This morning we continue our series on “Expanding
Your Capacity to Believe God” with the story of Joseph. Joseph has been
away from his family for several years by this point. His last glimmer of
hope seemed to come and go when God graced him to interpret a dream for
Pharaoh’s cupbearer. The cupbearer was supposed to mention Joseph to
Pharaoh, but he forgot all about Joseph once he got back in his position.

Two years later Pharaoh himself had a dream: he was
standing by the Nile, when out of the river there came up seven fat and healthy
cows and they grazed among the reeds. After them, seven ugly and skinny
cows came up out of the Nile and stood beside those on the riverbank. All
of a sudden, the skinny cows ate the fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up. He
fell asleep again and had a second dream: seven heads of grain, healthy and
good, were growing on a single stalk. After them, seven other heads of
grain sprouted – thin and scorched by the east wind. Then the thin heads
of grain swallowed up the healthy, full heads. Then Pharaoh woke up again.

In the morning Pharaoh’s mind was troubled so he sent
for all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but
no one could interpret them for him. This is where the tide shifted for Joseph.
The chief cupbearer finally remembered Joseph. He said to Pharaoh,
“Now I remember what I was supposed to do. When you were angry with
me and your chief cook, you threw us both in jail in the house of the captain
of the guard. One night we both had dreams, and each dream had a different
meaning. A young Hebrew, who was a servant of the captain of the guard,
was there with us at the time. When we told him our dreams, he explained what
each of them meant, and everything happened just as he said it would. I got my
job back, and the cook was put to death.” This was Joseph’s big break.
Pharaoh sent for Joseph. He was quickly brought out of the dungeon, but
not before Joseph shaved and changed his clothes. He made himself
presentable before coming into the presence of the king.

So what does this mean to you today?  Two things:

1.  Trust
God’s timing: If
the cupbearer would have mentioned Joseph to Pharaoh when he said he would (two
years earlier), nothing would have happened. The timing was not right. Although
I am sure Joseph did not like waiting two years, it was in God’s timing for him
to wait. Know that God’s timing will not always line up with your clock,
but it is always right!

2.  Face
every opportunity prepared: Although the people coming to get Joseph were in a hurry, Joseph
did not leave without first shaving and changing his clothes. He sensed
that this was his opportunity for a breakthrough and he did not approach it
unprepared. Never face an opportunity unprepared. Your preparation
will show up in your performance. 

Confession for this day: Lord God. I trust Your timing and I know that You
give me opportunities at the right time. When You do, I declare that I will face them prepared. I will do my part
– pray, study, read, learn, and dress the part; and I know You will do Your part by
releasing the favour I need with the people I stand before. My preparation
shows up in my performance. I come prepared and I am blessed for it.

I did not learn my storytelling format from my
father, but as long I can remember I could tell a good story. I read some books
many years ago that helped me use my gift of storytelling in my preaching and
teaching. When I read the Bible I don’t see stories, I see people. I
see people who, like me, were simply trying to please God. They faced
challenges, failures, victories, defeats, ups, and downs. They were not
super-human; they were just people that wanted to do right.

That leads us back to Jacob. After settling the
issue with his brother – with the favour of God – Jacob continued his journey
back to Canaan. He was now determined to
get to the place God instructed him to go and to setup his own life, with his
own family, in his homeland. After journeying through northern Syria Jacob
arrived safely at Shechem in Canaan and set up
camp outside the city. The land where he camped was owned by the
descendants of Hamor, the father of Shechem. Jacob liked the land and he
wanted to settle there. He was no different than us. In today’s terms
he was “house-hunting;” or I guess we can say that he was
“land-hunting.” He liked the land and he wanted to setup there so he put
in an offer of 100 pieces of silver. The owner of the property accepted
and the deal was done. Jacob now had land back in his home country and he
set up his tents on it. Guess what he first order of priority
was? He built an altar there to honour the God of Israel. (see Genesis
33:18-20).

So what does this mean to you today? It means that these things were
written as a testimony for you. God led Moses to document all the details
of these journeys so that you could identify with these people. If you want a family you can identify
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, because they all wanted families. If you are struggling with having children
you can identify with them, because they all struggled with having
children. If you want a house and
some land you can identify with them, because they wanted that as
well. If you want to provide for
your family… and the list could go on. What’s the point? If we want what
they wanted and want to get what they got we should learn from what they did. They believed God, they operated in faith, and
they honoured God every chance they had. They setup altars everywhere they
went, they worshipped God, and they made offerings to God of the things that He
blessed them with. What are you standing in need of today? Ask
yourself, what would Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob do to get it? Learn from
them and your life will be the better.

Confession for this day: Lord God. I learn from Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob. I realize they were ordinary people through which You did extraordinary things. I
imitate their faith, their belief, and their dedication to worship. I reap
the benefits of learning from those that have gone before me. I also dream
big dreams and believe You to bring
them to pass.