Life can be challenging. Many times, we may ask ourselves, Why is this happening to me? There is a great record in the Bible of a young man who faced challenging situations. His name was Joseph. Studying Joseph’s example, we will see that we can overcome adversity when we think the things of God’s Word; don’t allow anger, bitterness, feelings of inferiority or superiority, or fear in our lives; and keep moving forward as we live the Word and receive God’s deliverance.
Joseph was loved the most of Jacob’s twelve sons because he was the child of Jacob’s old age. Joseph’s brothers were jealous and disliked him because Jacob showed his favor toward him over his brothers and chose Joseph as his heir. On top of that, Joseph told his brothers about two dreams where God revealed to him that he would rule over them. Let’s see how Joseph’s brothers responded:
Genesis 37:18,26,27:
…they conspired against him to slay him.
And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood?
Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content.
When his brothers sold him into slavery, Joseph certainly could have been angry and bitter, felt inferior, or been fearful for his life. But Joseph responded according to the integrity of God’s Word he maintained in his heart. He was only seventeen years old.
Joseph was taken to Egypt. When he arrived, he was resold to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officers.
Genesis 39:2-4:
And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.
And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.
And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand.
Later, Joseph was thrown into prison after Potiphar’s wife falsely accused him of wrongdoing.
Genesis 39:21,22:
But the Lord was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
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.
Even under these circumstances, God prospered Joseph because he lived God’s Word! Did Joseph respond with anger or bitterness when falsely accused? No! Nor did he act superior when promoted, or inferior or fearful when put in prison. He retained the Word of God he had been taught and lived it.
God continued to be there for Joseph, and He prospered him in his difficult circumstances as he held God’s Word in mind and lived it. Joseph put the past behind him and moved forward with God’s deliverance.
Genesis 41:50-52:
And unto Joseph were born two sons….
And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: For God, said he, hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father’s house.
And the name of the second called he Ephraim: For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.
We determine our mind-set in any situation. How we control our minds in adverse situations will determine our outcome. We might wonder why something is happening to us and possibly become angry or bitter, feel inferior or superior, or have fear, depending on the circumstances. Or we can do what Joseph did and remember what we know from God’s Word. We can renew our minds to God’s Word, finding the promise of God for our situation and holding on to the integrity of God’s Word in our lives as we act on it and keep moving forward. We can learn from Joseph’s example and not allow anger, bitterness, feelings of inferiority or superiority, or fear to be part of our thinking as we renew our minds to God’s Word and overcome adversity.