Psalm 105:19

"Until the time that his word came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him."  Isn't that amazing!?!  The Lord tested Joseph before He fulfilled His promise.  So many times it looked as if the promise of the Lord would never come to pass.  Then things would look up for Joseph, for example, When he was in Potipher's house.  It looks like everything is going to turn out for good, then he gets thrown in jail for something he didn't do.  After being there for a while things begin to seem to be turning towards the fulfillment of God's promise again.  The cup bearer is going to tell Pharaoh about Joseph! He's going to get out for sure! How excited Joseph must have been with these thoughts.  But wait, this is not God's plan. God says, "No, not yet.  It is not time for Joseph to be exalted just yet.  I want him to trust me and not a man putting in a good word for him"  And so the cup bearer forgets.  He is enjoying being free and having his old job back.  He's enjoying being free so much that he forgets all about the promise that he made to Joseph.  How typical this is of men.  They will make promises and then they forget.  But this is not so with God! God never forgot Joseph or the promise He made to Joseph.  He was simply teaching and testing him.  Finally when the time came, God once again brought Joseph into the mind of the cup bearer.  Joseph came in at the perfect time and God helped him save the lives of an entire nation. 
God does not forget what He has promised.

What is the Worth of a Life that isn't Lived for Christ?

    What is the worth of a life that is not lived for God? The obvious answer to this question is nothing.  A life without God is worth absolutely Nothing! But why is your life worthless without God?  It's worthless because that's the whole reason why you were made.  You were made to live your life for Him.  You were made to glorify Him.  When you don't follow Him and glorify Him in your life then  you aren't doing the very thing that you were created to do. 
      If this is what I was created for then why do I so often, even as a Christian, live for myself.  When will I learn "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me." Galatians 2:20

Life

As I was sitting in the cemetery  I thought about the brevity of life. As I walked around looking at the tombstones   it occurred to me that these were people just like me. They had a life, a family, friends, things that they enjoyed doing, and things that they despised.  They laughed and they cried.  They loved people and, at times, were hurt by those very same people. They each had their own story; their own quirks.  They lived a life that was unique, but now they are gone.  There is nothing left to show that they were here, except for a cold lifeless stone stating the facts: name, birth, death.  Even those things may not be seen on the tombstones.  Some of the names are hard to read because they have been worn away with the years and changing of the season. Some of the tombstones have fallen or can not be found because they are buried under the dirt now. Some of these graves, I am sad to say, have had moles and other creatures digging through them, but this is reality! We are born, we live, we die.  This is all there is to this, right? Wrong!  That can not be it, that can't be the only reason we live.  If all there is to this world is to live and die, to be forgotten then what is the point of living in the first place?  Though these people are dead in physically their soul is still alive.  I sat looking at the tombstones and I wondered how many knew their Father in life and therefore are with Him now.  I wonder how many had a stiff neck and refused to come to Christ in life and as a consequence are paying for their own sins in eternal destruction.  Who were the religious ones, who put faith in their own works? Who were the ones who did not seek but were found? Who were the ones that walked many years with God or the ones who found Him as the thief on the cross did, in the last moments? Are they among the forgotten? Their Father has not forgotten them even if man has.  God had a purpose for them and knew what their life and death would bring in the end.  Praise Him! Though I may be forgotten by man, my accomplishments along with my failures, God won't forget me.  He will remember the things I have accomplished through Christ in this life and because of Christ my failures (sins) have been paid for already.  I stand before God clothed in the righteousness of Christ in life as well as death!

Thoughts on Luke 5:4-6

"...He [Jesus] said to Simon,'Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.' Simon answered and said,'Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but I will do as you say and let down the nets.' When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish, and their nets began to break."
Jesus told Simon to cast out again knowing that they had fished all night. After fishing for so long surely Simon was tired. He probably wanted to just give up, go home, and go to sleep. Not only had he fished all night, but he had not caught a single fish. Simon had nothing to show for all of his hard work. Despite being tired and discouraged he did as the Lord had commanded him and cast out yet again. Surely he thought that nothing would come of it this time. Surely he had his doubts and was only doing it because he knew it was right to obey. What a surprise Simon had then when he cast out his net again and "when they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish"! Surely Simon and all the men were amazed and filled with joy! Having followed the Lord they received more than they had ever thought possible.
When Simon and the men used their own knowledge of fishing they did not catch anything, but when they listened to Christ they got more than they had expected.
No matter how much we think we know God always knows what is best for us, even in the little things.