Genesis 37-38; Matthew 12:22-45; Psalms 16:1-11; Proverbs 3:27-32

For the next few days as our One Year Bible Plan takes us through this portion of Genesis, we will be focusing on the story of Joseph. It is one of my favorite stories in all of the Bible and I would be remiss not to write about it. Here is this cocky kid, clearly his Father’s favorite as he is the firstborn of his true love and intended bride Rachel, who can’t help but antagonize his slew of older brothers. And even though birth order plays into some things today, it was everything in Biblical times. Here comes this 17-year old to tell his much older and established brothers what’s up. I can just imagine the eye rolling and frustration they must have experienced daily when Jospeh was around.

Right away, we find that the Lord is speaking to Joseph through his dreams (a common occurrence!), showing him a small glimpse of what is to come. And because Joseph is the favorite of his father, and because all his brothers know it, when Joseph shares these dreams, the jealously and audacity of it become too much for his brothers to bear.

When Joseph is approaching his brothers on his father’s mission to check in on them, they say “Here comes that dreamer!” It’s the dreams that actually pushed them over the edge to the point of wanting to kill Joseph. This set into motion a chain of events that would lead to those dreams coming true–of his brothers bowing before him and treating him with the utmost honor and respect.

Joseph received two dreams from the Lord. He shared both dreams with his brothers and Father. The brothers were so angry they wanted to kill him. Instead, Judah suggests they sell him as a slave. He is taken to Egypt as a slave and brought for Potiphar’s house, one of Pharaoh’s officials.

It’s so hard not to get ahead of myself in this story, but focusing on Genesis 37, we see a series of unfortunate events, all started by a dream given by God. I can just imagine the way Jospeh would have shared those dreams as a 17-year old boy, not imagining what he would be forced into by his brothers. He told his brothers that he would rule over them someday, and they decided to humble him, make him next to nothing, sell him into slavery and essentially remove him from his Father’s lineage. Outside of death, this very well could have been the worst thing they could do to him.

But when God leads you down a path, it is for His ultimate good, no matter what hardships you experience along the way. Do I believe the Lord plans our hardship? No! He is a God of love and goodness! But I do know that he uses every circumstance for His good. I know that God knew exactly what He was planning, and that Jospeh would be protected despite being sold into slavery. The Lord was still in control in every circumstance.

I wonder if you are experiencing hardship despite hearing clear direction or leading from the Lord. Does it make you want to give up and quit trying? If you know what the direction is, I feel the Lord saying to stay the course! There is light and promise at the end of the road. Jospeh is about to go through even more hardship before ultimately moving into God’s plan. If we knew then what we would be experiencing now currently, would we have started? Maybe not. But we have started; the road is before us; if we meet hardship along the way, could it be another thing the Lord is using for His goodness?

Father God, help us to stay faithful to the promises you’ve given us. Give us perseverance and strength as we find ourselves on the path toward your plan for our life.