Success God's Way

Announcer: Welcome to PowerPoint with Jack Graham. God's way to success, true success, is found in discovering your dream, God's dream for your life, God's purpose and plan for your life, and then finding and following that dream all the days that you're on earth. On today's PowerPoint, Dr. Graham brings a message about the secret to success as a leader. Now here's Dr. Graham with his message, Success God's Way.
Jack Graham: Take your Bibles and turn with me to Genesis chapter 41. Now what is success? God's way to success, true success, is found in discovering your dream, God's dream for your life, God's purpose and plan for your life, and then finding and following that dream all the days that you're on earth. This is what our friend Joseph did. We're going to be looking in the 41st chapter, verses 14, 15, and 16 today. Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they quickly brought him out of the pit. And when he had shaved himself and changed his clothes, he came in before Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, "I have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. And I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream, you can interpret it." Joseph answered Pharaoh, "It is not me. God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer." And then look over in chapter 41 at verse 37. This proposal pleased Pharaoh and all of his servants. And Pharaoh said to his servants, "Can we find a man like this in whom is the Spirit of God?" And then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Since God has shown you all of this, there is none so discerning and wise as you are. You shall be over my house, and all my people shall order themselves as you command. Only as regards 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 from his hand and put it on Joseph's hand, and clothed him in garments and fine linen, and put a gold chain around his neck. And he made him ride in the second chariot, and they called out before him, "Bow the knee! Bow the knee!" And thus he set him over all the land of Egypt. The last time we were with Joseph, he was in prison, forgotten by man, but remembered by God. And now two years later, with breathtaking speed, Joseph is moved out of prison and into the palace of Pharaoh. Pharaoh had dreamed some dreams, and Joseph had experience with dreams. These two dreams really describe the future of Egypt and the future of the world at that time. And God gave Joseph the ability to interpret these dreams, and he was given, therefore, this place of prominence. What is true success? It says of Joseph that he was a successful man. I believe in Joseph we find a beautiful and balanced picture of genuine success and real leadership. Ultimately, leadership is all about character. This is what we see in this man Joseph's life. Through and through, a man of character. I hope that God has given you a dream for your life, for your family, and with that dream, the opportunity to inspire and influence others. That's what leadership is. Leadership is influence. And I would add the word inspiring influence. The inspiring influence that would cause people to follow you as a model of Christ. As I follow Christ, Paul said, as I follow Christ, you follow me and imitate me. We ought to be able to say that to our families. We ought to be able to say that to others all around us. This is leadership. It is character. Someone said, watch your thoughts, because your thoughts become your words. Watch your words, because your words become your actions. Watch your actions, because your actions become your habits. Watch your habits, because your habits become your character. And watch your character, because your character becomes your destiny. Joseph was a man whose character became his destiny. And what was true for him can be true for you. What is it about this man? I find in him some ingredients for successful leadership, and that's what we're going to be talking about. One, spirituality. When you observe the life of Joseph, you know that he was a spiritual man. Over and over again, it is said the Lord was with him, God was with him, the Spirit of the Lord was upon him. Even pagans in Egypt, including the great Pharaoh himself, recognized the uniqueness of this man's spiritual life. He was recognized as a righteous man. Spiritual leadership, true success, always possesses a spiritual dimension and dynamic. And this dynamic dimension comes because of a partnership with God. Joseph was God's man. He knew it, and everyone around him knew it. And if you will live and lead successfully, it will be because God is primary, God is your partner in life in all that you do. This relationship with God is not a part-time thing. It is a 24/7 relationship. And when you walk with God, there is a kind of spirituality, God gives you a great gift. This is the Holy Spirit who lives within you. It is noted again and again of Joseph, the Spirit of God is upon this man. And the Spirit of God lives in the believer to guide us, to direct us, to show us and give us wisdom. This is to empower us and to elevate us in life. A spiritual leader, there are many books written about secular leadership. You can buy them by the boatload. But the one book on spiritual leadership is God's Word. And if you would be a true leader, influencing people for Christ, then it begins with the work of the Holy Spirit in your life. Joseph was a man of faith and faithfulness to God. William Feather said success is largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go. When lesser men would have quit because of his faith and trust in God, Joseph refused to let go. And ultimately he realized that his life was not about himself. Have you come to that conclusion yet? Have you realized life is not about me? It is about living for the glory of God. Spirituality, this is true leadership, this is genuine success. Secondly, integrity. Joseph was tempted, tested, and tried. But through it all, he maintained his integrity. He was trustworthy with all the blessings of God upon his life. All leadership is built upon trust. Nothing is more important than a leader's credibility. If people trust you, if you are trustworthy in your leadership, they will follow you. Integrity. Too many people today are more concerned about their image than their integrity. More concerned about titles than their testimony for Christ. Image is what you want the world to think about you. Integrity is what God knows about you and what you know about yourself. Yes, character counts. It matters. And when you have integrity, what you see is what you get. It's who you are. It's more important than vision, charisma, personality, speaking ability, more important than anything in your leadership is your integrity. And oh, how we ought to be praying for our leaders, our national leaders, our political leaders, that God would give them integrity. When I'm asked, "How can I pray for you, pastor?" I typically say, "Pray that I will walk in integrity and live the message that I preach. Pray that for me." That I would be a man of integrity. It's the only way to lead.
Announcer: You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message, Success God's Way. Did you know that you can join Dr. Graham for his daily devotion? It's a study of God's Word that will help you grow in your faith, encourage you in your walk with Christ, and show you how to navigate through the challenges of life. To sign up, text DEVO, D-E-V-O, to 59789 and begin receiving Dr. Graham's devotion every day. Again, text DEVO, D-E-V-O, to 59789. Every day, people around the world are hearing the truth of Jesus Christ through PowerPoint's broadcast, podcast, television ministry, and digital outreach, often during some of the most difficult moments of their lives. And friends like you help make that ministry possible. That's why this month we want to say thank you for your gift of $10 or more by sending you Dr. Jack Graham's book, Destiny. In this encouraging resource, Dr. Graham walks through the life of Joseph to show how God is always working even through painful and confusing circumstances to accomplish his greater purpose. To give your gift and request your copy, text OCT, O-C-T, to 59789. That's OCT, O-C-T, as in October, to 59789. Now, let's get back to today's message, Success God's Way.
Jack Graham: Spirituality and integrity. Now number three, humility. Joseph's humility is obvious. In chapter 41 as we read earlier when Pharaoh said, "I heard that you can interpret dreams," verse 16, Joseph answered Pharaoh, "It is not me. It is God who will give you an answer." Rather than taking credit for this God-given ability that he possessed, he gave credit and glory to God. That's humility. The Apostle Paul and his companion on a missionary journey, they once began to worship them as gods. And Paul said, "Stop that! We are but men." That's humility. He would later say, "We have this treasure in earthen vessels. It's not me. It's God." Now humility is often misunderstood. We think humility is timidness or shyness or kind of walking around like Eeyore. "Oh me, I'm just humble." No, that's not humility. That's just poor posture and a bad attitude to go with it. Humility is not thinking lowly of yourself. Humility is not thinking of yourself. It is putting God first in your life. Humility is giving God the credit for all the good in your life. Look, if there's anything good about you, if there's anything good about me, it's all because of Jesus. It's all because of what he has done in our lives. And therefore we walk in humility. We give credit, we give glory to God for all that he has done. Once Joseph is on the pinnacle of success, I mean he has everything seemingly now. He has a royal ring on his finger, he has Pharaoh's robe on his back, he's riding in chariots, he has riches beyond his wildest imagination. When Joseph rolls by in his chariot, the people say, "Bow down! Bow down! Bow down! It's Joseph." Now how do you handle that kind of applause and achievement and success? That is perhaps the biggest test he would face. Beyond the test of adversity is this test of prosperity. And it's true for any of us. In times of adversity we typically run to God. But what about times of prosperity? Applause, achievements, accolades. This is the biggest test. Every leader is subjected to two tests primarily. One is the test of criticism. If you lead anything you will be criticized, including your own family, right? There will be criticism. I tell you how never to be criticized, that is to say nothing, do nothing, be nothing. You will never be criticized. But if you take leadership, there will be criticism. And how you handle criticism is an important test of a leader. That you learn from appropriate criticism what you need to learn and then that you put it aside and with lessons learned, move forward. But not crushed by criticism. The second test of any leader is praise. And this is Joseph's test at this point. He is praised for his greatness. And yet he gives all the glory back to God. When you are praised, that's a test. The next time you're promoted, that's a test. When you get a raise, that's a test. When you're blessed in some unusual or unexpected way or even in just an ordinary way, that is a test. And I've learned through the years to put the praise and the criticism in the same place. At the feet of Jesus. At the feet of Jesus. And that must have been what Joseph did. The worst sin, the most wicked sin of all, is not murder, adultery, but at the top of the list is to worship other gods. That's pride, starting with the god of self. Pride is the parent sin. Pride is the sin that put Satan out of heaven. Pride is the sin that put the man and the woman out of the garden. Pride is the most sinful thing a person can do, and every sinful act is a result of pride. And so if a leader is proud in the sense of the ego taking command and self on the throne, then ultimately that leader will forfeit leadership. Humility means never taking credit for what God has done in your life. Give thanks to God for what he has done in you and for you. So Joseph's leadership was spirituality. Joseph's leadership was humility. Joseph's leadership was integrity. But there's a fourth element, an essential of all true leadership and success, and that is ability. Ability is an important criteria, that you have a certain ability to do what you are called to do. Now Joseph had a unique and God-given ability, and it is an ability to interpret dreams and to give wise counsel. That's what happened as we read a moment ago when Joseph rises to power. Look at verse 39 again. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Since God has shown you all of this, there is none so discerning and wise as you are." He had genuine wisdom, which I would define as common sense solutions to human problems. A leader is discerning, makes good decisions, wise decisions. This is what Joseph did. He heard the dreams of Pharaoh. Now these are interesting dreams that Pharaoh dreamed. Two, but the same dream really. One, fat cows and lean cows. Seven large cows, seven lean cows. And the lean cows ate the large cows. Ooh, scary. And then corn, fruitful, bountiful, a stalk of it. And then a bare stalk. And the bare stalk destroys the large stalk, the bountiful stalk, and he had no idea what it meant. But Joseph was discerning and wise. And he told Pharaoh, "This is what the dream means." We're going to have seven years of prosperity and plenty in Egypt. But after seven years of prosperity there will be seven years of famine. And having said that, he not only identified the problem but with discernment and wisdom he came up with a solution. A very practical solution for the problem. And that is during the seven years of prosperity, they would save a certain portion and prepare for the years of famine. It was a very simple principle. But Joseph was wise enough to know it, to see it, and to suggest it. He offered counsel to Pharaoh. And this is exactly the counsel that Pharaoh took. It wasn't about redistributing the wealth. It was about saving the wealth and using the wealth for the needs of people all over the world. Ultimately, Joseph's own family, his father Jacob and his brothers, would come to Egypt half-starving themselves as the rest of the world. And because of Joseph's plan and perception, his ability to get things done, to make things happen. And you read the story and he goes to work at this. He's not just a dreamer, he's a planner and he's a doer. He's accomplishing things. He's surveying the nation. He's everywhere across the nation making sure this is happening. Yes, he has ability. He's wise. One final point, generosity. Joseph...