Thursday, February 22, 2007 · no responses · comments closed

Last night over coffee, a group of us were talking about God’s plans for our lives and learning to wait while the plans unfold. The conversation turned to Joseph and Moses, who both knew God had called them to something great and yet waited a long time to see it come about.

What did these men do while they waited, Joseph in slavery and prison, Moses in the wilderness? Did Moses have aspirations to one day return to Egypt and free his people, or did he settle down into family and work, assuming that was all that was left for his life? We’re not told how Moses knew he was to deliver Israel, but Stephen tells us that “He supposed that his brothers would understand that God was giving them salvation by his hand” (Acts 7:25); clearly, Moses sensed a divine destiny.

In contrast, Joseph had two vivid dreams that showed him he was destined for great authority; he knew from God that something was ahead. And, unlike Moses, we get to see a little more of the process with Joseph. The story of Moses fast-forwards 40 years to the burning bush, and we don’t know much about what happened then.

Joseph can give us some insights into the journey from dream to reality. One thing that stands out in Joseph’s story is that he did his work with excellence. Genesis 39 tells us

The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands. So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him, and he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had. From the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had, in house and field.

God’s favor on Joseph brought him success, and that favor spilled over to Potiphar, Joseph’s master. Toward the end of the chapter, we read about Joseph’s time in prison:

But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in the prison. Whatever was done there, he was the one who did it. The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph’s charge, because the Lord was with him. And whatever he did, the Lord made it succeed.

Scripture does not tell us directly that Joseph was a man of excellence, but it seems a reasonable inference: God had to have something on which to put His favor, and it seems unlikely that He would have blessed half-hearted or shoddy work by Joseph.

And so we see that Joseph put himself into whatever was at hand: sold as a slave, he worked diligently for his owner; thrown into prison for a crime he didn’t commit, he did something that distinguished himself to the keeper of the prison. He acted, and God blessed him with His favor. I wonder if Joseph had his dreams in mind, thinking that the authority he gained in these positions was moving him toward that greater authority of his family bowing before him.

Perhaps. But I doubt it. I suspect that instead, Joseph had an attitude that allowed him to make the best of a bad situation. He demonstrates the principle that Paul repeats in Colossians 3:

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (v. 17)

and

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. (v. 23–24)

How often do we say, “When the time comes, I’ll give it all I’ve got, but right now, I’m just biding my time”? And the time doesn’t come, because we’ve not done anything to show ourselves faithful. Instead, we need to say, “This is the time, and so I’ll do my best. Who knows what doors might open up?” To put it another way, instead of waiting for destiny to come, waiting for the dream to manifest, we can prepare ourselves for the demands of that dream by “working heartily, as for the Lord.”