And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. And the LORD hath blessed Abraham greatly; and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses. And Sarah Abraham’s wife bare a son to him when she was old: and unto him hath he given all that he hath – Genesis 24:1 & 35-36.
The Bible says that the Lord blessed Abraham in all things; He had given him great things and even gave him a son in his old age.
The good thing about Abraham was that he acknowledged the source of his blessing. The Bible says Abraham said ‘the Lord has blessed me in all things’.
Many of us fail to acknowledge that it is the hand of God that got us to where we are. I want you to know that without God, you are nothing.
It was the hand of God that made you and God knows what he was doing when he formed you. It was God that gave you breath; the capacity to take in oxygen. Genesis 2:7b says “the Lord breathes into man the breadth of life”.
It was God that made you complete and functioning with all the parts of your body. It was God that located you where you found yourself.
Genesis 2:15 says “And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the Garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.” The Bible says ‘what does a man have that has not been given to him by God”.
It is God that determines where you would end up. As He has determined where you should end up, he has also created the opportunities for you to get there.
All those who succeed in life, have God’s hands moved in their favour. Genesis 12:1-3 tells us that ‘it was God that came to Abram and ordered his relocation.
The Bible says that ‘God came to Abram and said to him “get out of your country unto a land that I will show you”.
Genesis 27:7-13 (Jacob speaking to his wives) says ‘it was God that showed me in a dream what I should do’.
1 Samuel 16:1 tells us that it was God that discovered an abandoned David.
What does the hand of God working for you do?
1. The hand of God brings favour your way. Nehemiah 2:17-18 tells us that all of a sudden, Nehemiah decided to go and rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and he told his king, ‘the wall of Jerusalem is broken down; the people are in distress, let me go back and build that wall.’
Nehemiah went back and began to tell the people that “I came back to build the wall, the hand of God is upon me and I have found favour and I have the attention of the king.”
When you do not have favour, things are difficult for you and there are lots of people who go through life and never find favour.
2. It is the hand of God that makes you strong. In Genesis 49:24, Jacob said, ‘Joseph is a fruitful bough, shot at and hated, but his bow abode in strength.
The arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God.
The hand of God made Joseph so strong that he could withstand all the attacks on his life by his brothers.
3. It is the hand of God that helps you to outrun your enemy. In 1 Kings 18:46 the Bible says that ‘the hand of God was upon Elijah.’ Elijah had just finished destroying the prophets of Baal and had spoken to King Ahab that ‘upon my words, I shall bring back rain upon the earth.’
He had prayed consistently to God seven times and all of a sudden, he heard the sound of abundance of rain and began to run.
The Bible says that the hand of God was upon him and he outran his enemy called Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.
4. God’s hand will destroy your enemies. In Exodus 3:20 God said, ‘I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with my mighty wonders’.
The children of Israel had been under captivity for many years and the enemy that held them captive refused to allow them to go.
5. The hand of God will help you to control your destiny and will ensure your deliverance. Psalm 31:15 says ‘My times are in your hands, deliver me from the hands of my enemies’.
6. It is the hand of God that provides for you. Psalm 145:16 says that “Thou openest Thy hand and satisfy the desire of every living things”.
If you are having difficulty with life, it might be because the hand of God is not upon you.
7. The hand of God will lead you, direct you and show you where you should go. Psalm 139:10 tells us that “even there shall thy hand lead me; and thy right hand shall hold me”.
From time to time, when you are going through difficult situations and circumstances; when you allow the hand of God to lead you, you will get to where you are going.
8. It is the hand of God that keeps you secure. John 10:27-30 says, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
“My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand”.
9. The hand of God makes Him to remember you. Isaiah 49:16 says “Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.
The Bible says your name is written on the palm of God’s hands, and therefore it makes God to remember you.
10. It is the hand of God that gives you pleasure according to the will of God. The Bible says, ‘In Thy presence is fullness of joy and at your right hand are pleasures forever more’.
It means that when you do not have God’s hands around you, it is unlikely that you will have any kind of pleasure. Also you will find in the Bible that mercy is in God’s hands.
• Continues in next edition.
