Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan. This is the account of Jacob’s family line. Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them. Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe for him. When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him. Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. He said to them, "Listen to this dream I had: We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it." His brothers said to him, "Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?" And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said. Genesis 37:1-8
this passage is our introduction to someone i find personally challenging and encouraging and inspiring: Joseph
Joseph’s life story looks crazy when you look at it, when you look back his dreams and the call of God upon his life and the living out of the call. As a young man he dreamed of leadership and destiny but first had to endure the rejection of his brothers, to the extreme – they sold him into slavery – where he was promoted and then falsely accused and sent to prison for many many years. Then when it looked like the light at the end of the tunnel he is forgotten for more years. Over 17 years pass in Egypt. And then SUDDENLY he is promoted again and is living his dream.
I read these interesting verses in psalm 105 the other week while thinking more about THE PROCESS…”He called down famine on the land and destroyed all their supplies of food; and he sent a man before them— Joseph, sold as a slave. They bruised his feet with shackles, his neck was put in irons, till what he foretold came to pass, till the word of the LORD proved him true.” Psalm 105:16-19
Until what he foretold came to pass, until the Word of the Lord, until his dreams of leadership and destiny, until the Lord proved him true… until the right time… until Joseph was ready and the times were ready. There was a bigger picture.
"God often uses our challenges as stepping stones to the higher purposes of God." – James Robison
There are lessons to be learned in the process. Lessons about ourselves, lessons about how to work with others, lessons about how to relate to God.
Process isn’t just about skills its also about character.
Process is all part of it. Its not less important that the destination and the success.
Joseph had some big lessons to learn and lots of process to live through. God had a plan and a purpose and was with Him in the dreams, in the well, in slavery, in prison and in the rising to power and the salvation of Israel and his family. His life is a demonstration of the faithfulness of God and how we should hold onto our dreams.
perhaps joseph had to learn some humility and discernment. as a young man it seems he skited to his brothers about his dreams of greatness. it was for this reason (and other character issues!) that they so disliked him and hated him that they sold him into a life sentence of slavery. character is very important to God and i think very important for a servant of God, for someone in ministry, to be totally aware of and working on. we are all flawed yes, but that is not an excuse for staying ugly in our character. we are called to transformation.
The great things God will do through you are going to grow in the soil of persistence, prayer, obedience and sacrifice. That means there will be plenty of plowing and pruning. That’s the way living things grow, whether you’re talking about vegetables or vision. The process is a time of strengthening. The process is the place where you lay down your pride and learn to rely totally on God. Most importantly, the process is the way we grow to know God. And that’s really the whole point. Steven Furtick
God will eventually test you in all areas of your life, but He will not let your trials become greater than you can bear. Let God use trails to help you grow. Do not try to measure your progress, your strength, or what God is doing. His work is not less efficient because what He is doing is invisible. God does not transform you on a bed of light, life and grace. His transformation is done on the cross in darkness, poverty and death. Francis Fenelon in 100 days in the secret place
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