Christian Living
I am all for studying the Word, reading the Word, meditating on the Word, confessing the Word. And I am making steady progress at acting on the Word I believe.
But sometimes, I am faced with situations that I honestly do not know what else to do.. I’ve done all I know to do and yet it seems I haven’t done enough, sometimes it feels like there’s still so much more to do.
I remember my days as a medical student, exams were always high pressure times, it doesn’t really matter how much you’ve studied or not studied. Our medical textbooks were so voluminous that it was impossible for anyone to boast to have covered any of them sufficiently for any exam. Study groups never really worked for me; members were either too far ahead or too slow for me, let’s just say I was terrible with teamwork ?
This morning, I think about Joseph and his siblings; how that they bundled him into a deep well simply out of spite and hatred, I mean Joseph did them no wrong before then!
“Joseph’s brothers saw him coming from far away. They decided to make a plan to kill him. They said to each other, “Here comes Joseph the dreamer. We should kill him now while we can. We could throw his body into one of the empty wells and tell our father that a wild animal killed him. Then we will show him that his dreams are useless.” But Reuben wanted to save Joseph. He said, “Let’s not kill him. We can put him into a well without hurting him.” Reuben planned to save Joseph and send him back to his father. When Joseph came to his brothers, they attacked him and tore off his long and beautiful coat. Then they threw him into an empty well that was dry.“
Genesis 37:18-24 ERV
At the point Joseph was being tied up, was there really anything he could have done to help/save himself apart from screaming for help? I think not. He was probably more shocked, confused initially than scared. Should Joseph have been wiser with sharing his dreams and divulging God’s purpose for his life? Maybe..?….but he was still very young at the time.
Sometimes, there’s really not much we can do on our own except to trust God.
In those medical school days, I learnt over time that the approach that worked best for me was to start reading ahead of each session, and within the session, I’d read the study notes but also get in on past exam questions early. Did this help me cover all the assigned texts?, not at all. But it helped my confidence and mental stability.
Here’s something else I learnt to do;… I learnt to trust God. So I’ll tidy up most of my studying the last Friday preceding the exam week. Saturday morning, you’ll find me in my local Church with my walkman and working tools weeding the walkway, singing, mowing some lawn, dancing, cleaning up! ?. Saturday evening, I’ll study a little more and sleep. Sunday morning, I’ll be in Church worshipping and serving in the follow-up department. Sunday night, I’ll study a bit more then sleep. I learnt to trust God and, yes, He always showed up! Everytime I practiced this routine, I was never confused about the questions that faced me on Monday morning, most were my last minute studies.
God showed up for Joseph, infact God knew the evil thoughts and plans of Joseph’s siblings and He made His own plan to keep Joseph out of the well……
It was not a coincidence that the Midianites arrived at the well at the very time that they did…. in time to get Joseph out of the well….
“While Joseph was in the well, the brothers sat down to eat. They looked up and saw a group of traders traveling from Gilead to Egypt. Their camels were carrying many different spices and riches. So Judah said to his brothers, “What profit will we get if we kill our brother and hide his death? We will profit more if we sell him to these traders. Then we will not be guilty of killing our own brother.” The other brothers agreed. When the Midianite traders came by, the brothers took Joseph out of the well and sold him to the traders for 20 pieces of silver. The traders took him to Egypt.“
Genesis 37:25-28 ERV
Someone says, ‘but he was sold into slavery!’ and I say ‘He didn’t die in the well (or prison) because God was with him’, I mean can you not imagine the story ending differently? Like ….and Joseph starved to death in the dry well… God forbid.
I always remind myself of Joseph’s magnanimous and forgiving attitude towards his brothers- he held no grudge against them. Infact he never doubted that God was with Him through all his ordeals. That’s why he could respond to his siblings that God meant it all for good (Genesis 45:5-8). May we learn to forgive and embrace those who in ignorance attempt to disrupt God’s plan and purpose for us, knowing that as long as we abide in God, He will surely bring His plans and purposes to pass.
When you cannot help yourself, when you do not know what else to do, after you’ve done all you know to do….STAND and trust God. Stand on the promises of God. Pray in the Spirit and listen out. God will show up. He always does.
Shalom
