12. Prison and a Promotion (Genesis 39:1-41:57).

by Mike Fortner

If you’ve read much from the Bible, then you will probably agree that Joseph is one of the characters that you can identify with. He seems to constantly be faced with challenges that are outside of his control, and more times than not, it’s usually because someone is conspiring against him. In Genesis 39:1 through 41:57, Joseph’s story plays out exactly that way but as he has shown before, Joseph’s response to adversity and sin against him lead to far greater opportunities. More importantly, the story conveys the fact that through all of the adversity, being wrongly accused of attempted adultery and thrown in to jail, the Lord was with Joseph and Joseph remained faithful to the Lord. It was also an opportunity for a new door to be opened in Joseph’s life, and one that would lead him to greatness.

As the story goes, Joseph would eventually be placed in a position where he was able to use his God given talents, interpreting dreams, in a way to bring God glory and gain the trust of the king of Egypt. As a reward for his faithfulness to the Lord, he was placed in charge of the entire kingdom and second only to the king.

If you are like me, there has been no shortage of challenges in my life. I’ve not always responded the way that I suspect Joseph would, with grace and complete trust in God. Most of the time my poor decision making has left me with undesirable results and usually a bit of a mess to clean up. However, the few times that I have responded as I think Joseph would have, being patient and faithfully relying on God, the outcome has always exceeded my expectations. It is a very humbling experience when that happens, but one that strengthens my own faith in knowing that God does truly love me.