Putting Your Past Behind You
If there was ever a person who could claim to be a victim, it was Joseph. He did nothing wrong, but his brothers were jealous of him, since their father preferred him over his brothers. They gave him all kinds of grief as he was growing up. Then, they faked his death when he was 17, and they sold him into slavery. He ended up in the house of Potiphar in Egypt. He was put in charge, but he was falsely accused of attempted rape by Potiphar's wife, so he was put into prison for 2 years. Finally, he had the opportunity to interpret the dream of Pharaoh, and he was elevated to second in command of Egypt, and he implemented his wise plan to save them from starvation. All of that did not happen until he was 30 years old, so he was in prison and slavery for 13 years before God freed him. Through all of that he never gave up. He never made excuses.
Then, when he had his two sons, we see how he had put his past behind him. Genesis 41:51-52 tell us the names of his sons. The first was Manasseh, because "God made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household."(NASB) What a statement of freedom! Joseph was not bound by his past. God had enabled him to move past all of that abuse. His second son was Ephraim, because God had made him fruitful in the land of his affliction. He did not give up as a victim. He kept trusting God, and he came to see a fruitful life.
We all need to learn from Joseph, even if we did not have a difficult upbringing. All of us have things that could hinder us in life, but God is greater and He can and will give us the freedom from those things if we will trust Him. God wants all of us to be more than conquerors through Jesus Christ.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Genesis 43-45 and Matthew 12:24-50.
Then, when he had his two sons, we see how he had put his past behind him. Genesis 41:51-52 tell us the names of his sons. The first was Manasseh, because "God made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household."(NASB) What a statement of freedom! Joseph was not bound by his past. God had enabled him to move past all of that abuse. His second son was Ephraim, because God had made him fruitful in the land of his affliction. He did not give up as a victim. He kept trusting God, and he came to see a fruitful life.
We all need to learn from Joseph, even if we did not have a difficult upbringing. All of us have things that could hinder us in life, but God is greater and He can and will give us the freedom from those things if we will trust Him. God wants all of us to be more than conquerors through Jesus Christ.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Genesis 43-45 and Matthew 12:24-50.