Divine Encounters

Chief cup bearer and the chief baker!

Genesis 40:3”So he put them( the chief cup bearer and the chief baker) in confinement in the house of the captain of the bodyguard, in the jail, the same place where Joseph was imprisoned.”

It is midnight 1.20 am, August 15, 2020, Saturday, as I write this portion, sitting alone in my room, during my night prayer and Bible study, I had to put this revelation down:

Divine appointments: Listen to me, these guys who entered the prison of Joseph were not just ordinary people but they were ‘chief’ in their respective area of work, they were men of rank, trusted to oversee other staff, they had offended the king so they were thrown into the prison and special mention is made here that they were kept in the ‘same place’ where Joseph was imprisoned. Never for a moment think that God has forgotten you, in the darkest hour of your life, God is bringing people into your life that you may not recognize at that point of time. Amen.

When my husband and I arrived Hyderabad to first find out about the city, school admission for my son and also rent a house. We felt like kinder garden students lost in the city with very little money in our pockets, we were given the address of a school principal for school admission for my son in class 5. Our first visit was her office, as I sat there in her office, I shared my testimony of resigning my job and joining the Lord’s work as full-time servant, she was controlling her tears. She then not only arranged for my son’s school admission but she rented her beautiful house for us, our work was over within few hours and we left for the railway station with mission accomplished. Divine appointments will be organized by God!

Anointing on Joseph: Joseph was a man of vision, he was closely monitoring people around him, if not he would have missed the golden opportunity for his release. A man with focus would not carelessly walk around but would always be cautious to find out where he could be of any help. He was young, away from home, wrongly accused and imprisoned; yet, Joseph was shining, he had all the skills and wisdom for managerial positions, he had great interpersonal skills, leadership qualities, decisiveness, communication skills, confidence, responsibility, empathy and focus. No wonder he was put as ‘In-charge’ over all the prisoners! (Genesis 39:22) Where did he get them all? The answer is in verse 23: The chief jailer did not supervise anything under Joseph's charge because the LORD was with him; and whatever he did, the LORD made to prosper.” Wow! Give God a hand of praise! This is what you achieve when you be close to God! People would ask me, ‘where did your son learn keyboard lessons?’, people want it the worldly way but the answer is in your connection with God.

I would like to share my personal story for the glory of God and to help a mother or father who are worried about their kid. My son Joshua never opened his mouth to sing or clap hands during worship for first 12-13 years of his life, he would have his mouth tightly clipped; however, my husband and I would fast and pray for my children exclusively on Wednesdays. One day I heard his recorded voice in the mobile worshipping God and I wept my heart out in gratitude towards God. Today he is a young pastor, pursuing further studies - Masters in Divinity, singer, keyboard player and worship leader connected with a music band. All glory to Jesus! Let us do it God’s way and reap heaps of blessings! Put your children in the Sunday class, teach them the Bible at a young age, be patient with them, don’t judge them, don’t expect things speedily from them, hold the feet of God for your children. That’s it.

Overflow vessel: Genesis 40:8”Then Joseph said to them, "Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell it to me, please." I am too spellbound to speak on this, the world today needs more of Joseph. The world today needs someone to tell them,

• I have the answer for your solution through the God I serve, I will help you.

• Don’t be sad, come to me

• What is your problem, I will pray for you

• What is wrong with you?

• May I help you?

• That’s ok , God understands you (alas! many today are busy on mobiles and facebook)

We need more of Peters today to tell the world, “ I have no gold or silver but I have the name of Jesus” and lift the hands of hopeless people.

We need more of Apostle Pauls’ today to say, “ Imitate me!” When we say this, people would think you are boasting or being proud but the world today wants to see living proof of people serving Jesus and also would like to see the love, kindness and power of Jesus work through us. Anybody listening? I am just excited to preach this today! I saw a rag-picker carrying a baby on her back in the sweltering hot sun of Hyderabad and go about collecting garbage from homes. These people are addicted to toddy and they have very stern faces while doing their job and they don’t talk much, one day I stopped her and told her to leave her kids in my ‘Children Home’, she refused to talk to me. I kept talking to her again and again, one day I made tea and drank with her, she melted little bit. She said, ‘ I will leave my 3 children with you if you open your ‘Home” at 6.30 am in the morning. I said ok. This created a big problem in my home, they said,’who would be crazy to open at 6.30 am?’ I was firm, I cooked food for the children, carried it in my bag, took the keys and left to open the “Children Home” sharp 6.20 am. She was there much before time, after ten years I write this portion, she got saved, took water baptism and her three children are continuing their studies. The world needs a helping hand, listening ears and kind words to tell them,” Tell it to me please!”