WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.980 Welcome to Pomoja Podcast, a ministry of Life 00:00:02.980 --> 00:00:05.379 of Christ International Ministries, where we 00:00:05.379 --> 00:00:08.339 build stronger lives, deeper faith, and Christ 00:00:08.339 --> 00:00:11.000 -centered homes through biblical teaching, practical 00:00:11.000 --> 00:00:14.179 wisdom, and life -changing conversations. I'm 00:00:14.179 --> 00:00:17.300 your host, Barry Mwamba. Today, I want to invite 00:00:17.300 --> 00:00:19.800 you into one of the most comforting, and at the 00:00:19.800 --> 00:00:22.440 same time, one of the most overlooked truths 00:00:22.440 --> 00:00:25.600 in the entire Bible. But before we begin, let 00:00:25.600 --> 00:00:27.829 me ask you something. What if I told you that 00:00:27.829 --> 00:00:30.710 some of the greatest miracles in your life may 00:00:30.710 --> 00:00:33.490 never look like miracles at all? What if I told 00:00:33.490 --> 00:00:37.549 you that one conversation, one delay, one disappointment, 00:00:38.130 --> 00:00:41.770 one unexpected meeting, one closed door, or even 00:00:41.770 --> 00:00:44.909 one painful season could be part of a story that 00:00:44.909 --> 00:00:47.530 God has been writing long before you ever recognized 00:00:47.530 --> 00:00:50.289 it? Because today, we're going to talk about 00:00:50.289 --> 00:00:52.570 something the Bible speaks about from Genesis 00:00:52.570 --> 00:00:55.710 to Revelation, yet many believers rarely think 00:00:55.710 --> 00:00:58.049 about. We're going to talk about the providence 00:00:58.049 --> 00:01:02.130 of God, living under the providence of God. This 00:01:02.130 --> 00:01:04.790 truth has changed the way I see life, the way 00:01:04.790 --> 00:01:07.730 I see disappointments, the way I see victories, 00:01:08.450 --> 00:01:11.510 the way I see unanswered prayers, even the way 00:01:11.510 --> 00:01:13.890 I see the ordinary moments that most people would 00:01:13.890 --> 00:01:17.230 simply call coincidence. Let me ask you another 00:01:17.230 --> 00:01:20.010 question. Have you ever looked back at your life 00:01:20.010 --> 00:01:23.730 and realized, if that door hadn't closed, I would 00:01:23.730 --> 00:01:26.879 have never met my spouse? If I hadn't lost that 00:01:26.879 --> 00:01:29.659 job, I would have never discovered my purpose. 00:01:30.459 --> 00:01:32.980 If I hadn't moved to that city, I would have 00:01:32.980 --> 00:01:35.879 never met those people. If that conversation 00:01:35.879 --> 00:01:38.680 had never happened, my entire future would have 00:01:38.680 --> 00:01:41.579 been different. At the time, none of it made 00:01:41.579 --> 00:01:45.180 sense. You thought life was falling apart. Years 00:01:45.180 --> 00:01:48.640 later, you realized life wasn't falling apart. 00:01:49.219 --> 00:01:52.909 It was quietly falling into place. I think every 00:01:52.909 --> 00:01:55.510 mature believer eventually begins to notice something. 00:01:56.329 --> 00:01:59.189 There are simply too many coincidences to keep 00:01:59.189 --> 00:02:02.750 calling them coincidences. The right person appears 00:02:02.750 --> 00:02:05.890 at exactly the right moment. A phone call arrives 00:02:05.890 --> 00:02:09.629 just when you needed encouragement. A delay frustrates 00:02:09.629 --> 00:02:12.509 you for months, only for you to discover later 00:02:12.509 --> 00:02:14.770 that it protected you from something you couldn't 00:02:14.770 --> 00:02:18.710 see. A prayer God didn't answer becomes the very 00:02:18.710 --> 00:02:21.379 reason you later thank him. Have you ever thanked 00:02:21.379 --> 00:02:25.120 God for saying no? Have you ever thanked Him 00:02:25.120 --> 00:02:29.039 for making you wait? I know I have. Not because 00:02:29.039 --> 00:02:32.020 waiting is enjoyable, but because time has taught 00:02:32.020 --> 00:02:35.979 me something. God's wisdom is infinitely greater 00:02:35.979 --> 00:02:39.460 than my urgency. The older I become, the less 00:02:39.460 --> 00:02:42.520 I believe in coincidence. Not because life suddenly 00:02:42.520 --> 00:02:45.259 makes perfect sense, but because I keep looking 00:02:45.259 --> 00:02:48.639 back and seeing God's fingerprints where I once 00:02:48.639 --> 00:02:51.280 thought there was only chance. I believe one 00:02:51.280 --> 00:02:53.960 day, every believer reaches a point where they 00:02:53.960 --> 00:02:57.599 stop asking, was that luck? And begin asking, 00:02:58.060 --> 00:03:02.159 Lord, were you already there? And I believe the 00:03:02.159 --> 00:03:05.379 answer is yes, far more often than we realize. 00:03:05.819 --> 00:03:08.099 One of the greatest misconceptions among Christians 00:03:08.099 --> 00:03:11.219 is believing that God only works through miracles. 00:03:12.099 --> 00:03:15.419 We celebrate the Red Sea. We celebrate Jericho. 00:03:16.240 --> 00:03:18.879 We celebrate Elijah calling fire down from heaven. 00:03:19.310 --> 00:03:22.069 We celebrate Lazarus walking out of the tomb. 00:03:22.610 --> 00:03:26.009 And we should. Those moments reveal the incredible 00:03:26.009 --> 00:03:28.650 power of God. But here's what I've discovered. 00:03:29.530 --> 00:03:32.330 The greatest evidence of God's presence is not 00:03:32.330 --> 00:03:36.250 always His miracles. Sometimes, it's His providence. 00:03:36.689 --> 00:03:38.770 Providence is one of the most beautiful truths 00:03:38.770 --> 00:03:42.389 in the Bible. Simply put, God's providence is 00:03:42.389 --> 00:03:45.990 His invisible hand, guiding history while everyone 00:03:45.990 --> 00:03:49.129 else thinks life is unfolding normally. It is 00:03:49.129 --> 00:03:51.789 God accomplishing His purpose through ordinary 00:03:51.789 --> 00:03:55.550 days, ordinary people, ordinary conversations, 00:03:56.210 --> 00:03:59.349 ordinary decisions. Nothing appears spectacular. 00:04:00.009 --> 00:04:03.870 Nothing seems supernatural. Yet heaven is quietly 00:04:03.870 --> 00:04:07.330 moving every piece into its proper place. Most 00:04:07.330 --> 00:04:10.629 of the people involved don't even realize that 00:04:10.629 --> 00:04:14.250 God is writing the story. That is Providence. 00:04:14.710 --> 00:04:16.990 Listen carefully to what Paul writes in Romans 00:04:16.990 --> 00:04:19.800 chapter 8. And we know that in all things God 00:04:19.800 --> 00:04:22.100 works for the good of those who love him, who 00:04:22.100 --> 00:04:24.540 have been called according to his purpose. Notice 00:04:24.540 --> 00:04:27.540 what Paul does not say. He doesn't say, everything 00:04:27.540 --> 00:04:30.660 is good. The betrayal wasn't good. The sickness 00:04:30.660 --> 00:04:34.060 wasn't good. The injustice wasn't good. The rejection 00:04:34.060 --> 00:04:37.019 wasn't good. The loss wasn't good. Paul isn't 00:04:37.019 --> 00:04:39.660 asking us to pretend evil is good. He's saying 00:04:39.660 --> 00:04:42.660 something much deeper. God is so sovereign that 00:04:42.660 --> 00:04:45.100 he is able to work through every circumstance 00:04:45.100 --> 00:04:48.129 without becoming the author of evil. That changes 00:04:48.129 --> 00:04:51.569 everything, because it means evil never has the 00:04:51.569 --> 00:04:55.110 final word. People make real choices. Some choose 00:04:55.110 --> 00:04:58.689 love. Others choose hatred. Some choose obedience. 00:04:59.230 --> 00:05:02.050 Others choose rebellion. Those choices are real. 00:05:02.449 --> 00:05:05.470 The consequences are real. The pain is real. 00:05:05.810 --> 00:05:09.209 Yet above all of human history stands a God so 00:05:09.209 --> 00:05:12.990 wise, so powerful, so sovereign, that nothing 00:05:12.990 --> 00:05:16.089 catches him by surprise. Nothing forces him to 00:05:16.089 --> 00:05:19.009 rewrite his plan. Nothing can stop his purpose. 00:05:19.329 --> 00:05:22.470 He never panics. He never improvises. Before 00:05:22.470 --> 00:05:25.629 you ever experienced today, he was already standing 00:05:25.629 --> 00:05:27.990 in tomorrow. That's why he can lead you with 00:05:27.990 --> 00:05:30.790 confidence. Because he has already seen the end, 00:05:31.050 --> 00:05:32.810 while you are still trying to understand the 00:05:32.810 --> 00:05:35.670 beginning. Now, let me show you what this looks 00:05:35.670 --> 00:05:39.310 like. Let's begin with Joseph. Not Joseph, the 00:05:39.310 --> 00:05:42.829 husband of Mary. Joseph, the dreamer. If you 00:05:42.829 --> 00:05:46.370 only read Genesis chapter 37, you might conclude, 00:05:46.620 --> 00:05:49.680 that Joseph's life was a complete disaster. His 00:05:49.680 --> 00:05:51.920 own brothers hated him. The people who should 00:05:51.920 --> 00:05:54.819 have protected him betrayed him. They threw him 00:05:54.819 --> 00:05:58.360 into a pit. Imagine that. One day, you're sharing 00:05:58.360 --> 00:06:00.899 the dream God placed in your heart. The next 00:06:00.899 --> 00:06:04.000 day, you're sitting at the bottom of a pit, wondering 00:06:04.000 --> 00:06:06.500 whether you're going to die. Then things became 00:06:06.500 --> 00:06:09.800 even worse. They sold him like property. Can 00:06:09.800 --> 00:06:13.120 you imagine the confusion? Lord, you gave me 00:06:13.120 --> 00:06:16.410 dreams. You gave me promises. Why does my life 00:06:16.410 --> 00:06:18.449 look like it's moving in the opposite direction? 00:06:18.889 --> 00:06:22.329 Have you ever asked that question? Lord, I obeyed 00:06:22.329 --> 00:06:25.290 you. I trusted you. Why does everything seem 00:06:25.290 --> 00:06:28.029 to be getting harder? Joseph probably asked those 00:06:28.029 --> 00:06:31.189 same questions. Then came Potiphar's house. Maybe 00:06:31.189 --> 00:06:34.310 now things are finally improving. Then false 00:06:34.310 --> 00:06:38.389 accusations. Then prison. Years pass. Nothing 00:06:38.389 --> 00:06:41.550 changes. The dreams seem forgotten. Have you 00:06:41.550 --> 00:06:43.850 ever lived through a season where heaven felt 00:06:43.850 --> 00:06:46.990 silent? where every prayer seemed to echo without 00:06:46.990 --> 00:06:49.810 an answer. Joseph knew that feeling. But here's 00:06:49.810 --> 00:06:53.529 what amazes me. The Bible never says, God abandoned 00:06:53.529 --> 00:06:57.370 him. Instead, again and again, the scriptures 00:06:57.370 --> 00:07:00.509 quietly repeat, but the Lord was with Joseph. 00:07:00.910 --> 00:07:03.850 Think about that. God was with him in the pit. 00:07:04.149 --> 00:07:07.629 God was with him as a slave. God was with him 00:07:07.629 --> 00:07:11.509 in prison. His circumstances changed. God's presence 00:07:11.509 --> 00:07:15.050 never did. Sometimes we measure God's faithfulness 00:07:15.050 --> 00:07:18.589 by our circumstances. God measures his faithfulness 00:07:18.589 --> 00:07:21.290 by his presence. Those are two very different 00:07:21.290 --> 00:07:25.149 things. Then, one ordinary morning, everything 00:07:25.149 --> 00:07:28.389 changed. A forgotten prisoner was called before 00:07:28.389 --> 00:07:31.850 Pharaoh. One conversation, one interpretation, 00:07:32.449 --> 00:07:36.290 one appointment, one promotion. Years of preparation 00:07:36.290 --> 00:07:40.290 came together in a single day. Tell me, was that 00:07:40.290 --> 00:07:45.040 coincidence? No. That was Providence. Then Joseph 00:07:45.040 --> 00:07:47.279 stood before the very brothers who betrayed him 00:07:47.279 --> 00:07:49.779 and spoke one of the most remarkable statements 00:07:49.779 --> 00:07:52.579 in all of scripture. You meant evil against me, 00:07:52.879 --> 00:07:55.379 but God meant it for good. Notice what Joseph 00:07:55.379 --> 00:07:58.660 didn't say. He didn't excuse their sin. He didn't 00:07:58.660 --> 00:08:01.540 pretend evil wasn't evil. He called it exactly 00:08:01.540 --> 00:08:04.699 what it was. You meant evil. Your intentions 00:08:04.699 --> 00:08:07.920 were sinful. Your decisions were wrong. You are 00:08:07.920 --> 00:08:10.750 responsible for what you chose. But then Joseph 00:08:10.750 --> 00:08:14.029 lifts our eyes higher. God never lost control. 00:08:14.350 --> 00:08:16.290 While they thought they were destroying Joseph, 00:08:16.769 --> 00:08:19.290 God was preserving a nation. While they thought 00:08:19.290 --> 00:08:22.050 they were ending a dream, God was positioning 00:08:22.050 --> 00:08:24.670 a deliverer. The brothers were making decisions. 00:08:25.089 --> 00:08:29.089 God was writing history. That is Providence. 00:08:29.470 --> 00:08:32.830 Now, let me introduce you to another man, a man 00:08:32.830 --> 00:08:36.110 named Moses. Because if Joseph teaches us that 00:08:36.110 --> 00:08:39.190 God works through betrayal, Moses teaches us 00:08:39.279 --> 00:08:42.460 that God works through waiting. And sometimes, 00:08:42.879 --> 00:08:46.320 waiting is the hardest classroom God will ever 00:08:46.320 --> 00:08:49.580 place us in. We'll begin there next time, because 00:08:49.580 --> 00:08:52.860 what looks like a delay may actually be God preparing 00:08:52.860 --> 00:08:55.240 you for the assignment you've been praying for 00:08:55.240 --> 00:08:59.139 all along. Until then, remember this. You may 00:08:59.139 --> 00:09:01.960 not always recognize God's hand while you're 00:09:01.960 --> 00:09:05.279 living the story, but one day you'll look back 00:09:05.279 --> 00:09:09.320 and discover He was there. guiding every step 00:09:09.320 --> 00:09:13.639 all along, together in faith, together in Christ.