GOSPEL CORNER:THE STEPS OF A GOOD MAN ARE ORDERED BY THE LORD, AND HE DELIGHTS IN HIS WAY.

11/08/23

JOEL OSTEEN MINISTRIES
Today’s Word

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way.
Psalm 37:23, NKJV

This Present Step
Most of us are very focused on the destination for our life, on our dream coming to pass, on our problems turning around. But it’s important that you learn to enjoy where you are today while you’re on the way to where you’re going. Life is not about the destination; it’s about the journey—with all the bumps in the road, the disappointments, the things you don’t understand. Too often we rush through the day, trying to force our way through the challenges and setbacks to the destination when we should slow down and enjoy the journey. You’re going to be frustrated living like that.

You have to realize that God is ordering your steps. Oftentimes the journey He leads us on is not comfortable, but all the difficulties, delays, and betrayals are a part of His plan to get us to our destiny. He will work all these things for your good. Stay in the present. Take it one day at a time. You don’t have grace for tomorrow. You have grace for this present step.

A Prayer for Today
“Father, thank You that You have a destination for my life as well as a journey to enjoy while I’m getting there. Thank You that You purposefully order my steps in the way that is best for me. I believe that You have given me the grace for this present step and that it’s working for my good. In Jesus’ Name, Amen

SECTION TWO

Do you know of anyone who is in a worse situation than Joseph when he stood naked in an Egyptian market, waiting to be sold as a slave? His whole world appeared to have collapsed around him. Just a few days earlier, he was in his father’s embrace but now, his own brothers had betrayed him. All that he owned had been stripped from him. He was reduced to nothing more than a slave in a foreign land.

Was this the end of Joseph? In the natural scheme of things, it sure looked like it was. But even with the odds stacked up against Joseph, the Lord was far from finished. Even in this dire situation, the Lord was with Joseph, and at this dark and bleak juncture in Joseph’s life, the Lord called him a successful man (Genesis 39:1–2)! Remember, it is not what you have. It is who you have that makes all the difference.

“How can the Lord make a young slave with not a single cent or possession to his name succeed?”

Well, let’s continue with Joseph’s story. Genesis 39:3 tells us, “And his master [Potiphar] saw that the Lord was with him [Joseph] and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand.” This is a powerful statement and it offers a promise that you can believe Jesus for, in every area of your life. Can you imagine every project, assignment and even errand that you undertake becoming prosperous? Your hands become hands of blessing.

You touch your family members and they are blessed. Your company may be struggling to manage a difficult project, but once it is placed in your hands, the project becomes blessed. You become a blessing waiting to happen to someone, waiting to happen to something, everywhere you go!

Now, how will this happen? The Lord Jesus will make it happen when you depend on Him in the same way that Joseph depended on Him. Joseph had nothing. He could not trust in his skills or experience (he had never been a slave), nor could he trust in his natural connections (his father was out of the picture because he believed that Joseph had been killed by a wild animal). All Joseph had was the Lord’s presence, and he depended on the Lord to manifest His presence, His power, and His glory through him!

That’s what you and I need—a manifestation of His presence in everything that we do! You see, it is one thing to have His presence (all Christians have His presence because they have accepted Him as their personal Lord and Savior), but when His presence is made manifest in your life, that’s when His glory shines forth through you!

My friend, God wants to make everything you do prosper, just like He did for Joseph. See Him leading and blessing you, and increasing your effectiveness today!