Joseph was going to be. He was a dude almost every
lady in town would like to have, oh yeah, it was going to be heaven on earth.
She was going to have 4 kids; 2 boys and girls and establish a big business. The
future was well planned out. This was all she kept pondering on in her
mind until that blessed day the angel appeared unto her and said “Rejoice,
highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you
among women”!(Luke 1:28).
He was an
aspiring, handsome and upwardly mobile young man who was dreaming of having a
huge flock in the future. His
early occupation was that of tending his father’s sheep on the uplands of Judah. Being a good looking guy, he was going
to marry a very beautiful lady and become the toast of the town, have some
beautiful children and become one of the richest in town. Then that fateful
day came. “.. And Samuel
said to Jesse, “Send and bring him. For we will not sit down till he comes
here.” 12 So he sent
and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, with bright eyes, and
good-looking. And the Lord said,
“Arise, anoint him; for this is the one!”13 Then Samuel
took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers.( Ist Samuel
16)
Life was good,
being the favourite son of his father; he had learnt to take care of sheep
alongside his brothers. The future was going to be bright as all indicators
pointed towards having the best from his dad- He already got a coat of many
colours anyway and many more were going to come until that night that he slept
and dreamt….…”So he said to them, “Please hear this dream which
I have dreamed: 7 There
we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also
stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my
sheaf.”(Genesis 37:6)
Life couldn't
have been better; raised us in a royal manner as a son of the princess;
daughter of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, what more could one want in life- a
handsome dude himself, he would get a beautiful wife, by virtue of his position
as a royal prince, have children born and bred in the palace, be the envy of the
nation and all……then …….11Now it came to
pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out to his brethren
and looked at their burdens. And he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of
his brethren ( Exo 2:11)
Every single
person in life; more often than, not has a well thought out plan of what
and what to achieve. It is a beautiful thing to daydream, have fantasies and
when in reality these things start to play out just as we have planned, our joy
knows no bounds. However, sometimes, some things happen and it looks as though
something comes along the way to interrupt the good plans you had. Everything
seems then starts to go “awry” and suddenly out of control. Things are
happening so fast and you are clouded, wondering if it is a mirage, as it
definitely is not looking like what you had thought about. In your path in
life, have you woken up to a rude shock?
Psalm 95:4
4In His hand are the deep places of the earth; the heights
of the hills are His also.5The sea is His, for He
made it; and His hands formed the dry land.
God is not a
movie producer who just sits behind the screens of a movie set. He is very much
involved in every bit of your life. He directs, orchestrates and calls the
shots- if you allow him. How can you explain the fact that He has the
deep places of the earth in His hands? That means everything; every single
thing is open before him. Nothing happens to you that He is not aware of. Don’t
get it twisted, no evil comes from God- He might have allowed it, and no matter
how hard, difficult or ugly the situation is; He’s going to use it all for your
good. He already made a way of escape long before the challenge came your way.
When the devil hurls at you and it looks like the spotlight of hell has just
been zoomed on you, do not despair, your Maker will make it work out for your
good and you will have the last laugh!
The people
listed above had their plans “disrupted’ so to say, but if things had not happened, we
probably wouldn't have heard about them today. It happened for their good, they
became prominent by Divine orchestration and it all ended in greatness. Some of
the things they went through were very embarrassing, some debilitating, and
some inconvenient but alas; God wove a beautiful tapestry out of the many
events; the good, bad and ugly of their lives. Many times, we look at things in
pieces, but God looks at things holistically. Your life may look dull and
boring; with its many ups and downs, God has a detailed plan that He is working
out.
Trust me; it
is a sweet thing when you get to understand in retrospect, what God has been up
to…..
The Pen.....
