It would be fair to say that the following statement is not even believable: "I've never encountered any hardships; nor have I known anyone with evil intentions!" If we are a part of this world, whether a child, an adolescent, or an adult; we have tasted dysfunctions somewhere along the way. It's quite possible that we might have been born to an abusive parent or two. Our parents might have dragged us into a bitter divorce and a custody battle. We might have had a loved one die because of a drunk driver or some sort of a negligence at a health care facility. Or we might have lost all our monetary means due to a failing economy or a bad partnership. If your particular circumstance has not been mentioned so far, feel free to add to the list. Though I have only specified certain specific situations most people see happen, the list is endless.
There are times during which we feel so tattered by difficulties that we even start questioning God. Asking for help, for guidance, and for strength are quite admirable during our trials. But questioning God's love for us or his supremacy is never acceptable. Though He doesn't offer us shortcuts; He is still the one who has all the answers. And since He knows the ending from the beginning, He has already prepared a solution, way before the incident even took place.
One of the greatest survival stories told in the Bible is Joseph's when his brothers were so jealous of his honesty and integrity that they plotted to get rid of him. First, they threw Joseph into the pit. That was their whole plan. Since there was no water in the pit, they had chosen a slow death for their younger brother.
The following three verses explain God's plan and purpose for Joseph. Gen 37:28, "Then Midianite traders passed by. And they drew Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. The traders took Joseph to Egypt." Gen 39:1, "Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there." Gen 41:41 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.”
Should Joseph's faith in God have been based on all his childhood circumstances up until he ended up at the bottom of the pit ; he sure could have come up with some serious questions about God's righteousness. But Joseph had a real relationship with God. That's where his honesty and integrity were coming from. And that's why his brothers were so jealous of him. They had inherited their father Jacob's conniving ways.
So no matter what Joseph faced, he knew God would make it right. And God did make it right so much so that every evil effort against Joseph turned out to be an amazing blessing for him. There are so many great lessons we can draw from Joseph's life. I'd like to focus on one in particular. Unfortunate circumstances cannot and should not define who we are. What we decide to do with them determines the outcome. We cannot carry a victim mentality if we truly believe we belong to God. We either believe in God wholeheartedly or we don't. Even a tiny doubt about God's supremacy can have detrimental effects on our God-given identity.
Blessings...
