It's Best To Wait On God

Genesis Chapter 39 - 41

Nobody likes pain. Everyone desires to enjoy a pain free life. Pain is certainly no fun, but pain can shape our life for greatness, depending on how we handle it.

The 11^th chapter of Hebrews is full of giants of the faith; people with struggles, doubts and fears. But God used their difficulties to make them heroes. They may not have felt much like heroes at the time, but their experiences continue to be a source of encouragement for countless individuals today.

Using pain to make and mold a person’s life may appear to be a cruel concept. Why must a person suffer first? Why can’t we simply be declared "more than conquerors", and skate through life beating demons to a pulp?

Escaping the pain process is a good notion, but if we search it out, we’ll find that no person greatly used of God bypassed the process. And we cannot expect to be made complete without going through the storms.

This was certainly true in the life of Joseph. Joseph was a favored son; he was godly in spirit and character. At an early age, God revealed to Joseph that he was chosen, and that he would be used in a special way. And where did this lead? Many years of disappointment, abuse, mistreatment, rejection, false accusation, enslavement and abandonment.

Joseph was sold into slavery by his very own brothers who actually wanted to kill him. When he got to Egypt, his master saw that "God was with him". So he put Joseph over everything that he had. People in business want godly individuals working for them. They are looking for individuals of integrity; people with consistently good attitudes that will not waste their resources. A Christian should be the ideal worker, but often they are the worse of all. Yet business owners have the ability to recognize godliness in their employees, and they quickly place them in key positions.

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 hands. And Joseph found grace in his (his master) sight, and he served him: and he made him seer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hands Genesis 39: 2-4.

Can you imagine the years that Joseph put on his master’s life? Big business is stressful, and when you find a person that’s honest and hard working, it’s an incredible relief. Joseph was so valuable to his master that the only concern he had was what he wanted to eat for dinner. And his profits were tremendous. Godly workers can really help businesses prosper.

One would think that at this point Joseph’s future was secure. He was doing very well, except for one lust driven woman. The enemy was determined to pull Joseph down. But the more determined the enemy gets to pull us down, the more determined we should be to stand firm. No matter what the situation looks like at the moment, when God has a destination for you, it’s best to wait on Him. Don’t compromise for money, pleasure or position. Above all, don’t compromise for sexual gratification. If you have to suffer a while, go ahead and suffer. God will give you the grace to stand.

Why am I bothering to mention this? Because so many men have fallen because of women. Even Christian men are increasingly falling prey to the lust demon. It’s best to do what Joseph did. Run.

But the Lord was with Joseph, and showed 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 Genesis 39: 21-23. Joseph ended up in prison. If we commit a crime and end up in prison, it’s easier to bear the burden. But when we are innocent and suffer the same fate as the criminal, it magnifies the injustice.

There is something about unfair circumstances, that when we know we are innocent, we just cannot rest. We expectantly wait on God to open the door of deliverance, but it’s so very hard. In the case of Joseph, it says that God showed him mercy and gave him favor. And that mercy and favor allowed Joseph to bring unity to a bunch of criminals. I’ve never heard of anything like that.

While in the prison, Joseph was waiting on God. And it came to pass that he interpreted dreams for the king’s cupbearer and baker. Now a dream may seem like an insignificant thing, but God can work through the most minute of circumstances when we are waiting on Him by faith. Joseph told the cupbearer that he would get his job back, and that is exactly what happened.

Joseph asked the cupbearer for assistance in getting out of prison, but the cupbearer forgot about him. He had to remain in that prison another two years. Joseph must have felt awful. It is so unusual that the very people that we help sometimes are the quickest to forget us.

I believe that those two years were the longest, slowest, dullest, most grinding years of Joseph’s life. Nothing meaningful seemed to happen; just waiting and waiting and waiting some more. But just because we aren’t actively involved in anything, doesn’t mean nothing is happening. We want to see something, but even if we don’t, we still need to wait on God.

God is working around us getting things ready. He is working inside of us strengthening and perfecting. He has us on the wheel shaping and molding us. We think life is boring but God is molding us. We think our enemies are victorious but God is molding us. We think our family members will never change but God is molding us. We cry out, "How long"? God keeps right on getting us ready.

In time Joseph came out of that prison and stood before Pharaoh. Had Joseph known that he would be standing before the Pharaoh, he would have had major insomnia. But that’s the way it is. One day, you are just you. The next day, you’re standing on the pinnacle of the greatest breakthrough you could ever imagine.

When the Pharaoh asked Joseph to interpret his dream, Joseph told him, "I can’t do it, but God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace (see Genesis 41:15-16). That’s what waiting on God will do for us. It will make us give him all the glory for everything.

When Joseph gave Pharaoh the answer, Pharaoh immediately placed Joseph over the nation. Joseph didn’t have to drop hints, manipulate, or promote himself in any fashion. You see, Joseph learned something all those years of abandonment, isolation, loneliness, and waiting. He learned to let God have His way.

Many of us have fought to have our own way, only later to regret it. It’s best to wait on God. It only takes a day for God to turn things around. But the waiting is to prepare us to keep what God has planned for us.

Joseph went from a dungeon to the second in charge to the Pharaoh. That’s quite a switch. Joseph got new clothes, a new house, a chariot, and unlimited authority. The promotion was simply incredible. Joseph didn’t know what God was doing all those years that he was forced to trust. But now he sees. Now he can rejoice.

The average person on the streets of Egypt had no idea what had gone on in Joseph’s life. They didn’t know about all those years he spent in prison. They didn’t know the tragedy he went through with his family. Just seeing him dressed in silk with a ring on his finger riding behind Pharaoh didn’t tell it all.

It may be tough waiting on God, but I want to encourage you to never give up. It’s God’s job to deal with the people that mistreat you. It will be worth it all when we experience God’s deliverance.

Be careful for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let you request be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and mind in Christ Jesus Philippians 4: 6-7.

By: Edmund Brown