By Olubunmi Adebayo
*Your standard of life must be above compromise.*
*The moment it is NOT above compromise, such a man can never go far in the journey of life.*
*For the purpose of this discussion, I will go with the definition of COMPROMISE _”as a committal to something derogatory or objectionable. An act of surrender”_.*
*When you express that a person is a man of compromise of character, you have defined him as an outrightly worthless man in the context of integrity.*
*True, the devil came and lured Eve to eat of the “Forbidden Fruit.’ But may I shock you to say that if you check Eve out very well, she would have been used to regular glances at the tree of the Forbidden Fruit, perhaps occasional comments of curiosity would have emanated from her – it was not for want of innocence that the Tempter went to her to push her line of compromise…. “Has God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” (Gen 3:1).*
*If you don’t go about with the mindset of compromise, it will be difficult to push you into doing what you are not meant to do.*
*Every needful suggestion towards compromise came from the wife of Portiphar to Joseph, but he never budged or got bothered by it at all :*
*1) She kept pestering him day in day out :*
*Genesis 39: [7]And it came to pass after these things, that his master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me.*
*For the Bible to say “she cast her eyes upon Joseph”, this meant she would have come up with all manners of non-verbal communications to Joseph that were suggestive of compromise on the part of Joseph, all to no avail.*
*2) After body language and eye gestures, including inducements had failed, Mrs Portiphar went further to openly verbalize her interest and intention in Joseph :”lie with me.”*
*To which Joseph refused to compromise, explaining to her thus :*
*Genesis 39: [8]But he refused, and said unto his master’s wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand;*
*[9]There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?*
*3) She stepped up to engage Joseph in a compromising set-up : _on a day nobody was around_:*
*Genesis 39: [11]And it came to pass about this time, that Joseph went into the house to do his business; _and there was none of the men of the house there within_.*
*4) When eyes contact and body languages failed, when outright verbal communication failed, when a convenient day set-up had failed, she went for the final one : _outright physical rape_:*
*Genesis 39: [12] And _she caught him by his garment_, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out.*
*If the smallest iota of compromise had existed in the mind of Joseph, there wouldn’t have been any way he could have avoided being caught in the web of what Mrs Portiphar planned for and arranged for him.*
*Permit me to say that you should examine yourself and your life, and see if you are not standing on the standard of COMPROMISE as you are? Remember, nobody sees your heart except God.*
*Know that too many lives have been ruined by a life of unexamined compromise.*
*Note that several glories have been buried on the lap of the likes of Mrs Portiphar.*
*Watch that cheap, unsolicited and mouthwatering gestures and offers coming your way day in, day out – it could be actions in the attempt to compromise you. Watch it!*
Top of the day to you.
©️ Olubunmi S Adebayo.
