This week’s reading: Genesis 41:1-57
Hi Friends,
Last week, we left Joseph still in prison after having helped bring assurance to one of Pharaoh’s officials that his luck was about to change. With God’s insight, Joseph was able to correctly interpret this cupbearer’s dream, and all Joseph asked in return, was that his good deed be remembered, so that he could also get out of prison. The cupbearer is restored to his position, but quickly forgets all about Joseph. We might naturally think that Joseph would be hurt and angry at this dismissal. Yet has God matured Joseph to such an extent, that he simply just keeps rolling with the punches? We will see. We are in Genesis 41, reading the whole chapter, that is verses 1 through 57. Listen to how Joseph’s humble confidence in God has not wavered:
“So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon. When he had shaved and changed his clothes, he came before Pharaoh. Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.’ ‘I cannot do it,’ Joseph replied to Pharaoh, ‘but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.’” Gen 41:14-16 NIV
Only human. It is a whole TWO years later that God opens the door for Joseph’s circumstances to change. I find it very interesting that, throughout Joseph’s life, we are only privy to the highlights. Of course, one of the reasons is that the Bible is not about Joseph. The whole purpose of the Bible is to point us to God, Himself. It is the beautiful and complicated story of a Creator whose Love is so strong, and so deep, that He creates beings that can be like Him, but who quickly fall short of His Holy Nature. Yet that Love never ends, and so He continues to work with this broken human race to bring about the greatest miracle of all: Redemption through His one and only Begotten Son. And so we read about how God weaves the history of mankind in such a way that the Messiah comes, at the right Time, to save all who would believe. Joseph is a huge part of this plan because, had he not risen to power and…ok, I am getting a little ahead of myself. But my point is, while there are so, so many similarities between them, Joseph is not Jesus. We tend to place this great Saint on a high pedestal where we, ourselves, cannot reach him. Only Jesus deserves that spot. And thank God Joseph is only human and had to learn and grow in God’s Love just like you and me. How can we learn from, and begin to imitate, anyone if we think of them as being on a whole other plane, right? And so I like to stop and place myself, with all my flaws and faults and immaturity, into Joseph’s shoes to be able to connect with him, and learn how he was able to keep doing the right thing, and with the right heart attitudes. As I said before, it is a whole two years before the cupbearer remembers Joseph’s abilities and talks to Pharaoh about him. This could be God using the less than perfect character of the cupbearer in order to bring about His Plan, in His Timing. It could be that the cupbearer was being inconsiderate, and God was working with his selfishness, as He does with us all the time. But it could also be that it was just not the right Timing for him to remember. As usual, God has much more than just one reason for doing or allowing what He does. Whatever God’s purpose, there is a point for the cupbearer’s forgetfulness…our problem is that sometimes we do not see the whole picture and we doubt God’s Goodness. Yet when we trust God, and grow in His Grace, we will not be so quick to judge Him, but continue trusting Him even when we do not understand what is going on. This is what Joseph has learned and does here. He continues to hold on to God, even though he is still in that prison. You see, God had given Joseph this gift of dream interpretation, but if there was no need for this gift in Egypt, would he have been able to fulfill God’s plan? And so God allows Joseph to be forgotten. Yet may I dare to suggest another reason for the two year wait? I remind us once again that Joseph was human, like you and me. God could have still been doing a work in Joseph’s heart. Could it be that Joseph had to come to terms with his thoughts, emotions and desires? Could he still be grappling with the injustice of his situation? Could he have wrestled with the desire to get bitter and want revenge towards all those who had done him wrong? Well, maybe it is just me, but these sound like very human possibilities. These inner struggles did not affect his work ethic. He still humbly served whatever master he was under. He trusted God to provide and help him, and God did just that. Yet again, put yourself in his shoes. Even in the midst of all our good works, can we still harbor some deeper heart issues that God is still resolving? Again maybe I am speaking only of myself here, but I know that I have been battling with so many matters since my Baby Girl passed away about 16 years ago. Yet I continued to do the right things, even with joy, serving those God placed before me. And by God’s Grace, some wrong attitudes have been healed… yet others? What we need to see is that we are all works in progress. I am not questioning the awesomeness of Joseph. He is one of the Saints that I turn to as I continue to grow in Christ. But what I believe can help us more is if we humanize him. The problem is not that he might have had those struggles. That does not lessen his godliness, because it is overcoming those inner struggles that brings us victory. If we never have any battles, are we victorious? If we are never met with challenges, are we overcomers? If we never fall down once in a while, does our “getting back up again” really inspire anyone? I love a saying I heard some time ago that says, “To realize the worth of the Anchor, we need to feel the stress of the storm.” To really understand the power of God to redeem us, we need to have storms in our lives. Certainly Joseph had many outer storms, but did he have internal ones as well? Again, if he is human, he definitely did! And it is because he continued to lean on God for all things, and God continued to transform his heart, that made Joseph the man of God that he was. So what can we learn? Hold on to God because He never allows anything into our lives unless He has a godly purpose for it. Also, God is more concerned with our character than our comfort. Is it not better to be in a prison for a while, growing to truly appreciate Freedom, than rather just taking it all for granted and living selfish lives? I have struggled greatly, yet I can see, and so appreciate the woman of Faith God continues to create me to be. I am better because of the trials. (see Ro 5:3-5) If you still have breath in your lungs and blood pumping through your veins, then God is not done with you yet. Like Joseph, let’s continue to run to Him and allow God to continue to bring us back to who we were originally supposed to be, made in His Image.
Time. Two full years. As I mentioned above, this was also a matter of God’s Timing. God is not only Omniscient, which means He knows it all, but He is also Sovereign, which means He is in control of it all. And so God had already planned to allow the famine that would be coming to this region of Egypt. In order for Joseph to heal, as well as in order for him to be in the right place when that famine came, God allowed the cupbearer to forget Joseph. God certainly could have brought Joseph to the mind of this Pharaoh’s official, yet He did not because the Timing was not yet right for Joseph’s elevation so that God’s Plan may continue. As God works with us fallible humans to bring about His Plan, there are times when God purposely “fogs our brains,” so that His Will will be done. Let me explain by sharing something that happened to me. While no where near as crucial as someone being liberated from jail, there was a time when God allowed my mind to be confused, so that what I had prayed for would come to fruition. It was a couple of years after Beckie had passed away when I was volunteering for a Parent Advocacy Team at one of the hospitals my Baby Girl spent a lot of time in while she went through her trials. The facility is an hour plus away from our home and the meetings were always at 7pm, which meant I had to drive through heavy traffic to get there. In addition, the parking lot at the hospital was always packed to the brim, which made it a little stressful to get to the meetings. And so, on this particular day, I prayed what many might consider an unimportant request. I said, “Lord, please help me be able to drive safely up the Parkway, with minimal traffic, and please let there be a parking spot ready for me when I get there. Amen.” Side note: do you realize that God wants us to pray about everything? Nothing is too big or small that God is not interested in hearing from us, nor answering for us. Back to my story…so leaving this prayer in God’s hands, I began my journey up the Parkway towards the medical building. By God’s Grace, there was not much traffic and I approached my exit with plenty of time. But then, all of a sudden, my mind kind of went blank, and I could not remember which exit I was supposed to get off. I came back to my senses, just as I was passing it, and thought to myself, “What on earth am I doing!?” You see, we had driven this route literally hundreds of times over the years of Beckie’s ordeal, so I should not have gotten mixed up. But “somehow” I did. So I went through the tolls, got off at the next exit, and turned around to get off where I should have. But then it happened again! It was as if my mind was in a fog and I just was not sure what exit I needed to take. And so I passed it again! Remember, I said I had plenty of time to get to the meeting because traffic had been uncharacteristically light. But I still started to get a bit frustrated with myself. One more time, I had to get off at the following exit, and turn back around. This time I was going to make sure that I would get off at the correct exit. And here is the funny thing: as I finally got off the Parkway and headed towards the hospital, I quickly sensed God’s Voice deep within me say, with humor mind you, “Well, you want Me to answer the whole prayer, right?” I thought, “Oh Lord! You have allowed this ‘delay’ so that a parking spot would be there for me!” I was no longer upset with myself for my errors, but got kind of excited to see what God would do for me. And so I entered that parking garage and drove all the way to the top, with no available spots. Then drove all the way down… and just as I turned the last corner, someone was pulling out! There were absolutely no other spots open in the whole garage, are you getting me? Oh God and His marvelous ways! He astounds me and leaves me speechless. And I’m a talker so that’s saying a whole lot! I really think God orchestrated all that just to get a chuckle! I know I certainly was laughing. Listen, I cannot make this stuff up! God’s Timing is always perfect. What we might see as a delay, God knows is exactly what has to happen so that His Plan can come true. And further more, it is always for our best. Look at Joseph. Had he been released from prison earlier, would he have become second-in-command? This is a trick question, of course, because God would have worked it out somehow. But perhaps he would not have healed from his past hurts. God knew when Joseph would be ready…and He knows when we will be ready also, for whatever is next in our lives. In the meantime, we dig in deeper with God and trust Him. We come to Him in prayer and surrender every situation to Him. We stay with God so that He can uproot any past offenses and heal them. Then we abide in Him as we continue to obey His direction. We continue to love whoever He places in our path as we trust Him in, and for, everything. God has a Time for all things. (see Ecc 3:1-8) I think Joseph learned this lesson and simply continued to let his own understanding, feelings and desires go. Joseph surrendered every part of his life to God: spirit, soul and body. And as he chose to do so, God continued to transform him into a great man of God. Again I urge us: like Joseph, let’s continue to run to Him and allow God to continue to bring us back to who we were originally supposed to be, made in His Image.
Stability. Two more years in captivity. It is only when Pharaoh has some disturbing dreams that his official, the cupbearer, remembers Joseph. As I said earlier, Pharaoh brings Joseph out of prison, so that he can tell the king what these strange dreams mean. We spoke last week about Joseph’s impressive confidence in God who gave him the gift of interpreting dreams. Well, this week, in spite of being forgotten for two more years, we see that Joseph still has this confidence in God. Have I mentioned those “two years” enough yet? Since Joseph is only human and God’s Timing is a must, now everything is in place for what, I am sure, was the desire of Joseph’s heart. Freedom! Don’t we all want Freedom? But what type of Freedom are we seeking? Do we really want it just to be able to do whatever we want, whenever we want, and however we want to do it? That is not real Freedom. But stability? To stay peaceful in chaotic circumstances? To have joy that keeps us doing the right thing even when everyone else might not? To sense this sweet contentment when your life is not yet where you truly desire? THAT is Freedom. Joseph had this, even before he left that dungeon behind. Do we? Do we even seek it? To stand firm and not fall into anxiety, anger or afflictions is so very precious, my Friends! Not allowing any outside influences to cause us to lose our cool or do something we will only regret later? Trusting God even when things seem confusing and undesirable? Continuing to love and serve others who might have hurt you? To have the Freedom to control ourselves, and not allow any outside influences to do so, is what will grant us a fuller experience of the Abundant Life. And Joseph has that stability. This is a lovely picture of Joseph, yes. But more importantly, and more perfectly, it is the glorious image of our Jesus. Ultimately, it is He that we should want to imitate. Our Jesus is the Holy Standard. When I think about His Passion, I am in complete wonder. Here is the Omnipotent God in Human form, with the raw power to stop the entire procedure… and yet, what does He do? He allows mankind to do their worst. So stable. So steady. So unflinching. Our Jesus had a mission, and He refused to let anyone or anything frustrate God’s Plan of Redemption. Not the Pharisees. Not the Romans. And not you or me either. When we moan and complain about where God has us, or what He has allowed in our lives, our Lord will not back down from letting us go through whatever we must, so that we can be His and be transformed into His Image. Joseph learned this lesson. No one and no situation was going to stop him from being with God, and doing whatever God moved him to do. Whether in the pit of a prison or in the height of a palace, Joseph was going to be Joseph, the man of God who fully relied on his Creator. No jealous brother. No vengeful woman. No forgetful inmate. No one and nothing was going to stop Joseph from doing what God created him to do. Even though things did not work out the way he might have wanted, Joseph obeyed his father in every way. Joseph did his best to care for Potiphar’s belongings. Joseph gave his all to attend to his fellow prisoners. Are we getting the godly image here? Stable. Steady. Consistent. This is real Freedom. To be able to affect the world around us, instead of being constantly tossed about by it? Oh how this world is in desperate need for people who are following God, so closely, that we will continue to persevere and serve and love everyone in our path. This is not a wishy-washy love. This is being so secure that we will speak the Truth in love and grace, even when others do not want to hear it. Choosing to obey God rather than man is increasingly becoming more and more challenging. Yet if we have the stability of Joseph? Of Jesus? Then we can stand firm while the world falls apart around us. And what does this stability grant us? Freedom. And the Freedom from fear. And is that not the Freedom we all really want? As the Lord impressed on my heart a long time ago, “Child, if you fear Me, then there is nothing else to fear.” (check out Pr 1:7) It is when we will follow hard after God, no matter what, because we fear displeasing Him, that life gets so good. Fear of the Lord— not because He will zap us with a lightning bolt— but because we love Him so deeply that the last thing we want to do is cause Him grief. Then we will be able to stay stable, strong and successful. Joseph does this. No fear of Pharaoh. Only boldness and Humility. This is a vision of our God and who He desires each one of us to be. Once again I encourage us: like Joseph, let’s continue to run to Him and allow God to continue to bring us back to who we were originally supposed to be, made in His Image.
Second-in-command. I hope we are all familiar with this account. If not please make the time to read Genesis 41 this week, so that you can glean more from Joseph’s inspiring life story. God lifts Joseph out of prison and makes him the Prime Minister of the most powerful nation of his time. Pharaoh says to Joseph, “You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you…. I am Pharaoh, but without your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.” (see Gen 41:40 & 41:44) Talk about being given power?! Once again, Joseph was put it charge. Up until this point, Joseph knew God had smiled on his whole life, and he is certain that God will continue to do so. Just as he had told Pharaoh, immediately they enter into seven years of abundance throughout the land. Pharaoh arranges a marriage for Joseph, and his wife gives him two boys before the famine strikes. He names his first son Manasseh which means “forget.” Joseph says, “It is because God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household.” (see Gen 41:51) He names his second son Ephraim which means “twice fruitful.” Again Joseph proclaims, “It is because God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering.” (see Gen 41:52) Notice how both names are Hebrew as Joseph never lets go of his Identity. He knows who he is, and more importantly, Whose he is. And he will make sure his sons also know his God, who has never left nor forsaken him. Joseph has been healed from the betrayal of his brothers and has successfully settled in this new land where he had unfairly been taken. Joseph has no idea what God still has planned. That there is a wonderful family reunion coming. But what Joseph does remember is his dreams. And he will never let go of them, trusting God to fill them the way only God can. Joseph is no longer sitting on the throne of his life, looking forward to everyone bowing down at his feet. He is humble. He is confident. He is steadfast. And he is so very thrilled to be the second-in-command of his life, with God as his King. It is as I understand more deeply that I am only human, that God has a perfect Time for everything and that, in Christ, I can have the stability to control myself, no matter what is going on around me, that my life gets more fulfilling. It is because God is first in my life that I can continue to run to Him and allow God to continue to bring me back to who I was originally supposed to be, made in His Image. Every time I remember I am not the lord of my life, much less one over anyone else’s, that this Freedom to be second, fills my life with the peace and joy I really want. Do you want it too? Then won’t you join me?
Until we meet again, keep lifting your eyes to God, He’s closer than you think.
<>< Peace, Diane
