Joshua 1:1-9 describes the commissioning of Joshua after the death of a great leader, Moses. With strength and courage, Joshua led the people of God to possess the land God had given them. The land God chose put them at the crossroads of the world so they could put God on display and be His hands and feet to a broken, hurting world, serving the needs of others. It was their purpose then, it is our purpose now.

The story of Joseph tells a similar story. Through the providential favor of God, what the enemy meant for destruction, God meant for good. God placed Joseph in a position and a place where His provision could be realized for a people in need. It was a desperate time of famine in the land. Similarly, we are given the favor of God to be the provision of God for people in need.

We have seen this lived out in recent days following the devastation of Hurricane Ian on the West Coast of Florida. God’s people, from near and far, put on gloves and boots and made the choice to be the gospel on the ground to hurting families and communities. They were (and are) the provision of God to a people in need. Sometimes that is hard to see when all you see is devastation. Genesis 41:30 says, “ … but seven years of famine will follow them. Then all the abundance in Egypt will be forgotten, and the famine will ravage the land.”(NIV) Isn’t that just like the enemy? All the abundance in the past was forgotten. Do not forget God’s past abundance in your life when you are in a season of famine or devastation. God has given you a position and a place to be His provision to people in need. How will you live that out today?