A Joseph Calling
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1 by Os Hillman
Sunday, February 15 2009
"And he sent a man before them - Joseph, sold as a slave." - Psalm 105:17
God is doing a unique work around the world today. He is rising up Josephs throughout the world. Some are still in the "pit" stage of their pilgrimage, while others are heading toward fruitfulness. What does it take for a man to become a true Joseph? It takes years of preparation and testing to be a true Joseph. It takes what the psalmist says in Psalm 105:17. "He called down famine on the land and destroyed all their supplies of food; and he sent a man before them - Joseph, sold as a slave. They bruised his feet with shackles, his neck was put in irons, till what he foretold came to pass, till the word of the Lord proved him true. The king sent and released him, the ruler of peoples set him free" (Psalm 105:16-20).
A true Joseph is one who is a provider both spiritually and materially for those in the Body of Christ. It is a person who understands that he is simply a manager of all that God has entrusted to him. It is a person who has humility and a broken and contrite heart before God. But how does God prepare modern-day Josephs?
Modern-day Josephs are prepared through their own versions of bruised feet, with shackles and necks put in irons. It is often through the adversity of failed finances, failed marriages, failed relationships, and broken dreams. These are the things that try men the most. These are the things God uses to allow the Josephs of our day to be proven by the Word of the Lord. Once proven, God brings them out of their prisons and uses them mightily for His purposes. Joseph went through his own trials - not because of any failure, but because of an incredible calling: to save and provide for an entire nation. God had to prepare this man with 13 years of broken dreams and humble circumstances in order to break every ounce of pride and self-will. God could not afford to have a 30-year-old steeped in arrogance and pride running an entire nation.
When I attended a world conference on global evangelization in South Africa, I was privileged to sit among 45 other men from different parts of the world who had a Joseph calling on their lives. These men of means had humility of heart and a spirit unlike any others I have met in my country. Each one had his own Joseph story. It was an incredible scene that changed my life and my own view of business. This allowed me to see firsthand this phenomenon that is going on throughout the world. Many believe God is rising up these servants to prepare for a worldwide economic earthquake and to fund a global harvest of souls. Even since this conference, one nation is being dramatically affected because of a Joseph who has stepped forward to fulfill his calling for that nation. It is an awesome demonstration of God's power working today.
Are you willing to allow God to do whatever it takes for you to become a true Joseph? Ask the Lord today to do whatever is necessary to fully use your gifts and talents for His eternal Kingdom.
Labels: Inspirational, Motivation
Posted by thomas.tay at
Hey guys,
My friend showed me this video on youtube. Super touching.
Please take your time to view it :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14tZRDdwggU
:D
Labels: Inspirational
Posted by SanSan at
It said:
Evil is a word we use to describe the absence of Good,
Just as we use the word darkness to describe the absence of light or death to describe the absence of life.
Both evil and darkness can only be understood in relation to light and good; they do not have any actual existence.
I am light and I am good.
I am Love and there is no darkness in me.
Light and Good actually exist.
So removing yourself from me will plunge you into darkness.
Declaring independence will result in evil because apart form me, you can only draw upon yourself. This is death because you have separated yourself from me : Life"
Labels: Experience Sharing, Inspirational
Posted by thomas.tay at
Chanced upon something Pastor CK shared a few days ago. Blessed and enlightened...
"It's not how much you know, but how much you can change that matters in life"
How true... Some are very knowledgeable & have plenty of opinions over things happening around but contribute only just so much to the community.
What matters are those who, do not regard how much they know as important but, make do with whatever they have to make a difference in the problems/improvements around them.
Karios Time Zone (KT), let's all step up and start creating "Change we can believe in".
Labels: Experience Sharing, Inspirational, Motivation
Posted by Kenneth at
Brain teaser: One of the great puzzles of Genesis is this: Where did (unknown) get his wife?
Answer: Cain, son of Adam and Eve. Genesis 4:17 refers to Cain’s wife, but readers wonder where she came from, seeing that the only people on earth (or at least the only ones mentioned in Genesis) were Adam, Eve, Cain and Abel. The usual explanation-not that it satisfies everyone-is that Cain’s wife was also his sister, a daughter (whose name is not disclosed) of Adam and Eve.
The above question and answer was taken from the book “The Complete Book of Bible Secrets and Mysteries” by J.Stephen Lang, which I have borrowed from NLB lately in an attempt to learn more about the Bible. Is your mind boggled now? Mine was. After reading Genesis for a few times, I never ever ponder too much about the origin of anyone in the Bible and coming across this question does make me realise that there is much more to God’s Word, the Bible that we do not know about.
God’s Word is indeed amazing. Sometimes we read of things like dragons, the mysterious Leviathan [as described in the book of Job] or even unicorns [only in older versions of translations]. The main issue is the original language of the Bible is Hebrew and it is notoriously difficult to learn and translate even after many centuries [Thank God for translators and our translated versions of the Bible]. Thus, many things are still not known to us.
With regard to the author’s answer, I don’t agree with him as certain parts of the Bible are not mentioned in chronological order. The bottom-line is, though the Bible is very mysterious, it is very literal and very easy to grasp. Instead of being bothered by parts that we don’t understand, we should be concerned with the parts that we did understand, e.g. loving God wholeheartedly and loving people fervently. The author also said that most of the Bible isn’t written in code. As for the mysteries, I feel that we should just apply Deut 29:29 in our lives whereby the secret things belong to God and we should just leave it as it is [no code-breakers required].
Meanwhile, I shall go back to Paul and his adventurous mission trips in the book Acts.
Disclaimer: The Word of God cannot be broken, is infallible and has no contradiction [2 Tim 3:16-17]. This is not a post to stir up dissension or anything but rather, this is to spark greater interest in God’s Word :)
Labels: Inspirational
Posted by Beloved Child at
FINALLY I CAN GO TO SOT!!!Praise God!!!!!:D
Who say young people cannot do great things for God?
Who say we are too young to serve God in a great way?
Who say You cannot go to Sot even when you faced serious objection from your parents?
I asked and was rejected many times by my mum to go for Sot.I was discouraged.I doubt myself.I asked God,'' Father, is this not your will for me?''
I flipped open the bible and Mark 11:22-24 says''Have FAITH in God.For assuredly I say to you,whoever says to this mountain,'Be removed and be cast into the sea,'and does not DOUBT in his heart,but BELIEVES that those things he says WILL BE DONE,he will have whatever he says.Therefore I say to you,whatever things you ASK when you PRAY,BELIEVE that you RECEIVES them,and you will HAVE them.''
This is an encouragement from God but God is so Good,he increased my faith through the encouraging sermon Pastor Tan preached yesterday.
I was worried about my future.I thought to myself.'' God,I think it will be better if I focus on pursuing a decent diploma cert first then I join Sot.
Pastor Tan begin to add in, ''There will not be a convenient time,it will always be inconvenient every year.''
''And the thing is You got to be decisive, you cannot have the best of both worlds.You got to CHOOSE ONE. Do not be a double minded person,you'll go nowhere.For those of you who feel that God has called you to join SOT this year,don't hesitate anymore.''
Pastor Tan speaks with such conviction.
Indeed, God's thought and ways is much higher than mine and I am so thankful He is always there to guide me.I am assured by God that He will supply ALL MY NEEDS. The decision to go to SOT was so strong and overwhelming that I NEED to make this happen no matter what.
Precious servants of God out there,
Trust in the Lord with ALL your heart,all your soul and all your mind.Lean not on your OWN UNDERSTANDING,in ALL YOUR WAYS ACKNOWLEDGE Him and He'll make your PATH STRAIGHT. Faith without works is dead,so work your way out with explicit Faith and things WILL happen. :)
Those eligible people out there!you know who you are! If you do not want to regret then SIGN UP FOR SOT NOW!LAST CALL!
Labels: Experience Sharing, Inspirational, Motivation
Posted by Ruth. Ai Lin . at
Hi all!
Remember at one of the Connect group coordinator meeting we were asked to think of a suitable motto for our Zone and we cracked our brains,wanting to give the best motto we had ever thought of. Some gave profound motto which is really well said However...
The best is save for the last! :)
Settling down in a cosy and relax corner, Pastor gets his inspiration while having his favorite starbucks coffee that he has the pleasure of indulging.
And so I present to you our CK's motto,
To Go(onward)
To Grow(upward)
To GLOW(outward)
To go is to go therefore and make disciples of all nation,baptizing them in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.That is our great commission.
To grow is to grow loving God wholeheartedly loving people fervently which represents the two beams on the cross. That is our great commandment.
To glow is to be the salt of the earth light of the world.We are called to shine in the marketplace.That is our culture mandate.
Deut 28:13 ''And the LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath".
Notice that our Ck Motto is in line with our church motto.Our church build strong foundation on the great commission,the great commandment and the cultural mandate.
The ''3Gs'' is easy to remember,simple words but beneath is a powerful vision.
Let's all come as ONE body of Christ and build Ck Zone a strong foundation together!
Labels: Inspirational, Motivation
Posted by Ruth. Ai Lin . at
"I've heard of Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. But I've never heard of Someday."
—Reverend Ike
We have to start before we can succeed at anything and when we keep putting off our dreams until Someday, we unconsciously stall moving toward what we want. We are better served, when instead of wishfully thinking "Someday, I will..." we confidently affirm "Today, I steadfastly advance toward my goal."
May you always be willing to give up Someday for this day.
[Ecc11:4]
He who observes the wind will not sow, And he who regards the clouds will not reap.
Remember,
there will never be a perfect condition for everything. For everything requires that step of faith to accomplish! (: the start of every plan iz always that first step. Don't let any day become a someday!
"It may be that when we no longer know what to do, we have come to our real work, and when we no longer know which way to go, we have begun our real journey."
—Wendell Berry
Have you ever noticed, how often life reveals itself to us on a "need-to-know" basis? We don't have to be consciously aware of what to do next because our inner being always knows. Sometimes it's best to just be willing to let the adventure begin, trusting that everything else will take care of itself.
May you always be willing to trust your journey will take you where you need to go, wherever that might be. Trust God. even when there seems to be no way, God WILL make a way (:
Labels: Experience Sharing, Inspirational, Motivation
Posted by -nat- at
Quote -
'Lincoln could find only one general who would do what he wanted. On March 10, 1864, he appointed Ulysses S. Grant general-in-chief of the army.'
- Lincoln on Leadership, Executive Strategies for Tough Times by Donald T. Phillips, Warner Books, 1992.
Hi, I'm Phil PringleYou're going to love this;
Give loyalty to the worthy.
Reward, inclusion, acceptance and honour, all engender loyalty.
Unrecognised loyalty engenders disloyalty.
Lack of any of these when deserved, engenders disloyalty.
If you err at all, err on the side of generosity in recognising loyalty.
A competent but disloyal team member is a far worse curse than an average but loyal member.
There is no skill or other contribution that can atone for disloyalty.
Stepping out with you,
Phil Pringle
Labels: Inspirational
Posted by W115 at
QUALITY FOCUS
Quote - 'Whatever things are true, ...noble, ...just, ...pure, ...lovely, ...good report, ...virtue ...anything praiseworthy-- meditate on these things.' - Phil 4:8Hi,
I'm Phil Pringle,
You're going to love this;
Make your mind dwell on the beautiful, the good, the true, the pure.
Focus on low quality things and you'll develop low quality living.
Focus on high quality subjects and develop a high quality life.
How we see ourselves is what we will become.
What our mind is preoccupied with makes us the kind of people we are.
We conform to the picture in our mind.
What's your focus right now?
Stepping out with you,
Phil Pringle
Labels: Inspirational
Posted by W115 at