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This Week’s Devotional Topic
THE DIVINE INTENTIONS OF INTERRUPTIONS
How are you doing? Are you disappointed by things, circumstances and choices made by other people that are interrupting your desires and plans? Your heavenly Father loves you and is at work in and around you on your behalf. His intentions have a divine purpose for interruptions. When you are interrupted from a project or the way you were going, remember that God has a plan, “His ways are perfect”, trust, don’t lean your own understanding. His intentions are best.
Much of what we perceive as interruptions affecting what we want or desire are of the Lord. If you stay close to Him through fellowship with the saints and in His word, you will see God’s fingerprints, clearly a sign that He is at work. For example: as Samson’s parents encouraged him to marry someone of their people, they were not pleased that he insisted on marrying a Philistine woman.
Judges 14:4 But his father and his mother knew not that it was of the LORD, that he sought an occasion against the Philistines: for at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel.
Joseph responding to his brothers calls for his mercy after what they had done to him.
Genesis 50:18-20 Then his brothers came and threw themselves down before Joseph. “Look, we are your slaves!” they said. But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.
One important passage that is my “go to” when it comes to recognizing the benefits of God’s divine intentions is in Romans.
Romans 8:26-38 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory. What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us. Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.
Surround yourself with Godly brethren. There is wisdom in a multitude of counselors. As Christ said:
Luke 14:31 “…what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors”.
A very wise man and close friend of mine shared these concepts with me just the other day as I am dwelling on things in my life. His suggestion was that as you consider the events, circumstances around you look at your thoughts and desires. Then talk with the Lord in your heart. Ask Him to show you how to respond. Does God want you to “Continue” what you are doing. Or does He want you to “Stop” it. Maybe He wants you to “Start” something new. Remember these options: Stop, Continue or Start. I hope and pray that this helps you. It is something I will never forget.
Friends, make sure that you are surrounding yourself with brethren, mature Christians who can encourage you and when needed, call you out on something you need to correct to become more like Christ.
This week’s Scripture:
Judges 14:4; Genesis 50:18-20; Romans 8:26-38 and Luke 14:31
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