Faith of Our Fathers - Joseph: Carried by God

Reflections from Genesis 39

From Matt Dumas, Minister of Equipping, and while Neil is out.

Joseph was a man of integrity. The story of Joseph reminds us that life is not always easy or fair for those who are God-followers. Time after time in the biblical narrative Joseph faces difficult, even harrowing circumstances: thrown into a pit and threatened with murder at the hands of his older brothers, sold into slavery, falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife, forgotten by the man whose dream he favorably interpreted. Yet the biblical author highlights Joseph’s integrity through it all. His obedience and his unwillingness to take matters into his own hands even when he has the opportunity to do so make him a prime candidate for God’s blessing. Instead of focusing on past wounds or future possibilities he was obedient to God and fruitful at the present time.

What about you? Are you living in the past or focused on the future? Or have you discovered the delight of experiencing God’s blessing in the here and now? I struggle with this most days. I long to get to the point of living solely in the present. For Joseph, the choices he made to be a man of integrity, even when the world would have considered it foolish, and even in the midst of devastating circumstances, were worth it. God saw him through. What choice will you make today to be a man or woman of integrity? Maybe it’s foregoing the gossip at the water cooler. Maybe it’s choosing not to retaliate when “that idiot” cuts you off in traffic. Or maybe it’s choosing to forego the promotion if it means bad-mouthing another employee. Whatever it is, let’s make that choice today, you and me.

Father, give me one pure and holy passion…to pursue You with reckless abandon, nothing left on the table, all in. May I be one who walks in integrity no matter the circumstance, knowing that you are the One who will one day right every wrong. May I trust You for that and not feel the need to take matters in my own hands. May we be a people marked by integrity, living our lives in such a way that we become the aroma of Christ to a watching world. In the name of Jesus. Amen.