In Trouble and Not Your Fault?

You know, God is really pushing me and growing me beyond any level I could have ever comprehended. I told a friend today that I cannot believe some of the things that are coming out of my mouth and the peace that I'm having in life situations right now. Without sound all religious and spooky, all I can say is it's a supernatural, spiritual feeling that HAS to be God; no denying it. The human mindset says, "Fight!", "React!", "Attack", but the spiritual mind says, "Rest!" "Trust!", "Be still!", "Watch God Work!" I cannot imagine going through what I'm going through without faith as a believer; I would NOT make it without Him. I imagine myself being carried and protected by a whole host of angels right now (and this was the best picture I could find lol) and I'm so thankful for it! I'm thankful that God sees me worth enlisting His army of protectors on my behalf, and that He even finds me of value to fight on my behalf!

I've spent so much time in reflection and meditation over the last month or so, and today, I felt God saying, "What if your deliverance comes from your 'imprisonment'? Will you trust Me still?" If you read my recent post on "Losing is Winning", you read about how I said it's necessary to lose, by earthly standards, to win with Christ. I spoke about the story of Joseph, which the Holy Spirit confirmed to me today that I should look to for strength and anticipation in the outcome of my situation right now. It's not ironic to me that a few days before I received some devastating news, the Holy Spirit led me to the story of Joseph during my personal devotions. Then, I find myself literally in the same predicament as Joseph.

A few things that stuck out to me about the story of Joseph are....

  • Of course, his wrongful persecution
    • I just hate to see a good man go down! As a kid, you learn about Joseph and his beautiful coat, arrayed in gorgeous colors and you covet it. You root for Joseph! He was just a kid and his brothers tried to kill him! I can relate to a sibling trying to hurt you lol, so I sympathize with him lol. Nonetheless, Joseph was a trooper. Whether it was his brothers, Potiphar and his wife, his fellow prisoners.... people just wouldn't let him win!
  • His lack of complaining in spite of it
    • You can search the scriptures, and in spite of Joseph's persecution, there was never a time he complained about it. WOW! That stands out to me. So often, we feel that when we are done wrong by someone, even if we try to be Super Christian with an S on our chest, we can find someone to vent to and feel it's okay. Joseph didn't. The Bible doesn't specify why he didn't complain, but we should relish in that. Each time of persecution the Bible says, "And God was with him." and that was enough. Is it enough for you?
    • Let's check ourselves, saints. Do you feel like you're entitled to complaining when mistreated or persecuted? From a humanly perspective, you absolutely are entitled to it. But, if you know your situations are orchestrated and allowed by God, and His way is perfect, what need do you have to complain? If you truly believe God is going to deliver you, AND HE CAN, then why waste time sowing seeds of complaint into the atmosphere? Stand still, endure, and watch God work! (NOTE TO SELF) 
  • He lost his job and never gained it back... in fact, Potiphar is never mentioned again after throwing Joseph in prison.

    • This really stuck out to me. I guess, in the past when I read this story, I never paid attention to that. But as I let this story marinate, it stood out to me. You see, sometimes we go through trials and knowing that God can turn our situations around, we hope for a restoration in that same situation, but it's not meant to come. For example, God closes a certain relationship and we believe and trust God to restore it, but we miss the point. MAYBE the relationship wasn't meant to be restored. MAYBE God was closing a door with the intention of it being CLOSED permanently.
    • Joseph was a prized employee of Potiphar's. He was lied on and fired, by way of wrongful imprisonment. Case closed. We never hear about Potiphar again. We never again hear about Joseph trying to go back to Potiphar to right a wrong, or to explain, or even clear his name. He accepted that God had closed the door. It wasn't up to him to go back to try to fix.

    • THIS REALIZATION IS FOR ME! Quit wasting time trying to explain to your persecutors and bystanders of your persecution why you're not who they say you are! That's not your job! We have to believe and trust that when God closes and locks a door, it's not our business to figure out how to unlock it and peek our head back in to get the last word. The Bible says in Psalm 25: 2 "O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me." Psalm 56: 9 "When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me." Cry out to God, not to your enemies. Stand on the promise that God knows what you're going through, He knows what people are saying, He knows people are dragging your name through the dirt, but if He closed that door, it's not your battle to go back and fight it single-handedly. He will fight for you without you moving 1 step! Trust Him to avenge your persecutors for you! This too shall pass! Joseph didn't go back!
  • His ability to stand still and watch God move on his behalf, in the midst of wrongful imprisonment

    • I'm convinced Joseph didn't have flesh. He must have been completely made up of Spirit lol. Like, how are you thrown in jail for 2 years for lies, and you're okay? In fact, you prosper. I mean, I would have been the grumpiest, rudest, ungrateful inmate ever. I'd be like, "'Scuse me... I know yall are criminals and deserve to be here, but not me! Can I get an upgraded room or something?" LOL. I'm just being honest.
    • Read this from Genesis 39...
      21 But the Lord was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
      22 And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph's hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer of it.
      23 The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the Lord was with him, and that which he did, the Lord made it to prosper.
    • "Standing still" requires resisting the urge to be reactive and fight based on what you feel needs to be fought because you trust God for deliverance and for a miracle. Joseph recognized that fighting his circumstances on his own was futile. While God had allowed his wrongful persecution, He was also with Joseph through the repercussions; showing him mercy and favor. God honored Joseph's obedience by prospering him in the midst of his storm. Can you imagine the guards hearing of the acts Joseph was believed to have committed, yet seeing Joseph in prison doing right and having the right attitude? That's powerful.

    • People are watching you during your times of persecution. Choose your attitude. God has intentionally placed and/or allowed you to be where you are in your "imprisonment". Why make it worse by fighting back? Surrender to the season. God can prosper you in the midst of "prison". Joseph was promoted to being the leader of the prisoners, and the keeper of the prison entrusted him with taking care of everything, and because God was with him, God caused him to prosper and be promoted even in prison. So, my friend, "imprisonment" is a mindset. You may physically be in a low place, unfairly, but YOU chose whether or not it will truly be prison for you by your attitudes and actions in it.
  • His use of his gifts consistently, even in times of persecution, led to his deliverance and elevation.
    • In Genesis 40, we find 2 of the king's workers thrown into jail. They have dreams/visions and look to Joseph, who had the gift of dream interpretation. So Joseph interprets their dreams and explains them to the prisoners; operating in his gift even in imprisonment. Later, one of the prisoners whose dream Joseph interprets for is restored back to good grace with the king. Joseph asks him to pretty much put in a good word, (And this is first time we see Joseph trying to escape from his present setting) but he doesn't. However, in chapter 41, after 2 years have passed, the king, Pharaoh, now has a dream that he needs interpreted, The king's butler, who Joseph met in prison and interpreted his dream for, recalls that Joseph helped him and recommends him to the king. (Read the rest of the story in Genesis 41!)
    • If Joseph would've held on begrudgingly to the fact that he was falsely imprisoned, he would've never been okay with helping the prisoners by using his gift to interpret their dreams. If he hadn't interpreted their dreams, the butler wouldn't have known to recommend Joseph to Pharaoh when he needed help. So it's so important that we are faithful in those pivotal moments of imprisonment because we never know if those are the very moments that God plants seeds that will ultimately lead to our deliverance and elevation. Joseph's opportunity to interpret Pharaoh's dream led to him becoming 2nd in command in the whole country and saving the world. Joseph's obedience in the darkest times, in spite of whether the imprisonment was warranted, led to his bright future of elevation. Don't belittle your dark moments. It's there that God can humble us to plant and water seeds of restoration.
I love God! I really do. He's so awesome! I'm at amazed at how often you can read the same scripture, and God reveal something new to you each time. I can't relay it enough- Losing everything in the world's eyes is so necessary to win by God's standards! What you lose and give up for the cause of Christ CAN and WILL come back to you tenfold! We will all have our valley moments, and if you're walking steadfastly with God, they will seem unwarranted, but God can extend deliverance from our darkest moments. Relinquish your willingness to grip control. Step out of the boat and go to new heights with God! You won't regret it!


Moving Forward,






God, You are Great! There seriously are not enough words to convey what You mean to me; Your awesomeness, Your power! God,You are always on our side! Even when it seems like You are silent, and You allow hurtful things to happen to us, we have to understand that You know better than we do! You have not forgotten us! You love Your children and are so intentional in the obstacles that You initiate and allow. God, strengthen us to hold Your hand and hold to NOTHING else. God, it's painful. Our earthly treasures grip us. We are gripped by comfort and confused by change, but NOTHING confuses you. Help us trust FULLY in you, and not our own understanding. You will NEVER fail! In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.

Israel Houghton, Jessica Reedy, or Joann Rosario- Moving Forward
Bethel Music- Be Still
Richard Smallwood- I'll Trust You


1 Comments

  1. I have tears in my eyes as I finish reading this. This post resonated and confirmed some things for me. I completely agree with you, Joseph had no flesh!! We get so caught up in our feelings and our selfish needs that we forget that through it all God has a perfect plan for our lives. These trials will bring Him glory, it's really never about us. I'm praying for you, your spiritual wisdom has always been a help to me but during this trial I can tell you're maturing even further, and like I said this post was for me :) God is so good. I know great things are going to come from this. I'm excited to see what God is going to do. Don't forget, leader of the prison. Even during this time you can rise above and fulfill God's plan for this season. Love you.

    ReplyDelete