Staying Faithful In The Difficult Times I have been thinking about staying faithful in the difficult times and the story of Joseph came to my mind instantly. The story of Joseph starts in Genesis chapter 37 and concludes at the end of Genesis chapter 50 which in my opinion is a great way to end the book that already has so much wealth within it. The story of Joseph shows us how we should react when we are persecuted, hated, wrongfully accused, put upon and not treated kindly. His example should be a living witness and testimony on how we should react when we are tempted to repay evil for evil. We should follow Josephs example in letting God be our vindicator and lead us to the heights of victory that He wishes for us to stand upon. I hope this message on the testimony of Joseph inspires and challenges your heart to have that same confidence in God that He would be with you just as He was with Joseph. (Romans 12:17-21) Joseph was born to Jacob and Rachel when Jacob was very old and because of this he held Joseph very dear to his heart. Joseph was the favorite out of all of Jacobs sons and he treated him very favorably which made all of Josephs brothers really hate him. If that werent enough, Joseph would have dreams that he was going to be great in life and that all of his older brothers would one day bow down before him. This made them hate him even more, so much so that they conspired with each other to kill him. That was the plan until his older brothers Reuben and Judah stopped it and suggested that they sell him into slavery instead. Thats what happened and after they sold Joseph for 20 pieces of silver, all of the brothers thought that they would never hear from or see Joseph ever again, but what they didnt realize is that the Lord was with Joseph. (Genesis 37:2-27) (Genesis 39:2) When God is with you, nothing can defeat you. Others may think that you are defeated, but God says “I am just getting started with you.” After Joseph was sold into slavery, he was purchased by Potiphar who was the captain of the guard for Pharaoh, the King of Egypt. The moment Joseph started working for Potiphar, everything went smoothly for Potiphar and he sensed that God was with Joseph. Soon after, Potiphar placed Joseph in charge of all of his household and because of this everything was taken care of for Potiphar. During this time, Joseph didnt complain, he didnt murmur, he didnt say “why me” or question Gods plan, but rather Joseph stayed faithful and did his best at the job that he was given. (Genesis 37:36) (Genesis 39:3-6) That is what we must do at all times. Doing the job before us without murmuring and complaining, but rather trusting and having a deep and assured knowing that God will bring good out of it in the end. Things were going well for Joseph, but then Potiphars wife became attracted to Joseph and tempted him multiple times to be with her, but time and again Joseph refused saying “How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” He then ran away from Potiphars wife and in her anger against him, she yelled out to her guardsmen and accused Joseph of trying to be with her. Because of this lie against Joseph, Potiphar became irate and imprisoned Joseph and there he would stay in prison for at least two years. Even in prison wrongfully accused, Joseph stayed faithful. He didnt cry out to God bemoaning his circumstances, but Joseph continued to stay faithful. He kept on being excellent in everything he did and soon even the warden of the prison sensed that God was with Joseph and placed him in charge of everything there just as Potiphar had done years before. (Genesis 39:7-20) (Genesis 39:21-23) It came to pass that while Joseph was in prison that two of Pharaohs servants were also imprisoned and they each had separate dreams that they didnt understand the meaning of. When Joseph came into their cell he noticed their anxiety and asked “Why are you so worried today?” That question really spoke to me. It tells me that Joseph wasnt worried about his circumstances. It tells me that his countenance was cheerful. It tells me that his faith was strong in the Lord and that in Josephs mind all was well. How wonderful is that testimony? It tells us that we should have that same confidence in Gods ability to deliver us. It tells us that no matter how hard our trials are, we can rest in the knowledge that God is in control and that all will be well for us just as it was for Joseph in the end. (Genesis 40:1-23) Two years after successfully interpreting Pharaohs servants dreams, Pharaoh also had a dream that no one was able to interpret until Joseph was finally remembered by Pharaohs servant who had been restored to his previous position as Pharaohs cupbearer. Joseph again successfully interpreted the dream for Pharaoh. Pharaoh marveled at the wisdom and gifting of Joseph and that is when Pharaoh gave Joseph authority over all the land of Egypt. In one day Joseph was taken from the depths of the prison and placed second in command of all of Egypt. Only Pharaoh was greater than Joseph in power. God was faithful to Joseph because Joseph stayed faithful to God. In every trial that Joseph faced, he stayed faithful. He didnt murmur and complain, he didnt worry about what his future held; he just continued to do what he knew was right and left all of the results up to the Lord. May we all learn that lesson and stay faithful just as Joseph was. (Genesis 41:1-46) In the end, all of his brothers did see Joseph again in all of his glory and in all of his power. Everything that Joseph had told them when he was a youth was all completely fulfilled. They did bow down before him, they were at his mercy and if Joseph wanted to, he could have had all of them killed, but Joseph as our example offered mercy and grace. He forgave them all. He let God be their judge and pay them back according to their works. During those years of famine, Joseph fed them, he clothed them and gave all of them including their wives and children everything they needed to live. (Genesis 43:26-28) (Genesis 50:15-26) I encourage you again to learn the lessons from Josephs life and testimony. Let us forgive quickly, trust God wholeheartedly, do the work before us with excellence and never allow ourselves to murmur or complain. Let us not worry about what our future holds because we trust the One who holds our future. God is faithful to remember our faithfulness. He will not leave us nor forsake us so let us renew our confidence in God Almighty and know that all will be well with us all the days of our life. –Dwayne
Posted on: Sun, 10 Nov 2013 18:46:42 +0000
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