WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.019 Welcome to Pamoja Ministry. There comes a moment 00:00:06.019 --> 00:00:08.880 when you begin looking backward over your life 00:00:08.880 --> 00:00:12.580 differently. You remember people. Some loved 00:00:12.580 --> 00:00:16.260 you. Some believed in you. Some opened doors 00:00:16.260 --> 00:00:19.739 for you. Some carried you through difficult seasons. 00:00:20.039 --> 00:00:23.980 Some taught you. Some corrected you. Some disappointed 00:00:23.980 --> 00:00:28.379 you. Some betrayed you. Some made you cry. Some 00:00:28.379 --> 00:00:32.159 made you pray. Some walked beside you for years. 00:00:32.539 --> 00:00:36.299 Others appeared for only a moment. And sometimes, 00:00:36.759 --> 00:00:39.820 years later, you begin to recognize something 00:00:39.820 --> 00:00:43.039 you could not see while you were living through 00:00:43.039 --> 00:00:46.659 it. God was working through relationships too. 00:00:46.960 --> 00:00:50.640 Not because everything people did was God's will. 00:00:50.920 --> 00:00:54.159 Not because everyone who hurt you was sent by 00:00:54.159 --> 00:00:58.700 God. Not because betrayal suddenly becomes good. 00:00:58.799 --> 00:01:01.859 because something good eventually came from it, 00:01:02.039 --> 00:01:05.920 but because when your life belongs to God, no 00:01:05.920 --> 00:01:09.680 human encounter is beyond his ability to redeem 00:01:09.680 --> 00:01:13.680 and use, and perhaps some of the people you remember 00:01:13.680 --> 00:01:17.400 only by what they did to you need to be reconsidered 00:01:17.400 --> 00:01:20.260 through the larger story of what God was doing 00:01:20.260 --> 00:01:24.579 in you. Today we are talking about the people 00:01:24.579 --> 00:01:30.189 God uses in your process. Joseph's story is filled 00:01:30.189 --> 00:01:34.709 with people. When we think about Joseph, we often 00:01:34.709 --> 00:01:38.349 think about Joseph and God. Joseph received the 00:01:38.349 --> 00:01:41.670 dream. Joseph entered the pit. Joseph became 00:01:41.670 --> 00:01:45.730 a slave. Joseph entered prison. Joseph eventually 00:01:45.730 --> 00:01:48.989 reached Pharaoh's palace. But look more carefully. 00:01:49.870 --> 00:01:53.109 Joseph's journey was filled with people. Jacob 00:01:53.109 --> 00:01:56.950 loved him. His brothers hated him. The Midianite 00:01:56.950 --> 00:02:00.609 traders transported him. Potiphar purchased him. 00:02:00.989 --> 00:02:04.310 Potiphar's wife falsely accused him. The prison 00:02:04.310 --> 00:02:08.030 keeper trusted him. The cup bearer forgot him. 00:02:08.610 --> 00:02:12.169 Pharaoh eventually promoted him. Different people. 00:02:12.889 --> 00:02:16.830 Different motives. Different seasons. Different 00:02:16.830 --> 00:02:21.310 effects. But one story. And this is where Providence 00:02:21.310 --> 00:02:24.439 becomes mysterious. because some people were 00:02:24.439 --> 00:02:28.000 helping Joseph intentionally. Others were hurting 00:02:28.000 --> 00:02:31.699 him intentionally. Yet God remained sovereign 00:02:31.699 --> 00:02:35.620 over where the story was going. Joseph's brothers 00:02:35.620 --> 00:02:39.360 never said, let us help Joseph fulfill his dream. 00:02:40.240 --> 00:02:43.319 They wanted the opposite. They saw him coming 00:02:43.319 --> 00:02:47.939 and said, essentially, let's see what becomes 00:02:47.939 --> 00:02:52.000 of his dreams. They believed removing Joseph 00:02:52.000 --> 00:02:55.840 would remove the dream, but their actions eventually 00:02:55.840 --> 00:02:59.159 moved Joseph toward the geographical location 00:02:59.159 --> 00:03:03.460 where the dream would unfold. Think about that. 00:03:03.800 --> 00:03:06.500 They were fighting what they did not realize 00:03:06.500 --> 00:03:09.759 they were helping position. That does not make 00:03:09.759 --> 00:03:13.379 their betrayal righteous. Their intentions were 00:03:13.379 --> 00:03:17.680 evil. Joseph himself eventually tells them, you 00:03:17.680 --> 00:03:21.000 meant evil against me. but God meant it for good. 00:03:22.080 --> 00:03:25.340 Human intention and divine providence were operating 00:03:25.340 --> 00:03:28.439 in the same story, but they were not morally 00:03:28.439 --> 00:03:32.800 the same thing. They meant evil. God produced 00:03:32.800 --> 00:03:38.360 good. Some people will bless you. There are people 00:03:38.360 --> 00:03:42.479 God allows to enter our lives whose role is obvious. 00:03:42.879 --> 00:03:46.419 They encourage us. They believe in us. They pray 00:03:46.419 --> 00:03:49.939 for us. They support us. They correct us with 00:03:49.939 --> 00:03:53.159 love. They stand beside us when everybody else 00:03:53.159 --> 00:03:57.139 disappears. Paul had Barnabas. David had Jonathan. 00:03:57.800 --> 00:04:02.159 Moses had Aaron and Her. Ruth had Naomi. Timothy 00:04:02.159 --> 00:04:05.840 had Paul. There are seasons when God answers 00:04:05.840 --> 00:04:09.840 prayers through people. You pray, God, help me. 00:04:10.099 --> 00:04:13.060 And God sends someone who says, how can I help? 00:04:13.439 --> 00:04:17.889 You pray, God, encourage me. and someone's phone 00:04:17.889 --> 00:04:21.149 call arrives at exactly the right moment. You 00:04:21.149 --> 00:04:23.889 pray for direction and someone says something 00:04:23.889 --> 00:04:27.810 they may not even realize God will use. You are 00:04:27.810 --> 00:04:30.670 exhausted and someone helps carry the weight. 00:04:30.889 --> 00:04:35.149 Never become so spiritual that you fail to recognize 00:04:35.149 --> 00:04:38.709 when God's provision arrives wearing a human 00:04:38.709 --> 00:04:44.009 face. Sometimes the miracle is a person. Some 00:04:44.009 --> 00:04:47.379 people will correct you. Then there are people 00:04:47.379 --> 00:04:50.980 whose role is less comfortable. They tell you 00:04:50.980 --> 00:04:54.220 something you do not want to hear. Nathan stood 00:04:54.220 --> 00:04:58.040 before David. David was king. Nathan could have 00:04:58.040 --> 00:05:01.680 remained silent. But Nathan said, you are the 00:05:01.680 --> 00:05:05.060 man. Correction became part of David's refining 00:05:05.060 --> 00:05:10.259 process. We often pray, God, show me what is 00:05:10.259 --> 00:05:14.910 wrong. Then God uses someone to show us. and 00:05:14.910 --> 00:05:18.470 we become angry with the person. Sometimes the 00:05:18.470 --> 00:05:21.389 answer to your prayer for growth arrives as correction. 00:05:22.410 --> 00:05:25.290 That does not mean every criticism is from God. 00:05:25.990 --> 00:05:29.769 People can criticize from jealousy, misunderstanding, 00:05:30.529 --> 00:05:34.529 insecurity, or their own wounds. That is why 00:05:34.529 --> 00:05:38.069 discernment matters. But neither should we reject 00:05:38.069 --> 00:05:41.310 every uncomfortable voice simply because it makes 00:05:41.310 --> 00:05:45.050 us uncomfortable. Sometimes God places someone 00:05:45.050 --> 00:05:49.050 close enough to us to see what applause has prevented 00:05:49.050 --> 00:05:53.670 us from seeing. A wise person learns to ask, 00:05:54.069 --> 00:05:58.449 God, even if I dislike how this was said, is 00:05:58.449 --> 00:06:00.709 there something here you want me to examine? 00:06:01.610 --> 00:06:07.009 That is maturity. Some people will make you pray. 00:06:07.319 --> 00:06:09.860 then there are people you probably would never 00:06:09.860 --> 00:06:12.839 have selected for your story. Difficult people. 00:06:13.319 --> 00:06:16.800 Opposition. People who misunderstand you. People 00:06:16.800 --> 00:06:19.860 who challenge your patience. People whose behavior 00:06:19.860 --> 00:06:23.259 drives you back into the presence of God. And 00:06:23.259 --> 00:06:27.839 again, we need theological maturity. Do not automatically 00:06:27.839 --> 00:06:32.360 say, God sent this person to torment me. We do 00:06:32.360 --> 00:06:36.870 not know that. But we can say, God. Since this 00:06:36.870 --> 00:06:39.949 person is in this chapter of my life, do not 00:06:39.949 --> 00:06:43.269 allow this experience to be wasted. Maybe their 00:06:43.269 --> 00:06:47.329 behavior exposes your anger. Maybe their criticism 00:06:47.329 --> 00:06:51.329 exposes your insecurity. Maybe their opposition 00:06:51.329 --> 00:06:54.310 strengthens your prayer life. Maybe dealing with 00:06:54.310 --> 00:06:57.949 them teaches you boundaries. Maybe their dishonesty 00:06:57.949 --> 00:07:01.449 teaches you discernment. Maybe their rejection 00:07:01.449 --> 00:07:04.779 teaches you that your identity cannot depend 00:07:04.779 --> 00:07:08.519 upon human approval. Maybe their pressure teaches 00:07:08.519 --> 00:07:11.639 you how to remain peaceful without controlling 00:07:11.639 --> 00:07:15.339 everybody around you. You may never thank God 00:07:15.339 --> 00:07:18.920 for what somebody did wrong, but one day you 00:07:18.920 --> 00:07:22.100 may thank Him for what He developed in you while 00:07:22.100 --> 00:07:27.459 you were dealing with it. Some people teach you 00:07:27.459 --> 00:07:31.379 what not to become. Not every teacher teaches 00:07:31.379 --> 00:07:35.209 by example. Some people teach by warning you 00:07:35.209 --> 00:07:38.209 encounter a leader who humiliates people and 00:07:38.209 --> 00:07:42.470 you learn if God ever gives me authority I don't 00:07:42.470 --> 00:07:45.949 want to lead like that You experience someone's 00:07:45.949 --> 00:07:50.250 dishonesty and you decide I want integrity to 00:07:50.250 --> 00:07:54.629 define me You experience abandonment and it makes 00:07:54.629 --> 00:07:57.350 you more sensitive to people who feel forgotten 00:07:57.350 --> 00:08:02.110 You experience harshness and it develops compassion 00:08:02.430 --> 00:08:06.889 You experience betrayal. And after healing, you 00:08:06.889 --> 00:08:11.029 understand why loyalty matters. Sometimes somebody 00:08:11.029 --> 00:08:13.930 else's character becomes a mirror showing you 00:08:13.930 --> 00:08:18.110 the kind of person you refuse to become. Even 00:08:18.110 --> 00:08:22.310 that can become part of refinement. Some people 00:08:22.310 --> 00:08:26.649 are for a season. This may be difficult for some 00:08:26.649 --> 00:08:30.149 of us. We sometimes assume that because someone 00:08:30.149 --> 00:08:33.620 was important in one chapter, they must remain 00:08:33.620 --> 00:08:37.580 equally important in every chapter. But scripture 00:08:37.580 --> 00:08:40.539 shows relationships changing across seasons. 00:08:41.220 --> 00:08:43.919 There are people who help you in one place, but 00:08:43.919 --> 00:08:47.399 cannot accompany you everywhere. That does not 00:08:47.399 --> 00:08:51.080 always mean somebody did something wrong. Sometimes 00:08:51.080 --> 00:08:55.519 assignments change, geography changes, responsibilities 00:08:55.519 --> 00:09:00.669 change, capacity changes, life changes. Paul 00:09:00.669 --> 00:09:03.409 and Barnabas ministered together powerfully, 00:09:03.809 --> 00:09:06.529 yet later separated after serious disagreement. 00:09:07.309 --> 00:09:10.450 Their separation was painful enough that scripture 00:09:10.450 --> 00:09:14.190 records it, yet ministry continued. Barnabas 00:09:14.190 --> 00:09:18.649 went with Mark. Paul went with Silas. And later, 00:09:18.950 --> 00:09:22.210 Paul himself would speak positively about Mark. 00:09:22.909 --> 00:09:26.419 The story continued. Sometimes a relationship 00:09:26.419 --> 00:09:30.220 changes without requiring us to rewrite the entire 00:09:30.220 --> 00:09:33.620 relationship as a mistake. Something can have 00:09:33.620 --> 00:09:36.720 been meaningful and still have been seasonal. 00:09:37.240 --> 00:09:40.820 That is important. You do not have to demonize 00:09:40.820 --> 00:09:44.379 someone simply because the season changed. You 00:09:44.379 --> 00:09:47.480 can honor what was good without forcing what 00:09:47.480 --> 00:09:52.200 has ended. Don't force people to remain in a 00:09:52.200 --> 00:09:57.039 chapter God has closed. Sometimes we spend enormous 00:09:57.039 --> 00:10:00.139 emotional energy trying to keep people in positions 00:10:00.139 --> 00:10:04.799 they no longer occupy. We keep reopening conversations, 00:10:05.240 --> 00:10:08.799 revisiting old relationships, trying to recreate 00:10:08.799 --> 00:10:12.759 old seasons, trying to force yesterday's connection 00:10:12.759 --> 00:10:16.820 into today's assignment. But refinement sometimes 00:10:16.820 --> 00:10:20.919 includes learning to release, not in anger, not 00:10:20.919 --> 00:10:23.940 in bitterness. Not through public humiliation, 00:10:24.340 --> 00:10:28.059 but with maturity. Thank God for what was good. 00:10:28.480 --> 00:10:31.980 Learn from what was painful. Forgive what needs 00:10:31.980 --> 00:10:35.360 forgiveness. Take responsibility for what was 00:10:35.360 --> 00:10:39.080 yours. And continue walking. Because sometimes 00:10:39.080 --> 00:10:42.379 the problem is not that somebody left. The problem 00:10:42.379 --> 00:10:45.679 is that emotionally, you never allowed them to 00:10:45.679 --> 00:10:50.320 leave. Some people introduce you to the next 00:10:50.320 --> 00:10:54.450 room. Then there are relationships that appear 00:10:54.450 --> 00:10:57.330 small when they begin but become significant 00:10:57.330 --> 00:11:01.990 later Joseph met the cup bearer in prison at 00:11:01.990 --> 00:11:05.769 the time. He was simply another prisoner Joseph 00:11:05.769 --> 00:11:09.210 interpreted his dream the cup bearer was restored 00:11:09.210 --> 00:11:14.809 Then he forgot Joseph two more years passed Imagine 00:11:14.809 --> 00:11:17.690 Joseph's disappointment the person who could 00:11:17.690 --> 00:11:21.039 have helped him forgot him But when Pharaoh dreamed 00:11:21.039 --> 00:11:23.740 and nobody could interpret it, the cup bearer 00:11:23.740 --> 00:11:27.620 remembered. One relationship, one conversation, 00:11:28.039 --> 00:11:33.000 one interpretation. Years later, a door opened. 00:11:33.779 --> 00:11:36.399 You don't always know which encounter will matter 00:11:36.399 --> 00:11:39.860 later. That is why we should treat people with 00:11:39.860 --> 00:11:43.159 dignity, even when we cannot see what role they 00:11:43.159 --> 00:11:47.139 may have in our future. Not because we manipulate 00:11:47.139 --> 00:11:50.460 relationships for advancement. but because God 00:11:50.460 --> 00:11:55.779 connects stories in ways we cannot predict. And 00:11:55.779 --> 00:11:59.679 some people will forget you. This deserves attention. 00:12:00.200 --> 00:12:04.340 The cup bearer forgot Joseph, and perhaps Joseph 00:12:04.340 --> 00:12:08.700 thought, this was my opportunity. But Joseph's 00:12:08.700 --> 00:12:11.259 promotion did not depend ultimately upon the 00:12:11.259 --> 00:12:14.340 cup bearer's memory. When the appointed moment 00:12:14.340 --> 00:12:18.580 came, the memory returned. Sometimes we become 00:12:18.580 --> 00:12:21.240 frustrated because somebody who could help us 00:12:21.240 --> 00:12:25.399 does not help us. They forgot. They moved on. 00:12:25.860 --> 00:12:29.100 They didn't make the call. They didn't recommend 00:12:29.100 --> 00:12:33.220 us. They didn't open the door. But if God has 00:12:33.220 --> 00:12:36.679 attached purpose to your life, your future is 00:12:36.679 --> 00:12:40.000 not imprisoned inside another person's willingness 00:12:40.000 --> 00:12:44.460 to remember you. People can forget you. God does 00:12:44.460 --> 00:12:48.580 not. And when the right moment arrives, God knows 00:12:48.580 --> 00:12:51.480 how to bring your name into rooms you cannot 00:12:51.480 --> 00:12:56.659 enter by yourself. Remember this principle. Don't 00:12:56.659 --> 00:12:59.919 build your purpose around people. This is where 00:12:59.919 --> 00:13:04.539 balance becomes necessary. People matter. Relationships 00:13:04.539 --> 00:13:08.279 matter. Community matters. Mentorship matters. 00:13:08.720 --> 00:13:12.179 Family matters. Friendship matters. But people 00:13:12.179 --> 00:13:15.559 are not God. Do not make somebody so important 00:13:15.559 --> 00:13:18.659 to your future that their departure convinces 00:13:18.659 --> 00:13:22.399 you your purpose departed with them. Joseph's 00:13:22.399 --> 00:13:26.259 brothers could not cancel his dream. Potiphar's 00:13:26.259 --> 00:13:29.960 wife could not cancel his dream. The prison could 00:13:29.960 --> 00:13:34.179 not cancel his dream. The cup bearer's forgetfulness 00:13:34.179 --> 00:13:38.139 could not cancel his dream. Because the dream 00:13:38.139 --> 00:13:41.799 did not originate with them. What people did 00:13:41.799 --> 00:13:45.720 not give you People do not have ultimate authority 00:13:45.720 --> 00:13:49.700 to take away from you. If God entrusted the purpose, 00:13:50.120 --> 00:13:54.379 remain faithful to God. But there is another 00:13:54.379 --> 00:13:58.639 side. Be careful who you give access to. Not 00:13:58.639 --> 00:14:01.179 everybody should have equal access to your life. 00:14:01.860 --> 00:14:05.139 We learned in conversation five. Bad company 00:14:05.139 --> 00:14:09.759 can water bad seeds. First, Corinthians 1533. 00:14:09.960 --> 00:14:13.559 warns that bad company corrupts good character. 00:14:14.700 --> 00:14:18.960 Jesus loved everybody. But Jesus did not give 00:14:18.960 --> 00:14:22.240 everybody the same level of access. There were 00:14:22.240 --> 00:14:25.200 crowds. There were disciples. There were the 00:14:25.200 --> 00:14:28.820 twelve. And there were moments when Peter, James, 00:14:28.980 --> 00:14:33.200 and John were brought even closer. Love can be 00:14:33.200 --> 00:14:38.200 universal. Access should be discerning. You can 00:14:38.200 --> 00:14:41.419 forgive someone without restoring the same level 00:14:41.419 --> 00:14:45.200 of access. You can love someone without allowing 00:14:45.200 --> 00:14:48.840 them to influence your decisions. You can pray 00:14:48.840 --> 00:14:51.639 for someone without making them your counselor. 00:14:52.539 --> 00:14:55.600 You can wish someone well without bringing them 00:14:55.600 --> 00:14:58.679 back into a place where they repeatedly weakened 00:14:58.679 --> 00:15:02.960 your boundaries. Refinement includes learning 00:15:02.960 --> 00:15:07.059 who can speak into your life. Maybe instead of 00:15:07.059 --> 00:15:11.779 asking only, do I like this person? Ask, what 00:15:11.779 --> 00:15:14.980 does this relationship produce in me? Does it 00:15:14.980 --> 00:15:18.059 strengthen my faith? Does it encourage integrity? 00:15:18.759 --> 00:15:22.360 Does it respect my marriage? Does it strengthen 00:15:22.360 --> 00:15:26.200 my discipline? Does it challenge me toward purpose? 00:15:26.820 --> 00:15:30.240 Can this person correct me? Can I tell them the 00:15:30.240 --> 00:15:34.179 truth? Can they tell me the truth? Or does this 00:15:34.179 --> 00:15:37.580 relationship continually normalize compromise, 00:15:38.039 --> 00:15:41.840 feed resentment, encourage gossip, weaken boundaries, 00:15:42.559 --> 00:15:46.279 increase secrecy, pull me away from prayer, make 00:15:46.279 --> 00:15:49.840 disobedience easier, relationships are seeds 00:15:49.840 --> 00:15:54.460 too, and relationships produce harvests. God 00:15:54.460 --> 00:15:57.500 may use people without allowing them to stay. 00:15:58.700 --> 00:16:01.179 Here is something else we need to understand. 00:16:01.480 --> 00:16:04.600 Someone can be important to your process without 00:16:04.600 --> 00:16:08.139 being permanent in your life. The person who 00:16:08.139 --> 00:16:11.120 helped you through one valley may not be assigned 00:16:11.120 --> 00:16:14.980 to your next mountain. The person who introduced 00:16:14.980 --> 00:16:17.980 you to something may not be the person who helps 00:16:17.980 --> 00:16:21.580 you build it. The person who taught you one lesson 00:16:21.580 --> 00:16:26.200 may not remain for the entire journey. And sometimes 00:16:26.200 --> 00:16:29.759 we dishonor a season because we demand permanence 00:16:29.759 --> 00:16:33.700 from something God used temporarily. Instead, 00:16:34.259 --> 00:16:38.320 learn to say, Thank you, God, for what this relationship 00:16:38.320 --> 00:16:41.879 produced during its season. And when appropriate, 00:16:42.419 --> 00:16:46.720 release it peacefully. A question remains. What 00:16:46.720 --> 00:16:51.019 about the people who hurt you? Now we arrive 00:16:51.019 --> 00:16:54.240 at the hardest category. What about betrayal? 00:16:54.539 --> 00:16:58.500 What about false accusation? What about rejection? 00:16:59.340 --> 00:17:02.159 What about somebody who intentionally tried to 00:17:02.159 --> 00:17:05.839 harm you? Joseph eventually stood before the 00:17:05.839 --> 00:17:09.079 brothers who sold him. He now possessed authority. 00:17:09.359 --> 00:17:13.000 He could retaliate. He could imprison them. He 00:17:13.000 --> 00:17:17.539 could humiliate them. Instead, Joseph had developed 00:17:17.539 --> 00:17:21.460 enough perspective to say, you meant evil against 00:17:21.460 --> 00:17:25.720 me, but God meant it for good. Notice what Joseph 00:17:25.720 --> 00:17:30.079 did not say. He did not say, what you did was 00:17:30.079 --> 00:17:34.160 good. He called it evil. But he also understood 00:17:34.160 --> 00:17:37.579 something greater. Their intention did not determine 00:17:37.579 --> 00:17:41.559 his ending. That is freedom. When you can acknowledge 00:17:41.559 --> 00:17:44.619 what happened without allowing what happened 00:17:44.619 --> 00:17:48.460 to become the final interpretation of your life. 00:17:48.900 --> 00:17:52.200 They may have meant harm, but they do not own 00:17:52.200 --> 00:17:56.339 the conclusion. Don't give your enemies too much 00:17:56.339 --> 00:18:00.059 credit. Sometimes we talk more about what enemies 00:18:00.059 --> 00:18:03.680 are doing than what God is doing. The enemy blocked 00:18:03.680 --> 00:18:07.440 me. The enemy attacked me. The enemy delayed 00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:11.519 me. The enemy sent this person. The enemy closed 00:18:11.519 --> 00:18:14.940 this door. And eventually our theology makes 00:18:14.940 --> 00:18:20.019 the enemy sound almost sovereign. He isn't. Joseph's 00:18:20.019 --> 00:18:23.329 brothers had intentions. Potiphar's wife had 00:18:23.329 --> 00:18:27.150 intentions. The cup bearer had failures. But 00:18:27.150 --> 00:18:30.369 above all of those human decisions stood the 00:18:30.369 --> 00:18:33.990 providence of God. This doesn't mean God approved 00:18:33.990 --> 00:18:37.950 their actions. It means their actions were incapable 00:18:37.950 --> 00:18:41.609 of overthrowing his redemptive purpose. That 00:18:41.609 --> 00:18:46.309 is a very different kind of confidence. Maybe 00:18:46.309 --> 00:18:50.140 you don't understand their role yet. Some relationships 00:18:50.140 --> 00:18:54.259 only make sense later. Joseph could not fully 00:18:54.259 --> 00:18:57.740 interpret his brother from inside the pit. He 00:18:57.740 --> 00:19:00.660 could not fully interpret Potiphar's house from 00:19:00.660 --> 00:19:04.160 inside the prison. He could not fully interpret 00:19:04.160 --> 00:19:07.599 the cupbearer's forgetfulness during those additional 00:19:07.599 --> 00:19:11.559 years of waiting. But eventually, perspective 00:19:11.559 --> 00:19:15.240 changed, and maybe there are people in your story 00:19:15.240 --> 00:19:19.339 you cannot interpret yet. Don't rush. Don't make 00:19:19.339 --> 00:19:22.420 permanent theological conclusions from temporary 00:19:22.420 --> 00:19:26.380 pain. You may not know yet what God is producing. 00:19:27.160 --> 00:19:30.299 You may not know what this relationship is teaching 00:19:30.299 --> 00:19:34.140 you. You may not know what boundary is being 00:19:34.140 --> 00:19:37.900 developed. You may not know what prayer life 00:19:37.900 --> 00:19:41.720 is being born. You may not know what discernment 00:19:41.819 --> 00:19:45.500 is being sharpened. You may not know what future 00:19:45.500 --> 00:19:48.200 person will benefit from what you are learning 00:19:48.200 --> 00:19:54.079 today. You are still inside the chapter. This 00:19:54.079 --> 00:19:58.319 principle remains true. God uses people, but 00:19:58.319 --> 00:20:02.079 God remains the source. So appreciate the people 00:20:02.079 --> 00:20:05.839 who bless you. Honor the people who support you. 00:20:06.039 --> 00:20:09.640 Listen to wise correction. Forgive those who 00:20:09.640 --> 00:20:13.180 hurt you. establish boundaries where necessary, 00:20:13.880 --> 00:20:17.140 release relationships whose seasons have ended, 00:20:17.559 --> 00:20:20.940 learn from difficult people, and remain open 00:20:20.940 --> 00:20:24.259 to the new people God may bring into your life. 00:20:24.640 --> 00:20:27.519 But never confuse the instrument with the source. 00:20:28.099 --> 00:20:32.079 People can help you. God is your source. People 00:20:32.079 --> 00:20:35.539 can encourage you. God is your source. People 00:20:35.539 --> 00:20:39.519 can open doors. God is your source. People can 00:20:39.519 --> 00:20:43.359 recommend you God is your source People can forget 00:20:43.359 --> 00:20:47.039 you God is still your source People can walk 00:20:47.039 --> 00:20:51.680 away God is still your source People can misunderstand 00:20:51.680 --> 00:20:55.819 you God is still your source People can even 00:20:55.819 --> 00:21:01.000 intentionally oppose you God remains your source 00:21:01.000 --> 00:21:06.069 You have been refined through relationships Maybe 00:21:06.069 --> 00:21:08.990 some of the greatest refining fires of your life 00:21:08.990 --> 00:21:13.430 came through people. They exposed your impatience. 00:21:13.869 --> 00:21:17.670 They exposed your need for approval. They exposed 00:21:17.670 --> 00:21:21.349 your anger. They exposed your fear of rejection. 00:21:22.029 --> 00:21:25.349 They exposed your inability to establish boundaries. 00:21:25.890 --> 00:21:29.849 They exposed your tendency to retaliate. But 00:21:29.849 --> 00:21:33.069 perhaps God is using those experiences to produce 00:21:33.069 --> 00:21:36.789 something different now. wisdom, discernment, 00:21:37.210 --> 00:21:41.049 boundaries, forgiveness, patience, humility, 00:21:41.710 --> 00:21:45.650 compassion, dependence upon Him. You cannot always 00:21:45.650 --> 00:21:49.309 choose who enters the story. But by the grace 00:21:49.309 --> 00:21:53.089 of God, you can choose what the experience produces 00:21:53.089 --> 00:21:56.750 in you. So don't waste the relationship. Don't 00:21:56.750 --> 00:21:59.809 waste the disappointment. Don't waste the correction. 00:22:00.230 --> 00:22:03.369 Don't waste the encouragement. Don't waste the 00:22:03.369 --> 00:22:07.049 betrayal. Don't waste the support. Don't waste 00:22:07.049 --> 00:22:11.009 the lesson. Bring all of it before God and ask, 00:22:11.130 --> 00:22:15.109 God, what are you teaching me through this? Because 00:22:15.109 --> 00:22:17.970 some people will bless you. Some will correct 00:22:17.970 --> 00:22:21.450 you. Some will challenge you. Some will make 00:22:21.450 --> 00:22:25.329 you pray. Some will teach you boundaries. Some 00:22:25.329 --> 00:22:29.069 will introduce you to another room. Some will 00:22:29.069 --> 00:22:33.349 stay. Some will leave. but none of them possess 00:22:33.349 --> 00:22:37.329 final authority over your purpose. God does. 00:22:37.730 --> 00:22:40.849 And when your life is surrendered to Him, He 00:22:40.849 --> 00:22:44.289 is able to take even the relationships you did 00:22:44.289 --> 00:22:47.750 not understand and weave their lessons into the 00:22:47.750 --> 00:22:51.269 person you are becoming. You are learning. You 00:22:51.269 --> 00:22:55.259 are discerning. You are forgiving. You are establishing 00:22:55.259 --> 00:22:59.259 boundaries. You are becoming wiser about access. 00:22:59.640 --> 00:23:03.140 You are becoming less dependent upon human approval. 00:23:03.500 --> 00:23:07.140 You are becoming more dependent upon God. You 00:23:07.140 --> 00:23:11.099 are being refined for a purpose. This is Pomoja 00:23:11.099 --> 00:23:14.339 Ministry. And in our next conversation, we will 00:23:14.339 --> 00:23:17.559 discover that sometimes God does not only use 00:23:17.559 --> 00:23:22.099 people to move us. Sometimes he uses discomfort. 00:23:22.349 --> 00:23:25.470 Because there are places we would remain forever 00:23:25.470 --> 00:23:28.849 if staying there continued to feel comfortable.