By Tony Evans
God has established patterns that pop up in people’s lives when it comes to detours.
These patterns often exist because a goal is being sought. Detours frequently provide the ground for development.
There would be nothing worse than arriving at your destiny unprepared to fully carry it out.
It’s like the people who win the lottery only to lose their millions within a few years because they were unprepared for the responsibilities that come with that much money.
One aspect I want us to look at with regard to patterns of detours is training.
We are told in Scripture to learn from being tested, so essentially testing, trials, and detours are places where we are trained.
Like an athlete in the gym preparing for the field, this is the place where muscle strength and reflexes are sharpened.
Otherwise, the athlete gets to the field and cannot perform up to the level required to win.
First of all, there is a phrase we see pop up a lot with regard to Joseph’s life. That phrase is, “And the Lord was with Joseph.”
Over and over we see these words. Whether Joseph was in the pit, the prison, or the palace—the Lord was with him.
Not only that, but we also see God’s hand of favor with him causing whatever he touched to prosper and causing people to put things under his authority.
One thing to learn from God being with Joseph is that Joseph was also with God. In other words, Joseph did not allow the circumstances to compromise his spiritual relationship.
Yes, it is easy to get mad at God when you face a trial or trouble in your life. But these are the times when you are to chase after God like you’ve never done before.
These are the times when you are to draw near to Him.
When you fill a sponge full of water and then you add pressure to the sponge, water is going to flow out because it is full of water.
When you are going through a trial and you feel the pressure of life caving in around you, how much of God comes out?
Or is it cussing, fussing, complaining, and blaming that comes out instead? Why are those things coming out? Because that is what you are full of.
A sponge only lets out what is in it. God was able to give Joseph favor because God was in Joseph during his trials.
This is important to know because God will do the same with and for you if you let Him. But so few people do.
Most people dull themselves with entertainment, alcohol, gossip, distractions, bitterness, and things of that nature when life is not fair.
But in order to have your detour take you to your destiny, you have to draw near to God. God will be near to, and in, you.
Joseph had cultivated a spiritual relationship along the way of his detours, as his priority became God.
The key to making it during your season of testing is not found in your contacts, notoriety, name, or bank account. The key is found in your intimacy with the Lord.
The Lord was with Joseph—and caused all that he did, no matter where he was, to prosper. There must be a spiritual relationship that drives you, particularly when life has gone left.
One of the purposes of a detour is to develop the capacity, skills, and character necessary to carry out your destiny.
While Joseph was a slave in Potiphar’s home, the Lord prospered him so that he became second-in-command in Potiphar’s home.
Little did he know that one day he would become second-in-command in the entire nation of Egypt. But God was preparing Joseph with the skills necessary to both follow and lead simultaneously.
Joseph doesn’t yet have the details of his destiny, but his obedience as a slave gave him the opportunity to learn skills he would use later on as a ruler.
Excerpted from Detours: The Unpredictable Path to Your Destiny. Used by permission of B&H Publishing.
TONY EVANS (@DrTonyEvans) is the pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship and a best-selling author of over 100 books, including his most recent book, Detours.
