Thoughts for another day

January 30, 2012

Today's verse: Gen. 45:7. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. (KJV)

(Pls. read the above before you read further. Thanks)

The ways of God are completely unpredictable and mysterious.  He works things out in a manner to stun us and till His whole plan is opened, we are in the dark and many times in pain.  And this is clear in our Scripture today in which Joseph tells his brothers that his entire journey from his father's dwelling place to Egypt was God's work.  And we see the wonderful work of the hand of our God who raised up Joseph as the second most powerful man in Egypt, just next to Pharaoh.

This is a good lesson for us who say we trust God and want to live in His ways.  What I mean by this is: There're times when God reveals His plan for us but not the time in which it's to be accomplished.  Take the case of Joseph, God gave him dreams and visions of his greatness but didn't tell him when he would become great.  Now, between the time God gave him the visions and till Joseph became great, God took him through a trial.  A trial so severe, that I'm sure it must have shaken Joseph.  He must have cried at what was happening for everything was contradictory to his dreams, first his own brothers sold him.  Then he was sold as a slave; later he was put into a jail for no fault of his!  It's literally like, from the pan into the fire; but one thing Joseph would have done is borne all his afflictions bravely, in the hope that God will deliver him and God did deliver him.

As it turned out, Joseph eventually became what was shown in his visions and we see that God took the route He did because, He wanted Joseph to be the savior of his brothers and their families so that the sons of Israel, who were to form the twelve tribes of Israel would not perish but live by the deliverance that Joseph would bring to them.  So too I tell you today, trust God for the visions He has given you.  He is a just God and very capable.  He may give you painful trials while He goes about setting you up for your destiny, but remember He will bring you out of the trial, a winner.  Just trust Him for He knows what to do.