Do you ever get frustrated while reading the Bible? I’m sure that’s not necessarily something I’m supposed to say, but sometimes I find myself there, don’t you? Tell me I’m not the only one.
Let’s take Joseph, for example.
After being beaten, sold, enslaved and then elevated, he finds himself as Potiphar’s right hand man. I imagine after all he’s walked through he’s thinking, “this is it! I’ve made it! Thank you Lord.” But then, just as soon as he is elevated, he is taken down yet again - for something he didn’t do! When I read stuff like this, I want to scream "GOD, WHY?"
Now, the Bible doesn’t give us much information about Joseph’s state of mind here - in fact it doesn’t give us any (which is frustrating in and of itself), but I can’t help but put myself in his shoes for a second. He was falsely accused. He was desperately staying faithful to the Lord even after the darkness of being betrayed by his family. He knew he was going to be in charge at some point, but when? He was “serving his guts out” as @jenniesallen put it in her book. And then he gets punished for something he didn’t do? Ouch.
Have you ever been walking in obedience to God’s will just to have your circumstances get worse?
Last year as I was processing my abuse, having been led by the Lord to do so, two events occurred that ended up with me curled up in a ball on our kitchen floor questioning God’s love, provision and protection.
It’s easy to see now, over a year later, that God allowed a funeral and a CPS visit to expedite the “telling process”. Without these, I might still be holding it in. Without these, strength, resolve and resilience might not have been planted inside me so vehemently. But God.
I identify with so much of Joseph’s story, the betrayal, the being sold and used, the hatred, the abuse. But what I see most is God’s hand on Jospeh and His protection even while he experienced such disappointment in his life.
God had a plan.
We can see that so clearly when we read it all the way through, right? He was always right there, orchestrating and providing even when it didn’t seem like He was.
The same is true for your life, friend. He has a plan. He knows what He’s doing. He is working something out, even now. And I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait to get to heaven and hopefully get to see it from the same view we see Joseph’s - from beginning to end, strung together with all of the pieces and parts.
If you find yourself down and out, remind yourself of His faithfulness and His plan. The more we fix our eyes on Jesus, the more our circumstances fall away, no matter how difficult.