Joseph answered Pharaoh, "It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer." (Genesis 41:16)
If I'm Joseph, I'm done with God. He is taken to Egypt as a slave from his homeland. He is put in jail because he was unwilling to have relations with his master's wife. He interpreted two dreams for fellow prisoners and asked them to remember him when he gets out. They didn't. Two years pass and Joseph is still in jail for a crime he didn't commit.
And yet he is still trusting in the Lord. We see in Genesis 41 that he says that interpreting Pharaoh's dream is "not in him" but in God. Joseph still trusts in the Lord, still depends on him.
The times that try our faith the most are the difficult times. When circumstances don't make sense and we can only ask God why. I keep asking myself, would I have sworn God off in Potiphar's house? Would I have lasted through two years for prison?
The amazing this is, few things grow us in Christ like difficulties. Even James writes, "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."
All of us want that "lacking in nothing" reality in our lives. But are we willing to endure the trials that come with it? Most of the time we see difficulty as oppressive rather than an opportunity. An opportunity to grow, learn, build character, depend on the Lord more, come to know him in a deeper way, & show his glory to others by the way we suffer?
What opportunities to grow are our circumstances handing us right now? How can we make the most of them?
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