Readings for today: Genesis 41, Matthew 14:1-21
Over and over again we read how the Lord was with Joseph. He was with him at the heights of his success. He was with him in the depths of his failures. With him when he was rapidly climbing in favor. With him when he was falsely accused and imprisoned. No matter where Joseph went, God was at his side. How do we know? Because of the fruit his life produced. Joseph was a humble man. He submitted his life to God’s will. He walked in God’s ways. He refused to let bitterness or anger or fear get the best of him. Whatever others may intend for evil, Joseph knew God could turn to good if he would trust Him. Joseph’s life is a model of faithfulness. A model of humility. A model of walking with open hands and an open heart to however the Lord would choose to work. Joseph’s steps were determined for him. He did not choose to go to Egypt. Did not choose to be part of Potipher’s house. Did not choose to be thrown in prison. Did not choose to serve Pharaoh. Joseph, like Daniel after him, simply chose to grow where he was planted. Like the seed that fell on good soil, his life bore thirty-fold, sixty-fold, a hundred-fold for the Lord. And the result was the blessing of a pagan nation.
I am sure Joseph had his moments. Perhaps he cried out like the Psalmist to God for vindication. Cried out for justice. Cried out for peace. I am sure Joseph spent many a dark night in the prison cell asking God why this had happened. Reflecting what God wanted to teach him. I am sure Joseph’s faith was put to the test by his experiences and yet through it all, Joseph chooses the path of faithfulness. The path of trust. Come hell or high water, Joseph throws his lot in with God. It’s a powerful testimony, one Joseph himself confirms in the naming of his sons. “Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh. “For,” he said, “God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father’s house. The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.” (Gen. 41:51-52)
What about us? Today is a good day to reflect the life of Joseph and the faithfulness of God. Today we inaugurate a new president. Depending on where you fall on the political spectrum, you might view the next four years as a time of plenty or of want. You might look back at the last four years in a similar vein. What we need to remember is to never place our hope in Pharaoh. We should never become too comfortable in Egypt. God has not designed us to live comfortably in this world and we should never cozy up to the political ideologies of one particular party or another. No, our hope is in God. Our home is His country. Our allegiance to His Kingdom. This was something Joseph never forgot. Even as he lay on his deathbed, as we will see in a few chapters, he secures a promise from his children to take his body one day back to the Promised Land.
What does your life look like when you experience the ups and downs? When you are attacked and falsely accused? When the people around you…the very people who are supposed to love you…actually intend evil and seek to harm you? What happens then? How do you respond? So often, I find myself reacting in one of two ways. I lash out. I go on the attack. I violently defend myself if necessary. Or I run. I curl up in the fetal position. I let my fears get the best of me and I try to hide. Neither approach is gospel-centered. Neither approach is faithful. God calls us to place our trust in Him. To seek our approval in Him. To place our faith in His will and His way and ultimately, His vindication. To walk with the Lord means blooming where He plants us. Blessing the people He has placed around us be they Christian or pagan. Praying for our political leaders be they Republican or Democrat. We walk in His ways on the mountaintop when things are going great and in the valley when things are hard. We accept both good and evil from his hands like Job. As we do so, God produces in us a great harvest of righteousness.
So where does life find you today? As our nation undergoes a transition of power, where are you placing your trust? Is it in your circumstances? Is it in a new administration? Is it in the people around you and their opinions of you? Or is your hope in God?
Readings for tomorrow: Genesis 42-43, Matthew 14:22-36