GOD HAS GREAT PLANS FOR ME! -Babatunde Olugboji
God plans to prosper us and not to harm us, He wants to give us a hope and a future (Jer. 29:11).
The story Joseph and his brothers in Gen. 42 should reassure us of how these plans would unfold. So, Israel’s sons were among those who went to buy grain, for there was famine in the land…Now Joseph was the governor of the land, the person who sold grain to all its people. So, when Joseph’s brothers arrived, they bowed down to him with their faces to the ground… Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him (Gen. 42: 5-8).
Why did Joseph’s brothers bow before him? Because they were aware that at that time when famine was ravaging the land, their lives literally depended on this person they regarded as the Egyptian official; therefore, they were very careful to pay him great respect by bowing down. For Joseph, it must have been utterly satisfying to have remembered the dream he had some 20 years before, that his brothers would bow down to him.
When Joseph’s brothers plotted against him and sold him into slavery, the plan was to destroy his dreams (Gen. 37:19-20) but God had another plan. Instead, by sending Joseph to Egypt, they assisted, inadvertently in bringing his dream to fulfillment. Even though it took a lot of twists and turns, God guided Joseph all the way.
You may be at the point where you think your dream has died, that nothing seems to be working: your career is running aground, you are struggling with your relationships, while cash is short. As Long as God is on the throne, and he will always be, your dream will not die. The God of heaven and earth who specializes in making the impossible possible will make a way. Those who swore that you would always eat from their hands will see the table of goodies he has set before you.
The great and glorious truth of God’s providence is that God can and does use the evil actions of humans towards us to further his great plan for us. This never excuses the evil, but it means God’s wisdom and goodness are greater than man’s evil. Surely the wrath of man shall praise God (Psalm 76:10).
Did you notice that Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him? There must have been something different about him, not just the physical signs of ageing. The glory of God must have been mightily powerful upon him. God must have repackaged him, he must have given him a total makeover.
This week, I encourage you to boldly declare: Those who saw me last year would not recognize me today, because God has worked on me, before showing me off to them. Wherever my haters may be, whether in my family or among my friends, whatever their plans are, God will surely use those evil plans to further his good plans for me.
Kingdom Dynamics, a weekly column is written by Dr. Babatunde Olugboji, the President, Kingdom House, a non-profit organization in New Jersey, USA.
