John K. Jenkins Sr - Overcoming Life's Obstacles

Genesis chapter 41, the first book in the Bible, begins with verse 37. I know it has been read once already, but I find it beneficial to read it to this crowd again. Genesis 41, starting at verse 37: "So the advice was good in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of all his servants. And Pharaoh said to his servants, 'Can we find such a man as this, a man in whom is the Spirit of God?' Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, 'Inasmuch as God has shown you all this, there is no one as discerning and wise as you. You shall be over my house, and all my people shall be ruled according to your word; only in regard to the throne will I be greater than you.' And Pharaoh said to Joseph, 'See, I have set you over all the land of Egypt.' Then Pharaoh took his signet ring off his hand and put it on Joseph's hand. He clothed him in garments of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. He made him ride in the second chariot, someone say the second chariot, which he had; and they cried out before him, 'Bow the knee!' So he set him over all the land of Egypt. Pharaoh also said to Joseph, 'I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no man may lift his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.' Amen. I want to talk to you today about overcoming life's obstacles-overcoming life's obstacles. Look at your neighbor and say, 'Overcoming life's obstacles.' You can be seated. Now, look around the congregation today; you all look pretty good. You look saved, sanctified, Holy Ghost-filled, and fire-baptized. You all look good in your Sunday best! Your hair is done, your weave looks nice, your makeup is good, and your suits are sharp. You look great! But behind the facade of what you appear like, there are people to your right, left, front, and back who face challenges. Let me thank the three people who affirmed that very profound point. I know it's true; if you can't clap, say Amen! You all know it's true; we all have obstacles in life. Life is filled with obstacles, challenges, problems, and issues. You do not invite obstacles into your life; you don't have to search for them or send them an invitation. They just come, and they show up without knowing when to leave. Can I get an Amen from anyone? I wanted to talk about this because God never intended for the obstacles in your life to defeat you. I think I got 17 handclaps of praise right there! He never intended for them to overcome you. I love that song that the young adults just sang- that He never puts more on us than we can bear. That 's the fact of the matter; it's the truth. God empowers us, but He allows obstacles for a reason. He allows challenges in your life for several reasons. First of all, He may allow the obstacles because He wants to develop some character in you. There are some shortcomings in your makeup. Sometimes He allows obstacles and challenges in your life to help develop your character, sometimes to clean your character up. Some of you are characters, and you need your character cleaned up! Sometimes He allows obstacles in your life to prepare you for your future assignment. Some of the issues in your life are there because God is getting you ready for where He's about to take you. Sometimes it's difficult for people to understand and comprehend that if God were to take you straight to where He is ultimately taking you, you could not handle it today. So, He has to take you through a maze of circumstances and trials in your life to prepare you for where He is going to take you. I feel a preacher coming on right now! And sometimes, He allows obstacles in your life because somehow, through the obstacles, He will get the glory. Somehow, somebody is watching you make it through the challenge you're facing. They're watching you worship God, watching you come out with your hands lifted up even though things have been difficult. Somehow, God gets the glory out of that situation. The goal of my message today is to speak to somebody who is facing obstacles. I want to talk to someone today who is discouraged, down, and frustrated because life has been handing you things you didn't expect, didn't want, didn't choose, and wish you could have avoided. You wish you could have walked around it, and you wish there was a way to sidestep it, but somehow it has ended up in your lap, in your face, in your life, and it has brought discouragement. I felt the Lord telling me to tell you today that He intends for you to overcome whatever obstacles have intruded into your life. This concept of overcoming obstacles is clearly illustrated in the life of the gentleman we are discussing in our text today: his name is Joseph. Can I talk about Joseph for a few minutes? If you don't mind, let me break down Joseph 's life for you. I wish you would read the Bible; I wouldn't have to explain everything to you! Joseph is one of 12 sons born to Jacob. He achieves unprecedented power and prestige in the course of his life by the time he becomes.. .