Homemaker CEOGrowing Spiritually, Personally, and Professionally

In my book, Good Enough to be a Homemaker and CEO, I wrote a chapter titled In the Business of Ministry. The point of the chapter was that though it is a business we may be running, in essence, if you are a believer, your business is a ministry.

 Last week while at a speaking engagement a friend, Holly Bellomy, with Dallas Real Estate Staging, was present. During our introductions to one another at the table Holly made a comment that should be eye opening to believers in business. She shared that she used to see her business as a simply that. One day it dawned on her that the Lord is using her business to minister to families who have to move from their homes and may not necessarily want to. Yes, she stages homes to help them sell and it sounds exciting but the other side is that moving is not always optional.

 How is the Lord using you to minister to others through your business? I heard a guy at our church a couple of weeks ago say that he is a wedding photographer and his reason  was that he had a passion for seeing marriages flourish.

 What is in your hand that God has given you to use for Him but you are not acknowledging it? Keri Oles with Living Divine Ministries challenged us to consider this last past Friday and I remind you of  it so you may start pondering it in your heart.

Favor Even In Distress

Genesis Chapters 37-50

Background: Joseph was the one of the son’s of Jacob and Rachel (Genesis 30:25). Jacob, however, was also married to Leah, Rachel’s sister, and he had other sons with her. Because Joseph was Jacob’s favorite son, his brothers (Leah’s sons) envied him. One day Joseph shared a dream that annoyed his entire family, then he shared another dream, the one that pushed his brothers over the edge. This time his dream was that his brothers, father, and mother would one day bow down to him.  The dream upset his brothers so much they threw him in a pit, then reconsidered, pulled him out, and sold him into slavery instead.

 Though he was sold into slavery and the worst of conditions were now a part of his life, Joseph had God’s favor. He was positioned in Potiphar’s home, Pharos’s captain of the guard. It was a great job until like always, an unfortunate event occurred.  Potiphar’s wife came onto Joseph (Genesis 38) and when he refused her, she accused him of pursuing her and he was put into prison.

Genesis 39:20-23, NIV

²⁰ Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined. But while Joseph was there in the prison, ²¹ the LORD was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. ²² So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. ²³ The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.

Joseph was thrown into an environment where others meant for him to be miserable. Though technically, he should have been miserable, he made the best of it, and the Lord blessed him because of it. We don’t read anywhere that he:

Complained

Fussed

Blamed God

Wished he would of taken up on the offer Potiphar’s wife put on the table

Wished vengeance on his brothers

 Joseph remained faithful and it is obvious that he loved God and wanted to please him as we read in Genesis 39:9, “No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?”

 It was easy for him to give into the pressure of doing the wrong thing. Instead he chose to honor God even when it was hard to do the right thing and remain faithful knowing that the road could be tougher ahead of him. It is easiest to do the right thing when you are completely sold to God.

• What challenging situation do you find yourself in presently?
• How are you reacting to your situations:
•  With faith and obedience? With complaining or blaming?
•  If we don’t have faith it’s sin. You know you may be in sin if you are blaming others, complaining, and bending the rules while you wait for justice because you feel “you don’t deserve this”. Faith is doing your best not to be moved through your circumstances through the strength God provides for us when we love him and are given to him fully.
• What promises can you stand on while in this challenging time? Write down some scriptures that apply to your situation. If you would like you may look these up and read them out loud daily until you are put in a position of favor and justice.

 Exodus 14:14 “ The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

Jeremiah 9:24 “but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight, declares the LORD”

 For more detailed scriptures visit http://www.biblebell.org/lap.html

Copyright © 2010 Teresa G. Lusk