Last week we saw how Joseph's
brothers wanted to kill him, but how Reuben, the eldest intervened
and convinced them to rather throw him in a pit. Reuben's plan was
to rescue him later and take him back to his father, but his plan
failed as we will see later on.
So finally Joseph arrived where his
brothers were. We don't know what words were exchanged between
them, but his brothers didn't waste any time in going through with
their plan.
"So it came to pass, when
Joseph had come to his brothers, that they stripped Joseph of his
tunic, the tunic of many colors that was on him. Then they took him
and cast him into a pit. And the pit was empty; there was no water
in it." Genesis 37:23, 24
First of all his brothers got rid
of the tunic that showed that Joseph was chosen above them all, the
object of their hatred, and then they cast him into the pit. I
think Joseph must have been shocked. I cannot imagine that he saw
this coming otherwise he would never have gone out to meet them. He
must have known that they despised him, but this was going one step
too far. I can just imagine how horrified he must have been at the
turn of events.
But fortunately the Bible
specifically mentions that the pit didn't have any water in it. God
ordained it to be so; otherwise Joseph most certainly would have
drowned.
So even in these dire circumstances
God looked after Joseph. First of all He changed their mind about
killing him and then He ordained that the pit didn't have any water
in that he might drown.
The same is true for us. We might
find ourselves in terrible situations. The COVID pandemic might be
one of them. Some of us lost loved ones; others lost their
businesses, whilst others lost income, hope, friends, potential,
and family. Each lock down felt like a dire pit that we all are
thrown into. Not being able to do what we would love to do, not
being able to do what we want to do or to go where we want to go.
It looked like a pit to me, with no silver lining, only mud.
But as I looked closer, I could see
God's provision in it all. Indeed there was a silver lining for
each of us. If we truly sat down and thought about it, God did come
through for us in the way that we specifically needed it. For
instance we were forced to spend more time at home with our
children, we were forced to rest and not be as active as normal, we
were forced to find joy in ordinary things, and because we couldn't
do the things that we thought made us happy. We were forced to
appreciate the small things in life, for as I realized it is the
small things that ultimately result in the bigger things. God also
made me see that He is testing me in the small things, for if I am
not to be trusted with those, He couldn't trust me with bigger
responsibilities in His Kingdom.
I want you to sit ten minutes with
God today and ask Him to show you how He helped you in your times
in the pit. Ask Him to show you how He provided for you and what
you learned from it. Ask Him to show you these lessons, so that you
can make a huge difference in other's lives too. Do not allow your
'pit' periods in your life be in vain. It never is. Learn from it,
grow and help others through the same thing. It will be all worth
it in the end, just like it was with Joseph.
Father, the times in the pit are
terrible and I do not like it, but I know that You looked after me
even in that. Please show me where You were during those times and
help me to see how I have grown through it, so that I can be a
blessing to others as well. Thank you for always being there for
me. I love You. Amen