Managing God’s Resources
OPENING PRAYER:
Lord, help me see that most tasks you give me I cannot do alone, and I need a partner. Amen
READ:
“The plan seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his officials. So, Pharaoh asked them, ‘Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?’ Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.’ So, Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.’”
“The seven years of abundance in Egypt came to an end, and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in all the other lands, but in the whole land of Egypt there was food. When all Egypt began to feel the famine, the people cried to Pharaoh for food. Then Pharaoh told all the Egyptians, ‘Go to Joseph and do what he tells you.’”
Genesis 41:37-41,53-55 (NIV)
REFLECT:
Joseph was a gifted administrator and manager. When Pharaoh gave him the responsibility to manage Egypt’s resources during the good years and the famine, he did it successfully. Egypt and his family had the food they needed during the famine.
I have a missionary friend, Tom (not his real name), who experienced similar success in a communist country in Southeast Asia. After graduating from college with a degree in agriculture he became a missionary to this country (I will refer to as X) that was hostile to Christians. He instructed farmers in improved agricultural skills and he planted churches. The communist government discovered what he was doing and asked him and his family to leave. He loved the people in X but knew he could not return immediately so he waited it out in a nearby country that was friendly to Christians.
A year or so later, a wealthy Christian from X contacted him and asked him to consult on agricultural strategies. Because he was working for a Christian national, X’s government allowed him to return. Through his management skills the company created a system of harvest centers in a portion of X. They teach improved farming techniques, establish grain processing plants, and develop farms with improved breeds of hogs. Because the system has been so successful in improving the economy of the farmers, Tom has been able to meet with high-ranking government officials who want him to expand the concept throughout X. God has truly been glorified through the harvest centers and many churches have been founded in conjunction with the farms.
APPLY:
“Be ready in season and out of season.” 2 Timothy 4:2. We need to be ready to step in when God calls on us to carry out a special task for him using whatever special gifts he has given us.
CLOSING PRAYER:
Lord, let me hear your voice, know it, and follow you wherever you send me. Amen
WORSHIP: