Welcome to Pomoja Podcast, a ministry of Life
of Christ International Ministries, where we
build stronger lives, deeper faith, and Christ
-centered homes through biblical teaching, practical
wisdom, and life -changing conversations. I'm
your host, Barry Mwamba. Today, we arrive at
what I believe is the heart of this entire series.
We've seen God work through betrayal. We've seen
him work through waiting. We've seen him work
through silence. But today, I want to speak to
everyone. whose life simply doesn't make sense.
Because every believer eventually reaches a chapter
where they stop asking, what is God doing? And
begin asking, Lord, where are you? Maybe that's
where you are today. Nothing seems to fit together.
The promises don't match your circumstances.
The waiting has become exhausting. The suffering
seems unnecessary. And you're wondering, how
could any of this possibly become part of God's
purpose? Let's discover what the scriptures reveal.
Let's begin with Paul. Can you imagine becoming
the greatest missionary in history, only to spend
years in prison? Think about that. If we had
been writing Paul's story, we probably would
have removed the prisons, the beatings, the shipwrecks,
the chains, the false accusations. Because none
of those chapters seem useful, yet God never
wasted them. Paul's imprisonment opened doors
that freedom never could. He stood before governors,
kings, Roman officials. The gospel entered places
Paul could never have reached as a free man.
Even more remarkable, while sitting in prison,
Paul wrote letters. Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians,
Philemon. Letters that continue strengthening
the church nearly 2 ,000 years later. Paul thought
he was chained. The gospel wasn't. What looked
like limitation became multiplication. That is
providence. One thing I've learned from reading
scripture, is this. God rarely tells people the
ending while they're living the middle. Joseph
didn't know. Moses didn't know. David didn't
know. Esther didn't know. Ruth didn't know. Paul
didn't know. Neither did Abraham. Neither did
Mary. Neither did the disciples. But God always
knew. That changes the way I read the Bible,
and it changes the way I look at my own life.
Because perhaps the chapter that makes the least
sense today will one day become the chapter that
makes everything else make sense. Think about
Mary and Martha. They sent a message to Jesus.
Lord, the one you love is sick. Have you ever
noticed what the Bible says next? Jesus loved
them. Then he stayed where he was. That almost
sounds contradictory. If he loved them, why didn't
he leave immediately? Because providence works
according to heaven's timetable. By the time
Jesus arrived, Lazarus had already been dead
four days. To Mary, the story was over. To Martha,
hope had expired. To everyone standing around,
the miracle had come too late. But to Jesus,
the story wasn't finished. Sometimes, God allows
a situation to move beyond what we can fix so
that only He receives the glory. What looked
like delay became revelation. What looked like
disappointment became resurrection. That is providence.
Now think about Abraham. After waiting years
for Isaac, God asks him, to place that very promise
on the altar. Can you imagine walking toward
Mount Moriah? Every step must have been filled
with questions. Isaac finally asked, My father,
where is the lamb? What a question. Abraham didn't
know how God would do it, but he answered with
confidence, the Lord will provide. Notice something.
Faith isn't knowing every detail. Faith is trusting
the character of God when you don't know the
details. At the very moment, everything appeared
lost. God provided a ram. But Abraham's story
was pointing beyond itself. Centuries later,
on another hill, God would not provide a ram.
He would provide his own son. Providence had
already been writing Calvary long before anyone
understood it. Now, lift your eyes to Calvary.
If there has ever been a moment that appeared
to be complete defeat, it was the cross. The
disciples scattered. Hope disappeared. Darkness
covered the earth. The Son of God was nailed
to a cross. Imagine standing there on Friday
afternoon. Would you have called that victory?
No, you would have called it tragedy. You would
have called it failure. You would have called
it the end. But heaven called it redemption.
Satan thought he had won. Religious leaders believed
they had silenced Jesus. Rome thought another
execution had taken place. But Sunday morning
changed everything. The greatest evil ever committed
by humanity became the greatest demonstration
of God's love. The cross teaches us something
we should never forget. Just because something
looks like defeat doesn't mean God has lost control.
Sometimes, what appears to be the end is simply
the place where resurrection begins. Can I ask
you something? What chapter are you living today?
Are you in Joseph's pit, wondering why the people
closest to you have hurt you? Are you in Moses'
wilderness, wondering if your best years are
behind you? Are you standing where David once
stood, being faithful in small things, while
God is preparing you for something greater? Do
you carry Nehemiah's burden, unable to explain
why one particular need keeps breaking your heart?
Are you living in Esther's palace, placed somewhere
you still don't fully understand? Or perhaps
you're walking through Ruth's field, faithfully
doing ordinary things? Never realizing heaven
is preparing extraordinary blessings. Maybe you
feel like Rahab Believing your past has disqualified
you while God is preparing to rewrite your future.
Maybe your heart feels like Hannah's Praying
the same prayer year after year Wondering whether
heaven still remembers your name. Perhaps you're
sitting in Paul's prison Faithfully serving God
yet surrounded by chains. You never expected
Maybe you're standing outside Lazarus' tomb,
convinced that what you've lost is beyond hope.
Or perhaps you're climbing Abraham's mountain,
holding tightly to a promise, while God asks
you to trust Him one more step. Or maybe you're
standing at your own calvary, looking at a chapter
that feels like complete defeat, wondering how
God could possibly bring anything beautiful from
this. Can I encourage you? Don't write the final
chapter while God is still writing the story.
Because providence is rarely understood while
you're living it. It is almost always understood
looking backward. Joseph understood after Egypt.
Moses after Sinai. David after the throne. Nehemiah
after the walls were rebuilt. Esther after her
people were delivered. Ruth. after Boaz, Rahab
after redemption, Hannah after Samuel, Paul after
Rome, the disciples after the resurrection. Perhaps
one day you will too. Maybe today you don't need
another explanation. Maybe what your heart needs
most is confidence. Confidence that the author
has never lost the plot. The God who guided Joseph
is guiding you. The God who prepared Moses is
preparing you. The God who strengthened David
in obscurity is strengthening you in yours. The
God who placed Nehemiah's burden still places
holy burdens in the hearts of his people. The
God who positioned Esther is positioning you.
The God who met Ruth in a field still orders
the steps of his children. The God who redeemed
Rahab still rewrites impossible stories. The
God who remembered Hannah still hears every prayer,
even the ones prayed through tears. The God who
called Lazarus out of the tomb still brings life
where everyone else sees only endings. The God
who provided for Abraham still provides exactly
when his children need him most. The God who
strengthened Paul in prison still walks beside
his people through suffering. And the God who
turned a cross into an empty tomb is still writing
stories that end in his glory. So don't lose
heart. Keep praying. Keep obeying. Keep trusting.
Keep walking. Because one day you'll look back
and you'll realize that the pit led to the palace.
The wilderness led to the promised land. The
battlefield led to the throne. The burden led
to restoration. The field led to redemption.
The prison opened doors no one else could open.
The mountain revealed Jehovah Jireh. The tomb
revealed resurrection. The cross revealed salvation.
And every chapter, even the painful ones, was
held by the faithful hand of a sovereign God.
Then, you won't simply understand your story.
You'll worship the author. because you'll finally
see what heaven saw from the very beginning.
Nothing, absolutely nothing in the hands of God
is ever wasted. Thank you for joining me on this
journey through God's providence. My prayer is
that from this day forward, you will never look
at your life the same way again. Every delay,
every closed door, every unexpected conversation,
every valley, Every victory, every tear, every
unanswered prayer, every painful goodbye, every
unexpected detour, every season of waiting, none
of it has been random. For those who love God
and are called according to his purpose, he is
still working, quietly, faithfully, perfectly.
And even when you cannot trace his hand, you
can trust his heart. Until next time, keep walking
by faith, keep trusting his providence, because
your story is not over. The author is still writing.
Together in faith, together in Christ.