Imagine the 17-year-old version of you. Not an adult, but not a child anymore; maybe not the “sharpest knife in the drawer”. This is the story of Joseph in Genesis 37:1-11. Add his family dynamics. He resides in a household with 4 moms (2 regular moms and 2 concubines) and 12 older brothers from the “unfavored” moms. Dad makes Joe the favorite son. Things arrive at a tipping point. Father Jacob gives Joseph a beautiful coat, a gift of the greatest honor. Talk about dysfunctional. Imagine the conversation around that Thanksgiving table.
THE TWO DREAMS
During this, God interjects Himself. God gives Joseph 2 dreams. (Please remember Joseph is only age 17.) Without thinking of the consequences, Joe blurts out both dreams to his bros. Right away the siblings recognize the significance of the dreams: at some point Joseph is going to reign over them. The bros ravenously feast on jealousy and hatred. Joe has a bullseye on his back.
WHAT GOD DOES NOT GIVE JOSEPH
Notice what insight God does not give Joseph: what the 2 dreams are going personally cost Joseph. God does not share the fact that the bros will sell Joe into slavery and fake his death. God only imparts to Joseph the prophecies. Faith in the eternal God is going to have to carry 17-year-old Joseph through years of tremendous isolation, suffering, and injustice. Are you disappointed with the conditions you are living under? Where are the “better” plans you imagined God having for you?
A PAINFUL EDUCATION
Joseph at age 17 enters God’s master class of leadership. This education involves a great deal of pain. Armed with the promises of God, and at the mercy of the machinations of his brothers, Joseph crosses the threshold into his nightmare years. Suffering is all part of God’s plan for Joe’s master class in leadership. These are part of God’s “better” plans. God maintains control despite the dark seasons.
MY MASTER CLASS IN PRAYER
I have been battling an inflammation of my sciatic nerve. The pain escalates in the middle of the night as I lay in bed. In the midst, I have discovered this is an opportunity to begin praying for others. I can’t sleep, so God has another agenda for me. It’s been a master class in prayer. God is in control when the pain shouts its loudest. God’s school often involves great pain.
GOD’S NIGHT SCHOOL
What loss haunts your soul? Are you allowing it to be used by God? Hope for Joseph was around the corner, but he had to learn to navigate through darkness while maintaining hope. Do you allow your pain to shape you into a more loving person? Are you holding on to hope during the darkness and maturing for the good? Are you attending God’s night school?
This is Joseph’s gift to the world = maintaining hope through darkness. Do you maintain a positive attitude amid our chaotic world? Who are you choosing to hope in during your “master class” from God?
Click to here for the amazing testimony of Päivi Räsänen – one who stands tall in the darkness