trials

One of the greatest verses in the Bible is Genesis 50:20.

After getting sold into slavery, falsely accused, thrown into prison, and then promoted to Governor of Egypt, Joseph’s life comes full circle.

And the grace of God falls onto his brothers in an incredible way as he tells them:

Genesis 50 ²⁰ You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.

In an incredible story of what God does…redemption…Joseph’s life saves an estimated 70 Israelites and a million people. And Joseph’s ability to move past what happened and forgive is incredibly significant.

Slavery. Slander. Prison. When we get in a tough situation, a trial, or we are simply trying to fight through things, we must ask?

Where Is My Focus?

When David walked up on the Goliath situation, he heard from everyone about the giant. Goliath. Goliath. Goliath. But David was not focused on Goliath, nor the weapons that they used to fight. He was focused on God. And God gave David a weapon that was far greater than what Goliath had. The sling that God had him use to fight wolves and lions was far greater than anything Goliath could bring.

Where Is My Focus? It should be on God … not the giant. Because God has the weapons we need to defeat the giant.

What Will You Get There?

Hope … and Faith. Hebrews 11 says that Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what you do not see. Hope is one of the most important things we can have. When our hope is not there, our thoughts go in the wrong direction. But hope gives us the motivation to get up and walk, to move forward, to begin to dream.

What Will You Get There? Hope … And Faith Is Being Sure Of What You Hope For.

God is bigger than the walls in front of us.

He is bigger than our failures and our mistakes.

He is bigger than our mortality.

Jesus Christ became one of us so that we could know that He has walked in our shoes, that He has been tempted, and that He has experienced loss.

And we can hold on to this promise … that what was intended to harm us God can use for good.

WALK in the covering of Jesus … His love never fails.

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

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Coach J

If you are like me, you have some decisions in front of you that are INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT.

This is not a heavy word. It is an encouragement.

To remind you … “What You Have To Gain Is FAR GREATER Than What You Have To Lose”

So as you walk into the mountain in front of you … I have 4 pieces of advise.

1. Decide To Be Great … (Not Your Position, Your Posture)

As the disciples jostled for position in a very unbalanced time, Jesus reminded them what being great truly was.

Mark 10 ⁴² Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. ⁴³ Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, ⁴⁴ and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. ⁴⁵ For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

2. Pick A Team (Loyalty Means Everything)

Our God is not a neutral decision. I know which side I am declaring … and Joshua showed us how to do it.

Joshua 24 ¹⁴ “Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord . ¹⁵ But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord .” ¹⁶ Then the people answered, “Fa

3. Love Your Enemies (YOU Are The Lion!)

As I reminded one of my athletes this past spring — YOU are the lion. Often we see lions showing themselves in the middle of the plain … and the animals scatter. As we approach the mountain, we must remember that WE are the lion — not the scattering zebras. And as a member of the winning team, it should never burden us to pray for, and love, our enemies.

Matthew 5 ⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you …

4. Remember Who You Belong To (My Father Loves Me!)

Probably our most important verse in the entire Bible … our belonging to God and His love of us. This is exemplified in in Zephaniah and we would do well to plant this verse on our hearts.

Zephaniah 3 ¹⁷ The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”

So go forward to the mountain.

And climb with Faith, Hope, and Alacrity.

To Him Be The Glory And The Kingdom And The Power … For Ever And Ever.

Amen.

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Know anyone who might like these? Encourage them to jump on to 2minutewarning.blog and hit the FOLLOW button!!!

Coach J

2 MINUTE WARNING

WITH DOUG JOHNSON

Tag

486 God Intended It For Good

471 The Mountain In Front Of Us