Today’s Reading: Genesis 41-42; Mark 16
Have you ever asked yourself….Why am I in this situation? Why can’t the situation get better? How does good come from the situation?
These are some questions that our protagonists in these stories could ask themselves. Throughout our everyday life, we have many different experiences and these are the items that build us into who we are currently. In today’s reading our protagonists are Joseph and Jesus.
A few days ago, while listening to a podcast the speaker stated something that really resonates with today’s reading, “In every problem there is an answer and in every problem there is a lesson.” In today’s reading we have several instances that we are learning from our past experiences.
In the first reading, we have access to Joseph in prison. In this passage, Joseph has been in prison in Egypt for some time. He was sold into slavery by his older brothers, the sons of Israel also known as Jacob. The reason that he was trapped and sold into slavery was because he shared his visions and dreams with his siblings. He trusted his brothers and wanted to share his excitement and dreams. When this happened, his brothers betrayed him and tried to extinguish his fire.
After he was sold into slavery, Joseph had several different experiences that led him to become a prisoner in Pharaoh’s personal dungeon. Here he was distraught and found destitute. At what he thought would be his final place, God created an opportunity for him to grow. Joseph used his gift of dream reading and helped the baker and chief butler. This then led to him interpreting the dreams of Pharaoh and saving the entire empire of Egypt. The total time that Joseph was in slavery and prison was 13 years. The time between the interpretation of the dreams and the introduction to Pharaoh is assumed to be two years. This can seem like an eternity when you do not know what’s on the other side.
This new found success, allows him to have grace and find room for forgiveness for his brothers. Many times in my life, there have been questionable places and areas that God has allowed me to experience in order for Him to show me grace and in turn allow me to show grace to others. Many times while we are in the situation, we cannot see or recognize that God is preparing us for success in his time.
In the second reading we are at the resurrection. This is the ultimate example of preparing for success. Jesus has been with his apostles and close friends for most of his life. We have the stories of his ministry, which began on earth for a period of three years. But Jesus knew these individuals for a majority of his life. He had planted seeds of the Spirit of God in them throughout their journey together. He was preparing them for the opportunity to be successful after his departure. He is continually preparing us for his ministry daily. We have to be open to the opportunities and the challenges that we are presented with as chances to see success through him.
I know that many times in my life, I’ve been in many situations where I know that God has provided for me and is going to change things for me, but at the moment in time, I cannot understand. But he was preparing me for something else, something greater. What is God preparing you for? What current situation are you in that he might be preparing you for success?
Be Blessed