Until the time came to fulfill his dreams,
the Lord tested Joseph's character.
Wow! Did you just soak that little sentence all in? . . . Well, if not, as usual, I'll give you my take on it!
The time had to come, to fulfill Joseph's dreams. Meaning, his dreams didn't just come true when he thought of them or when he thought they should or not even because he prayed about it over and over again! They came true when God decided to fufill them because He knew that Joseph was now ready to handle his magnificent blessing.
Simply put, Joseph had to go through some things first. The verse says his character was tested. Maybe he had to be humbled a little, ie. lose a job, foreclose on a home, be hated on at work a little. You know, the stuff you may be facing right now! Nevertheless, God needed the time in order to test Joseph's character and prepare him for the blessing that was to come.
Do you know that half the time, we're not even ready to receive the blessing we think we want?
I once heard a pastor from South Africa tell a story about a woman who became jealous in the church because she was passed over several times during a campaign in which the pastor was blessing members with cars. Finally one day it came out that the woman didn't even possess a driver's license! Instead of being antsy about a blessing she wasn't even prepared to receive, she could've been doing her part to be in position for that blessing!
If you're waiting on a dream to be fulfilled today, what can you be doing while God is testing your character right now? Not only should you be learning from what he's allowing you to go through, you can also take a few steps day by day to get ready for when that BIG something really does go down!
That's my take on it. . . . What's yours?
Seek Wisdom, Find Wealth & Embrace the Test!
1 comment:
i have been trying to help my husband TRULY understand this for years. he has a dream SO big that he is SO passionate about that he is continually doubting the God-given talent he was blessed with because he isn't where he feels he should be in accordance to achieving his goal
he definitely understands that it is the Lord's will and time, not his own, but he often struggles with believing in himself which to me created doubt, which is fear, which keep shim form passing the test.
it is important for people to realize that these tests have no specific shelf life. we often think we've been tried enough, that we're refined, but His standards are the only applicable pre-requisite. so what, it's been three years, the preparation only denotes the reward for a passing grade.
thanks for great insight (as usual) Patrice!
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