Trust and Obey

Genesis 37

I'm the oldest child in my family, so I really don't know what it's like to be teased by older siblings.

Joseph had ten older brothers, who were extremely jealous of him...and humanly thinking, rightly so. Their father was clearly partial to Joseph, the eldest son of his beloved Rachel. He gave Joseph a special coat, marking him as the favorite.

Besides being labeled as "Special", Joseph had dreams which appeared to honor himself. His brothers' sheaves bowed down to him; the sun, moon, and stars bowed down to him. I can just see his brothers laughing at his arrogance of even telling them the dreams.

But, was it arrogance? We don't see any signs of pride in Joseph in the rest of his life. Maybe it was there in his youth, but God was teaching Joseph to trust Him.

Joseph knew that his brothers hated him, yet he obeyed his father and went to look after their well-being. Even when they were not in the expected place, he asked a man which way they had gone and traveled farther to find them. Was he afraid, being so far removed from his father's protection?

They planned to kill him, and would have, if it wasn't for Rueben. They sold him as a slave, which was as good as being dead. Did Joseph cry out for mercy? Did he plead for his life? I'm sure he thought he'd never see his family again.

But... God was working a wonderful plan. Joseph didn't know it. He only knew the hardship he was enduring. We don't know what God's plans are for our lives. We need to endure with the assurance that God knows all about it and has a purpose for it.

Lord, help us to be like Joseph, obeying when we know there may be hardships ahead. Teach us to trust You in all situations and be faithful in whatever You ask us to do.