I am sure Joseph wondered many times about what God had planned for him. First off he likely wished he never would have shared his dreams with his brothers. God works through our poor decisions as he did through Josephs to mold him in to the great leader that he became. Trusting God and his end purpose is difficult when in the midst of misery. I suspect that trusting God was not easy for Joseph when his own brothers threw him in to a pit, when Potiphars's wife plotted against him or when he was stuck in jail.
In the following passage Joseph's dreams come full circle when he in actual fact rules over Egypt and his brothers. Imagine the dropped jaws of his brothers when he reveals his identity to them in their time of need. They must have been shaking in their boots. Obviously Joseph was very forgiving and saw the bigger picture, God's purpose, that he worked through their shortcomings to put Joseph in a place of leadership to provide for his family.
Genesis 45:4-11 (http://www.biblegateway.com)
New International Version (NIV)
4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! 5 And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. 6 For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. 7 But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.[a]
8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt. 9 Now hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don’t delay. 10 You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me—you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have. 11 I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.’
God is always a step a head of us.
How do you think he is working in your life for his purpose?
8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt. 9 Now hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don’t delay. 10 You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me—you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have. 11 I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.’
God is always a step a head of us.
How do you think he is working in your life for his purpose?
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