“JOSEPH MOMENTS”
I was off work
all this past week because a coworker thought they might have the Covid virus.
I wasn’t happy to be off work at first, but it worked out great! The Lord
provided me with plenty of money to take care of the bills, go out to eat, and
enjoy my time off without worrying. I even got the extra blessing of inspiration
to do a new painting, and on the way home yesterday, a neighbor had put an
easel with paper on it and about twelve or so new brushes out on the sidewalk, all
free for the taking! God’s timing is always perfect! The easel had two magnets
of Jesus on it, just in case I didn’t recognize who really gave me the new
gifts - haha. (see the photo above).
I suppose
the devil wanted me to get all stressed about money or about getting Covid, but
I wasn’t bothered about either of these. After my day of being grumpy, I
refused to succumb to any more negative thoughts. I prayed for my friend and refused
to believe that they had the Covid either. I went about taking care of things
around the house like pruning my olive tree and doing the paperwork for a
couple of class action suits—things that I’d been procrastinating about for
months! I also made sure that every day I took time to do something relaxing
and fun.
At the end
of the week, at the very last moment, my company’s safety guy, bless his heart,
and the HR person let me know that the Covid test on my friend was negative and
I could go back to work on Monday.
I feel
like God and the Lord Jesus stepped in on my behalf and worked everything out
for me. It was one of those times that I call “Joseph moments.” Genesis 37
begins were with how Joseph’s brothers were jealous of him and hated him. They
plotted to get him out into the desert to kill him. They lowered him down into
a pit and left him there to die. When they saw a group of Ishmaelites coming,
they decided it would be better to sell Joseph and make some money off him, but by the time Joseph’s oldest brother,
Reuben, came back to the pit, another group, the Midianites, came by, saw
Joseph in the pit, got him out, and sold him to the Ishmaelites.
The
Ishmaelites took Joseph to Egypt to sell him as a slave. Joseph was in prison
for a while there, but great miracles happened for Joseph, and he ended up
being the Pharaoh’s right-hand man, in charge of all the wealth in Egypt.
“And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, ‘See, I have set thee
over all the land of Egypt.’ And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and
put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a
gold chain about his neck;
“And he made him to ride in the second chariot which
he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over
all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, ‘I am Pharaoh,
and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt’”
(Gen. 41:41-44).
Later on in the story, Joseph’s
father and brothers were in famine where they lived. The Pharaoh told Joseph to
send for them:
“Now thou art commanded, this do ye; take you wagons
out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring
your father, and come.
“Also regard not your stuff; for the good of all the
land of Egypt is yours” (Gen 45:19-20).
When his family came down
to Egypt, Joseph didn’t reveal who he was at first. His brothers thought that
their plan worked and they’d gotten rid of Joseph for good. Isn’t that just how
Satan works? He seems to think that he always wins, but time and time again he
is proven wrong.
Nothing God has created
can ever be above God himself. As many times as the devil tries to hurt us or destroy
us, we need to remember that God is greater than the works of darkness, and God
is on our side. We need to always keep that in our minds, our hearts, and our speech:
No matter what the enemy does to stop us, delay us, or aggravate us, if we will
look to the Lord, He will turn the worst things around for us, and the end
result will be in our favor! That’s what happened for Joseph and will happen
for us too.
When Joseph revealed
himself to his brothers, he gave them food and supplies to take back with them.
Over a year later, they met again. Joseph’s father had died, and now Joseph
confronted his brothers with raw truth. He said to his brothers: “But as for you,
ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it
is this day, to save much people alive” (Gen. 50:20).
The devil, through the
brothers, wanted one man dead, but instead, God turned it around. That one man
not only lived in great prosperity and happiness, but through him, many others turned
around to believe in our God.
We should never doubt that
the Lord is working on our behalf. Even though the first day or so of my “Covid
recess” was maddening, when I got my head around the truth, and I believed that
God would make it a “Joseph moment,” everything changed. I’m so thankful that
He takes such good care of us! And now I even have everything I need to start a
new painting, AND confirmation from the Lord to do it!
Love, Carolyn
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