God begins His work on us long before He saved us. Apostle Paul said, “But when it pleased God, who set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me that I might announce Him as the gospel among the Gentiles, immediately I did not confer with flesh and blood” (Gal. 1:15-16). This shows that Apostle Paul was set apart from his mother’s womb just like you and I. Then he told us that he became a minister of God’s word after having persecuted the church. While he was yet in his mother’s womb, God set him apart, and his course was assigned. You can check out what God told Jeremiah the Prophet in Jeremiah 1: 5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” When Apostle Paul was saved, he embarked on this journey of faith. This shows that the preparation and initiation of a minister are determined by God when such a person is still in his mother’s womb. Most us think that this is only for pastors but the truth is that it is for the general Body of Christ – THE CHURCH. You may have been called as a doctor, engineer, plumber, politician, a governor, a lawyer, support worker, teacher, IT expert, etc., you should understand God’s sovereign arrangement in our environment. His hands is behind everything— in our family, and in our profession, even when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death.

The experiences we went through before we were saved and after being saved was and is still under God’s sovereign arrangement. Though our experiences may differ, I bet you they are all similar (1 Peter 5:9). God gives us our distinctive characters, our temperaments, our inclinations, and our virtues. He prepared all of these things. No one goes through any experience by accident. No person inherits a character trait by accident; everything is under God’s sovereign hand. He made provisions long ago for our natural abilities and experiences, and He has prepared us for our future commission. This means that the temptation and trials that come our way are not to make us fail rather strengthen our faith, to show us how weak we are, and the need to always depend on the Lord. God has no intention to remove the bad and ugly events that may come to our ways sometimes, rather He wants us to trust Him in everything we do no matter how little such things may be (Psalm 37:23 NLT). You remember what Romans 8:28 says, “And we know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose. For those whom He foreknew [and loved and chose beforehand], He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son [and ultimately share in His complete sanctification], so that He would be the firstborn [the most beloved and honoured] among many believers. And those whom He predestined, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified [declared free of the guilt of sin]; and those whom He justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity] AMP Version.

In our Christian walk with the Lord, God wants us to consistently depend on Him and not to lean on our own understanding so as to be able to grow daily. This may not be easy sometimes but His grace is sufficient for us. If we are unwilling to be dealt with, we will not be able to work well for God not to talk of walking with Him. We must not think that such dealings are optional. What do I mean by dealing or dealt with? It is our daily carrying of our cross as Christians as we walk with Jesus. This daily walk with the Lord brings about our brokenness. We must be broken, and we must bear the mark of the cross not necessarily physical. Our spirit must be a broken spirit, and also have a repentant heart (Psalm 51:17). God’s word has to penetrate our whole being—our feelings, our understanding, our heart, and our spirit. It has to flow in and out of us; it has to be identified with us, and then it must be released from us as a result of grinding, crushing, and pressing. If our emotion is misaligned, if our mind is impaired, or if our understanding, heart, and spirit are even slightly off, we may likely misinterpret God’s word. Not only will our word be flawed, but the church is likely to suffer as well. We have to learn to allow God’s word to pass through us without any hindrance or contamination if not we will damage God’s word and affect the church negatively. This is why we have so many half-baked Christians, who have refused to submit to authorities and have decided to become leaders overnight without being a disciple.