Thankful for a Challenge
God’s plans are complicated. Would Joseph have accepted slavery and time in prison if he knew that this was God’s plan for him? Would it have been easier to just ask God to put him charge of the world’s food supply to begin with? As humans much of our learning is experiential. An education with books is always needed but you must live life to understand it. Experience takes to a deeper level in our heart than what we can imagine with our minds. Joseph’s desire to be reconciled with his family was hinged on his ability to forgive. The skills God gave Joseph were used in Egypt not Israel. All of this was God’s plan. And it does not stop there. Now God must get them up out of Egypt.
Many times, we experience what we think are setbacks or delays. We are a culture of instantaneous satisfaction. If we bounce from one set of self-gratification to the next there is no time for God to reveal His plan for us. It is only when we are jailed or made to slow down can we think. And admittedly our first thoughts are probably directed to God in a negative manner.
Try this. We often give thanks to God for the great things in our life. Give God thanks for the challenges you have been given. He is opening your heart to greater love.
May the Lord bless you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen