Unrecognizable, Part 2

Hello and welcome to this Wednesday. Addition of Destin for victory just a few moments, Pastor Paul Sheppard takes us to the life of Joseph, his trials, his tragedy and his ultimate triumph.

But before we get started. Pastor Paul has joined me from the studio in California to share some thoughts on today's message best were talking about leadership and whether we consider ourselves a leader or not.

There are some key principles that will help us accomplish the goals set before us is God's word teaches us tell us what we can expect in today's message as most of our listeners know with her many length of time. One of my all-time favorite Bible characters is Joseph in the Old Testament.

I've learned so much from his life and I love sharing those lessons as I preach and teach an endless series of unrecognizable I'm helping people understand that we walk with God and allow him to teach us the lessons that the challenges of life can teach us we will become so unrecognizable to people who only remember us when we were immature when we were unspiritual and those sorts of things. Joseph started out as the old brat. There's just no way around it was some very old.

The dude was walking around with no job. Whatever sets you on this really is pathetic. But when you see him at the end. His brothers don't literally don't recognize arrears first of all date they assume is probably long dead by now or at least in some foreign country and there they are in Egypt trying to get food and the guy who's making the decision is the very one day sold out and so we're going to learn a lot of lessons about leadership and about life as we just go through this series and take to heart the lessons. The fact is, God loves us like we are. But he loves us way too much to leave us like we are.

So he's going to cause us to grow and is going to cause us to mature and when you get to the end of Joseph's experience.

You see that he is bilingual. He is married with two kids were named after the things God's time in his life.

All kinds of great things are happening, but the journey wasn't pleasant.

It meant he had to learn he had to grow. He had to mentor so do all of us and I hope people will be blessed and helped as they receive this word. Consider it all joy when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

That's James chapter 1 verses two and three. A great reminder that some of life's greatest challenges produce some of our greatest spiritual growth. With that in mind Pastor Paul's written booklet that I believe will be a great benefit to you as you navigate your way through the challenges you may be facing.

It's called turning your test into a testimony is our gift to you by request for your generous gift to Destin for victory that's turning your test into a testimony requested today. When you make a generous donation. Call 855-339-5500 or visit Pastor Paul.net to make a safe and secure donation online. You can also mail your gift to Destin for victory PO Box 1767, Fremont, CA 94538 once again our address Destin for victory. Box 1767, Fremont, CA 94538 what happened after he was a slave after he was traded by brothers who hated him were jealous of him resented the fact that he was a favorite son and then presented the fact that he had a dream of what happened the first thing is, he became FOCUS athletes and entertainers talk about it all the time.

The ability to shut out the noise to ignore criticism and passive backs you see the same quality of the life of Joseph was story continues. Next, this message unrecognizable. Spencer portion declare to you that God wants to do some things in your life so marvelous that people know for a long time will not recognize you. Because of the hand of God on your life.

Recognize you physically, they will not recognize the person God has made you to be the power in which you are operating, they won't recognize the case in which you are moving recognize that God has you to do that are now coming to pass in your life and when looking at what the development of Joseph's character was lie that he became unrecognizable. How is it that he recognizes them, but they don't recognize him what's going on in his life.

What is got done over the past 22 years point I want to continue making is Joseph became focused what happened after he was a slave after he was traded by brothers who hated him we were jealous of him resented the fact that he was a favorite son and then resented the fact that he had a dream up dominance what happened the first thing is, he became focused when you get to Genesis chapter 39 you discover that as a slave in Egypt. He is bought by a man named Potter for who is one of the officials of Pharaoh, and he starts out as a lonely slave in Potiphar's house, but I want you to notice right away that it says about him.

Verse two of Genesis 39 was with Joseph and he prospered, tells me that Joseph did not focus his attention on the wrong things all the wrong people. I want you to notice with me that this was such that you don't see Joseph talking about don't believe my brothers did this to me spend this time over challenging circumstances he doesn't spend this time he doesn't spend his time saying well. Obviously nothing good can happen in my life. I'm no longer with my family. I'm no longer spoiled child and my dad's house and our lonely slave soul who cares what happened. You know how that mentality can be we see on the news you see people who do stupid things because they have a sense of hopelessness about their lives, they don't care at the end of the day because I don't feel any sense of God moving in their lives. They don't have any sense of purpose or direction thing and we see it all the time raising ridiculous murders and hijackings and kidnappings and all kinds of things because people don't really care. The day the most dangerous people you and I are living around. Are these people just don't give up if you call me call me right want to make sure you listen if you heart skipped a beat. Pastor got it covered. I know exactly what I wanted to say dangerous people just don't care one way or the other.

Don't care whether they live don't care whether they go to jail is that if you never forget as a young man before I moved into ministry.

All that was just working out at the college of doing whatever you could do wait for the right thing to come along. One of my jobs was working hello company in accounts receivable trying to collect money people have borrowed from the company and said they were both paid and I was one of the collection officer. One of the jobs I had and I had to call delinquent people as part of the call, this one man and said listen, you are X number of days behind in your loan payment and the company needs a payment. When can we get payment from you this one man said to me you know you used to sign the loan agreement and I was right in explaining to him that he had agreed exactly what you know, the more I don't want to call my house anymore and so called particular company was saving him one if you don't do that. Somebody is going to come to your next and how would this just in with you about the consequences of the delinquency of this loan and he said somebody out here if you want, but I'm telling you now. I will meet them with my gun and I will blow them into the street so you won't do that because you don't want to waste your life and waste all the potential of your future and go to jail and he said to me, just got out of jail this you know how to handle myself. There is nothing to me if you want to be. So Jesus caused people to do was right by you always fall in place for you. You are in the wrong world we live in a fallen people who are submitted to our fallen enemies. Satan you don't know what's going to happen we start times and we live in a place where all you need a Savior. All that you and grips the solid and I'm here to tell you that you cannot forward to get sidetracked because there's no certainty in this world except your walk with the Lord and what he is destined to do in your life no certainty that he was going to remain the favorite son and his daddy's house and so now as God would have it, he finds himself a lonely slave in a foreign country, but he refuses to focus on that negativity. Instead, what does he do, he becomes focused on being an excellent servant wisely. Being an excellent servant because he's a slave slave's job is to serve wherever you find yourself in life whatever station you find yourself in life.

You are to excel their I came to tell somebody. God's calling on your life in this season is to XL where you are, how you do that you do that by making sure you learn how to take the Lord with you everywhere you go. See you want to see the Lord's presence only in the context of the wonderful things happening to us but the Bible talks about the Lord's presence being with us in some very dark and dismal places. When you read your Bible, God is not just which on the mountaintop, which in the Valley. Psalm 23 says you walk through the valley of the shadow of no evil because of me in the Valley got a quit claim in your mountaintop so much that you ignore the fact that God is with you before you get to the mountaintop to claim the big three in the Valley want to be dingy Valley my company the Lord is with me and he's going to put will be right back with more of today's destined for victory message from Pastor Paul Sheppard listen to the broadcast on demand. Pastor Paul.net that's Pastor Paul.net you find a host of great resources that are online store, including books and DVD messages from Pastor from the life of Joseph your Guinness pastor with the rest of today's destined for victory message unrecognizable. I want somebody to claim the victory before you get where you're going and the way to do that is recognize the Lord is with you why.

He said he would never leave you a job you don't like but God which on the job you like the people you wish you didn't have to work with the Lord is what you while you with you on the circumstances you want desperately to change, but the Lord is with you right where you are you much fun.

But God says I am with you in this marriage and will get you through it with some family crisis on personal trouble is I want somebody to see. As with right where you are, like Joseph, you can prosper in a place you would prefer not to be. You can prosper right where you are. You can prosper with a supervisor that gets on your last nerve.

You can prosper doing things that you'd rather not do. You can prosper being overlooked and underpaid.

You can prosper people disrespecting you can prosper while folk are taking credit for things you D you can prosper raising your kids through the different seasons of their lives. God can give your toddler raisin grace preteen raising grace teenage raisin grace come home.

Young adult raisin grace, logically, then the mobile kid but you know if you turn them loose all hell will break loose. So you still don't overtime God to give you peace. And so I need you to understand something Joseph didn't just prosper when you see him later on up in the palace.

Joseph prospered as a slave and I'm here to tell you it's because he focused on the right things he said, Lord, help me to be an excellent servant, and with the Lord. Blessing him in the Lord working through him. He was so good that we are told in Genesis 39. That path bursts all this is marvelous to me when Saul the hand of the Lord was on this product for our pagan see the hand of the Lord of Lord preaching about the more the country where there is any servant someday.

Hope you accept this guy who works for him. Joseph now preaching focused on Remus but what this means is, didn't know what deity Joseph knew, but he knows this guy is in touch with somebody I see you did by no one him and when the Lord showed himself through Joseph's excellence. The Bible says that even part of her soul Lord handling and promoted him and he became. I love this in his daddy's house.

He was favored and he hadn't done anything to be favored.

He was just a spoiled boy and he was the first son of Rachel and so you got to understand that what he gotten his dad's house was as a result of his focus, but when he got up out of his house, was a result of him focusing his attention on the right things that the Lord Saul blasted him until he got promoted through the ranks of slave and he became the head servant in Potiphar's house and noted other servants who had been there for years, will I wait now hold up.

Just got here. What was yes but this is a case anything they can start a slave union favoring sale when I just got a people understand it is tangible. The Lord's favor. I want somebody to get some of you will see God's people will see God in your life. God starts to bother trying to explain what they do.

Somebody prosper in favor of favorable job but don't bother trying to explain yourself to them.

In fact, you might want to get yourself a bumper sticker and just tell the world know this waiver what you say is I know it is not fair is favor.

Joseph was enough where the favor of the Lord came upon him before I get over this point I want to understand the importance of focus because some of us, I'm convinced are focused on all the wrong things. In all the wrong people and you gotta get focused on pleasing God, right where you are more.

I am where I don't want to be. But until you get me outta here. I want to please you and I want to be focused on serving you and doing your will. I will be focused on taking care of the matters that you want me to take care of and I believe all the results, which is the way Paul puts that kind of single-mindedness in Philippians chapter 3 verses 12 through 14, Paul says not that I've already obtained all this, see some of you all are looking at where you know God has destined you to be you have a vision in your heart you have a word from God you been holding onto some of you haven't posted up on your job and in your office or something like that and you got the vision and you've written it the right division and that's all that is good vision written down and you look at it every day. You are nowhere in fulfillment of that vision. What you do you focus on where you are right now. Paul said, already obtained where I'm going or have already been made perfect, but what is he say, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it, but why do forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. What is ME Paul says I want to know God in a powerful way and he says I'm not there yet. I'm not what I want to be, he said, but I have a single-minded pursuit of that I'm forgetting everything behind me I'm strong what's ahead because my goal was to please God and to experience what he has destined for my life. That's where you gotta be at the season of your life. My job in this season of life is the please God.

That's going to mean he's going to call me to please some people called me to work right all my job and he can prosper me for his own purpose.

There, God wants to testify by what a good employee, you are God wants to testify. God wants to give you divine appointments that will be set up as a result of your diligence and your focus on the right thing. Spend your time fighting with people on your job, don't get into these skirmishes. It's not worth it.

I said it's not like that it can't be a fight if you will participate requires combatants multiple combatants mouth and you just smile was not a fight.

You just I'm sorry frustrate you keep on doing what you don't you will stay focused, because the neighbor Joseph Lai followed his focus in the favor on your life is going to follow your focus be like home. One thing I do see light going about 1012 things on your agenda posted know one thing I do, I'm straining toward one thing that is the please God, so that I can experience all that he is destined for my life.

Consider these words from Micah chapter 6 verse eight, and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy and walk humbly with your God.

If you want to drown out all the clutter, including your own challenges, meditate on that verse and put it into practice focus on pleasing God, walking humbly with him according to his will and purpose, and you'll find joy and peace even in the midst of your most difficult trials.

Thanks for being with us for today's message unrecognizable. If you'd like more information about the destined for Victor ministry or a special thank you gift we have for you is you generously support this ministry. Be sure to stop by your website. Pastor Paul.net that's Pastor Paul.net really is threefold. I taught many times before a believer faces three enemies. The world the flesh and the devil all of us face the world. That means we have to avoid the pitfalls that come with buying into a world system that's next time. In Pastor Paul Shepard's message unrecognizable.

Until then, remember he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion in Christ, you are destined for victory