50:20 Vision : No matter what is happening, God is still working for good.

Genesis 50:20

New Century Version (NCV)

20 You meant to hurt me, but God turned your evil into good to save the lives of many people, which is being done.

I have been studying this scripture Genesis 50:20 and hope that I can always see with the vision that Joseph did.   When I did a segment on Renewal Radio Dr. Gene Getz said  he felt this scripture was my life verse as well as Romans 8:28  because God has brought good from all the tragedies that occurred and poor choices that I made.  This verse means a lot to me.

As I was reading about this in the Bible it made me think all the different things created that have been  used for evil but how God can turn that evil around and  use it for good. Everything that is created God has a purpose for . (God made everything with a place and purpose; even the wicked are included—(Proverbs 16:4 MSG) This had been on my mind as I was studying Genesis 50:20 and looking at how it seems everything can be used for good and for evil. For instance let’s take a look at Facebook, I have heard more than one person say Facebook is the tool of the devil.  Now I’m not saying Facebook is evil or created for evil . All I am saying is that I think the enemy has used Facebook to bring evil into many lives.  I have personally heard of marriages collapsing as old flames have reconnected through Facebook. I have heard of many people being bullied and harassed.   Satan is cunning and is out to destroy, he will use any means he can to attack with his fiery darts, he will try to make anything his tool even Facebook. But as with everything in this world  it is how a person chooses to  use it and how we allow God to work through us to fulfill HIS purpose .

Personally for me this social media has been of great support  : encouragement through loss, encouragement through victory .  I can  honestly  see both  the bad and the good, knowing God is ultimately in control . But I wanted to share one Facebook story that changed a life and I know without a doubt God’s hand was in this.

Let’s go back to Palm Sunday of 2011 my old friend Randy Smith  asked me to speak to his Sunday School class at First Baptist Church of Allen and share my testimony which he knew about from Facebook. After I shared I became Facebook friends with some people in the class,  one being a man named Steve Wade .This story kind of paused there for a while as if that was the extent of it . But God , the master choreographer , was working behind the scenes all the while.  On November 9, 2011 ( Yes it was the 9th.  9’s are always so significant in my life both good and bad ) I wrote this post on my Facebook Wall . I have shared the snapshots of it in this post today, November 9 ,2013 : ))) . After  sharing my heart  I received a message from Steve Wade whom I had met that fateful Palm Sunday  at FBC Allen telling me he wanted to help Alexis and that he might have a job for her. It was a job at the First Baptist Church of Allen. He is the Facilities Manager and oversees all the maintenance of the church.  This was an answer to my prayer on a much larger scale than I could ever imagine.

Long story short I took Alexis to meet Steve at the Starbucks at Spring Creek and 75 where she had an initial interview. I remember helping her pick the dress and boots for her interview. She looked so pretty. Then there would be another interview with Steve’s boss. This interview was harder for Alexis , she had made a poor choice that had legal consequences . The whole situation had caused her to feel shame but she made the decision to be open and transparent in her interview and told the truth. Because of her honesty  she got that job and started in January of 2012.

This job changed the trajectory of her life and the environment she worked in drew her closer to God,   as you can read in her journal :) It was a hard job and not glamorous but God used it to penetrate her heart. I could literally see the difference in her countenance. (There is a spiritual shift within you when you go from a victim stance to a stance of gratitude and humility. I experienced it myself when I got my first post incarceration job as a cashier at Dickey’s making minimum wage, there was no “I am too good for this job”.  I was  overcome with gratitude and thankfulness that they took a chance on me.  My heart was much different when I got out of rehab and thought I was too good for many jobs because I had a college degree. God had changed my heart and I knew God was working on Alexis’ as well because I could see it through my experience. I love how God works)

This job opened many doors for her and seeds of hope were planted through it and through the people she worked with. She finally had some extra money and even took on an extra day of work. They saw the best in her and she recognized that. Her self-esteem changed and she had so much hope for her future. Sadly she just didn’t have much of a future left on this earth but because of this job she saw herself differently the last 6 months of her life and for that I am forever grateful.

So today I am so thankful for Facebook, for Randy Smith, and for Steve Wade. God orchestrated and intertwined our lives to meet the need of a young 19 year old mother who was trying to make positive changes for her and her daughter. . And because of Steve’s attitude of “Let’s give this girl a chance” her life was changed for the better. After her death Steve told me that he admired her so much because she was trying to change a lot of things in her life to make a better life for her and Riley. I was so moved by that. God really brought good into Alexis’ life and used Facebook to tie it all together.

Genesis  50:20 vision. What the world, the human plan, the human scheme planned as an evil, self-serving act – God took and used for good, preserving life!

Joseph’s 50:20 vision tells us that despite all evidence to the contrary, God is at work. God is making things good despite the evil.

The story of Genesis is that God is always working for good despite human efforts to the contrary. God has stuck with us, and seeks to work in and through us. No matter what we are facing, we can be sure that somehow, someway, God is still working for good.

That’s 50:20 vision!

This an excerpt from a sermon by Bob Kraylor , I felt it was fitting. I hope we all can see and look at others  with 50:20 vision. That is how Steve looked at Alexis, he chose to look for  the good within her and found it letting her know he saw the best in her. It changed how she viewed herself It changed her life. When I think of this I want to look for the best in everyone and sometimes that is hardest with the ones we love the most because of our history . But it certainly makes me want to be intentional about this.