Where There's Smoke, There's Fire

Genesis 39: 2-3 "But the Lord was with Joseph, and He {though a slave} was a successful and prosperous man: and he was in the house of His master the Egyptian.  And his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all that he did to flourish and succeed in his hand"

When my kids were younger, we had a fire pit in our back yard. It was such a great place to gather with friends and family, and roast marshmallows and relax around the fire.  The best part, you got to take it with you!  All of my clothes, even my skin and my hair smelled like smoke. You guessed it, "Where there's smoke, there's fire"!!!!

True prosperity is not found in the things you have.  True prosperity is found in "who you’re with".  In Genesis 39:2, it says "but the Lord was with Joseph, and {though a slave} was a successful and prosperous man".  Again, true prosperity comes from who you’re with. Because, eventually “who you’re with” is gonna show up in what you’ve got!

I heard a quote recently, "You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with, including yourself". What's the meaning?  Who you spend time with the most, influences the person that you become.  That’s huge!  Who you are with can elevate you as much as it can bring you down.  My pastor used to say "Joe, you can't hang around chickens and expect to soar like an Eagle".  The qualities of others rub off on you.  Attitudes are transferable.  If you’re spending time with the “wrong” people, you won't meet the “right” people.  If you hang around a gossip, you'll become a gossip.  If you hang around excellent people, excellence will rub off on you. 

Joseph, it says, "though a slave…"  It didn't matter that he didn’t have anything, he knew God.  Hanging around Jesus, focusing on Jesus, and meditating on the Word of God changes what you have.  Joseph didn’t use excuses.  Excuses are the nails that help build a house of defeat, NOPE!  He became a “successful and prosperous man" simply because, “where there's smoke there's fire”.  

Verse 3 says, that his master "saw" that the Lord was with Him, and that the Lord made all that He did to flourish and succeed in His hand!  When you hang around the Lord it's just a matter of time before you will “smell like smoke”, and people will ask, "Where’s the fire?  There's a fire somewhere!"  Only God does this.  This is what I thank God for every day, that people will “see” and experience that the Lord is with me.  After all, "WHERE THERE'S SMOKE THERE'S FIRE".