Joseph’s story begins like so many of ours: in a place off the beaten path, surrounded by people who did not believe the magnitude of his calling. However, all of that changed. Joseph was thrust into a grand narrative where God raised him up, not only so that he could fulfill his calling, but also so that he could bless all of those who doubted him along the way.
Faithspring
Day 1
Scripture: Genesis 37:2-4
Joseph is not the character most people think he is. Our first introduction to the young man is anything but positive.
Right away, we see him tattle-telling on his brothers. Whether or not the stories he tells about them are actually true is a point of contention. On top of that, Joseph is clearly Jacob’s favorite. The family history of favoritism seems to have stood the test of time (Isaac loved Esau more, Jacob loved Rachel more).
Joseph is not a good boy. He is not an example we should follow. At first, he is nothing more than a spoiled kid with a habit for making up stories.
As we will see, this is the person who God gives great dreams; who God uses to save a nation; and who becomes a shining ancient example of the Savior to come.
God doesn’t care where your story starts. He didn’t pass over Joseph because he lied or because he was spoiled. God didn’t pay attention to what was and instead focused on what could be.
Joseph would go on to become a great man, a patriarch in his own right. Everyone has to start somewhere and Joseph started here. But as we will see, that is not where God kept him.
Takeaway: Where you start has no bearing on how far God can take you.
Day 2
Scripture: Genesis 37:5-11
The second scene we see with Joseph is one that has gone on to define his story. Joseph has two dreams; one takes place on earth and the other in the heavens. In both cases, the grains and the stars, which represent Joseph’s family, bow down to him.
However, if you look at the context of the story, the focus is not on the interpretation of Joseph’s dreams but instead, on the family’s reaction to them. Multiple times the verses say that the brothers hated Joseph and were jealous of him. On top of that, even the father Jacob, who calls Joseph his favorite son, has said he has gone too far.
Furthermore, there is no interpretation of the dreams, only questions: Will you rule over us…Will we actually bow down to you? So what is the purpose of giving these dreams so early on in Joseph’s story? There are two reasons.
The first reason has to do with what we just saw in the previous verses. Joseph does not deserve to receive prophetic dreams from God. To put it simply, he’s a spoiled brat. What is God thinking by sending him such grand ideas about his future?
But you see, that’s exactly how God works. He chooses the overlooked, the unlikely. He loves to use the people we least expect to accomplish the unthinkable. In choosing Joseph, God is laying the foundation for His own glory. If such extraordinary things are going to happen, they will happen by His hand alone.
The second reason for the dreams is to show how our callings from God are affected by the people in our lives. Everyone in Joseph’s family tried to shut him down immediately. That can’t happen…You’re crazy…Do you really think you can do that?
When God calls us to do great things you can bet others will do their best to deter us. They will remind us of our failures, our inadequacies, and our sins. They will do everything they can to keep us in our box of small faith.
As we will see, Joseph’s dreams sustained him even in the worst circumstances. Joseph impressed the promises on his heart and never let go because he believed God always fulfills his promises.
You are as much a child of God and a child of promise as Joseph was. You may be undeserving of the life God has called you to and maybe you have already received some push-back from those close to you. Don’t lose hope. The very circumstances which were meant to break Joseph’s faith in the promises were actually the events setting up their fulfillment.
Takeaway: No matter how undeserving we are, or unlikely it seems, God always keeps His promises to us.
Day 3
Scripture: Genesis 37:12-36
The favorite and hopeful Joseph is about to have his world completely stripped away. Although Joseph seems to be unsuspecting as he travels out to check on his brothers, the reader is not. We have read over and over again how intense their hate is for Joseph. Now they will be alone with their younger brother miles away from home.
Joseph has some trouble finding his brothers at first, but quickly gets on the right path and spots them in the distance. They also spot him from far away, mostly due to his brightly-colored cloak. A glaring reminder of their father’s favoritism.
Now is their chance. The brothers come together and form a plan. At first, they want to kill him, but the eldest talks them out of it. They decide to teach him a lesson by throwing him into an empty well in the middle of nowhere. But then a third and better option presents itself – they decide to sell him to traders. That way they not only get rid of their brother, but they also cash in.
Once they are back home the brothers deceive their father into believing Joseph was eaten by a wild animal. They have all of their bases covered and for them, this is the end of Joseph’s dreams.
We are given a drop of hope, though, in the very last verse of the chapter. Joseph is purchased by an Egyptian official. As it turns out, the end of Joseph’s old life is really the start of his destiny.
Betrayal is a devastating blow to endure. Whether it was from a family member, a spouse, a friend. When someone betrays you it’s as if they literally rip out a piece of you.
Joseph was betrayed by every one of his brothers. It was as if each one reached inside and ripped him apart. But the author doesn’t record any of his cries for help or mercy. Throughout the entire scene, Joseph is completely silent.
I don’t know why they decided to tell the story this way. Maybe it was to foreshadow how Jesus endured his own betrayal. Or maybe it’s because Joseph’s pain was so intense, the author couldn’t bring himself to write down his cries.
But what I do know is that even when others are done with us, God is not. Joseph’s brothers had given up on him; they wanted nothing to with him. But God had other plans.
Even when it seems as if the whole world is turning against you, remember this scene. Remember that we serve a God who sees and who cares, who doesn’t turn his back on us and will never stop writing our story.
Takeaway: Even if the whole world gives up on us, God never will.
Day 4
Scripture: Genesis 39:1-6
Joseph’s story finally takes a positive turn, but only for a short while. The young man arrived in Egypt and was put to work. He does so well during his time there the Bible describes him as prospering. This is definitely an odd word to use for someone bound in slavery.
But God was with Joseph, so his experience was nothing short of extraordinary. He was quickly promoted from a simple outdoor slave to the head of Potiphar’s household. This would have been a prestigious role, usually reserved for the absolute best slaves who had served under the master for decades. Joseph was placed there in a fraction of that time.
During this time, everything placed under Joseph’s care prospered. He was basically a living good luck charm. However, another betrayal was right around the corner and Joseph’s world would again be stripped away.
One powerful lesson found here is the reason for Joseph’s success. Towards the beginning of this chapter, we read “The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered.” It’s not a coincidence that the sentence was worded this way. There’s a relationship at work here, one that Bible commentator Gordon Wenham brings to life, “God’s presence and blessing belong together.”
The presence of God and the blessing of God are two sides to the same coin. Just like God is light and around him there can be no darkness, so God’s presence brings blessing. Like an aura of good, when God is near something or someone that thing cannot help but become more than it was before.
How often do you pray for blessings? And how often do you pray for God’s presence?
I know personally, I ask for the first much more often. I ask God to bless my opportunities, my decisions, my trials, and my relationships. But what if that’s incomplete? What if instead of asking for a blessing, we asked for God to show up in our opportunities, choices, and pains?
What if the reason we are not experiencing blessing is that we have a habit of not inviting the Blesser?
Takeaway: The presence of God brings the blessings of God.
Day 5
Scripture: Genesis 39:7-20
Trouble rears its ugly head once again in Joseph’s story. As he was walking in the presence of God, fulfilling his duties, the temptation of lust tried to veer him off course.
Potiphar’s wife was attracted to Joseph and readers get the sense that she was a woman who always got what she wanted. But Joseph stayed firm. He wanted to honor both his earthly master and God by not falling into sin with her. Yet she was persistent. It says day after day she came to Joseph tempting him, but still, he refused.
Eventually, her patience ran out. Potiphar’s wife grabbed Joseph one day and was adamant that she would get what she wanted. Joseph was equally determined not to give it to her so he ran away, leaving his cloak in her hands. In response, she wove a story about Joseph trying to take advantage of her, and the cloak was all the evidence they needed.
Innocent and silent once again, Joseph’s life is apparently destroyed as he is thrown into prison.
This story presents us with an uncomfortable truth. Bad things can still happen to us even when we are obeying the will of God. Joseph was directly where God wanted him to be, doing exactly what he was supposed to be doing. He was obedient, honorable and regularly defeating temptation. Yet despite all of that, something terrible came into his life.
Yesterday we saw that the presence of God also brings the blessings of God. But it’s also important to understand that God’s presence does not mean we will be free of suffering. From Abraham to Jesus, the Bible teaches us over and over again that sometimes the most painful place to be is in the will of God.
So what should we do?
Follow God anyways.
No matter how painful the situation may be, when we are in God’s will and presence we can have hope that He will see us through. As in Joseph’s story, even the most unfortunate circumstances can be turned into good.
Takeaway: The safest and most dangerous place we can be is in the presence of God.
Day 6
Scripture: Genesis 40:1-23
Now in prison, Joseph is once again placed into a position of authority. He is given responsibility over the prisoners and God blesses his time there. Joseph serves well even as he looks for any way to get out.
Eventually, an opportunity arises. Two of the Pharaoh’s officials are sent to prison and put under Joseph’s care. During their time there they each have a dream. The two men are terrified by their situation, and the dreams only act to make them more curious and cautious about their future.
Joseph offers his help. To our knowledge, he has never interpreted a dream before. But one thing is clear – he has stayed faithful to God. All the trials so far have worked to make him an obedient servant of God, one who trusts Him fully even when his entire world is falling apart. So by faith, Joseph offers his insight to the two men.
The cup bearer’s dream showed that he would be restored to his previous position while the baker would be killed. After the interpretation, Joseph begs them to remember him and help him get out of prison. Three days pass and Joseph’s words turn out to be true. The cup bearer returns to his work while the baker is put to death.
The chapter ends on a gray note. In all the joy of being set free and restored, the cup bearer forgot about Joseph. And so for two more years, Joseph is confined to prison where he must wait and pray and wonder what God is up to.
If you were to search for what theme is more prevalent in the Old Testament than any other, I would cast my vote on the theme of waiting.
Abraham waited for children. Job waited for an answer. Israel waited for a home. Over and over again, we see God make extraordinary promises to His people, and then make them wait years and years before they come true.
I wonder how many nights Joseph fell asleep remembering the dreams he had as a boy all those years ago. Waiting has a way of causing us to doubt the promises of God. Joseph probably began to ask himself some hard questions. Did those dreams even happen? Maybe I misunderstood them? Maybe those dreams weren’t meant for me?
Waiting is one of the most difficult parts of the Christian life. But it can also be one of the most rewarding because it is in the wait that our faith is truly exercised. Every day that passed with Joseph still in prison worked towards building his faith in God. And our waiting can do the same for us if we let it.
I can’t tell you why God may be making you wait, but I can say, in faith, that He has your best interest in mind. God knows what He is doing with your story. Trust Him.
Takeaway: Waiting on God is a necessary part of growing our faith.
Day 7
Scripture: Genesis 41:25-40
In an instant, Joseph’s world is changed again. The Pharaoh had a dream that nobody in his royal court could interpret. Thankfully, the cup bearer who failed to remember Joseph all those years ago finally does and brings him before the Pharaoh.
With humility, Joseph interprets Pharaoh’s dreams and prophecies that two periods are on their way: one of plenty and one of famine. It’s likely that everyone in the room was terrified by what they heard, so Joseph goes a little further. He offers his own wisdom on how to handle the situation: save a portion of the plenty to sustain the nation through the time of famine.
Pharaoh received his answer and was clearly impressed by the young man. In one swift decree, he elevates Joseph, the prisoner, to the position of a vizier, the second most powerful person in the land.
Every time I read this chapter I remember how perfectly it displays the awesomeness of God. God literally took Joseph while he was in the lowest place in his life (imprisoned, alone, forgotten) and raised him into a position where his dreams could now come true.
God is glorified in our unlikely circumstances. When there seems to be no logical way to get from here to there – that is when God steps in. He waits until there can be no other answer than the hand of God so that there will be no one else to praise but Him!
Your dark times are opportunities for God to shine. He has not placed you in your current troubles to forget about you or to imprison you. He is building your story and His glory.
God loved Joseph, but He also loved every person who would be affected by the famine. And so God allowed Joseph to wait in pain until just the right time.
Your waiting is not in vain. God is at work. The One who gave you your dreams will be the One to help them come true.
Takeaway: Sometimes God makes us wait on purpose so that He will be glorified by the good that comes.