Rising Above

We’ve all had those moments when we allow life to drag us down.  We are not where we want to be.  We don’t know how to handle what’s in front of us.  People have disappointed us.  Or maybe even God has disappointed us.  How do we move from a place of discouragement to a place of hope?  How do we find joy right where we are?  How do we rise above the negative thinking?

In Genesis 40, we get a glimpse into how Joseph rose above his circumstances.  Here we find him in jail.  And two servants of Pharaoh, the ruler of Egypt, join the ranks of prisoners.  One morning Joseph observes these men, and notices they are upset.  And he asks them about it.  The men tell Joseph that have had dreams but they have no one to interpret these dreams.  Joseph shares with them that all interpretation belongs to God and invites the men to share their dreams with him.  After Joseph listens to the dreams, God gives him the ability to interpret each man’s dream.

When I read this interaction, I am struck by a few things:

1. Joseph is paying attention to other people. He is not focused on himself and his problems.  He is in tune to the people around him.  What about you?  Are you seeing other people and their needs?  Or are you so focused on your needs, your goals, your desires that you look past the people surrounding you?
2. Joseph cares.  Joseph doesn’t just see the men’s sadness, he asks them about it.  He wants to help them.  Too often for us, kindness has become a lost art.  But all around us people need encouragement and love.  Who is it that needs your kindness today?
3. Joseph helps other people discover their future. When the men shared about their dreams, Joseph could have said, I know all about dreams, and look where that has gotten me. But Joseph was trusting God.  He knew God spoke to Him when he was 17 in a dream, and God could speak to these men in jail through a dream.  Because Joseph was not bitter toward God, he was ready to be used by God.  Are you ready to be used by God?  Do you have faith and trust in Him that allows you to point other people toward Him?

I truly believe the key to rising above our personal challenges is loving and caring for other people.  I heard someone say, a key to unlocking your dreams is helping other people unlock their dreams.  As you trust God for big things, live out your trust for Him in the small things.  A God-sized dream is not birthed overnight.  It comes about through a lot of praying, faithful living, and self-less loving.

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“When Joseph came to them in the morning and observed them, behold, they were dejected. He asked Pharaoh’s officials who were with him in confinement in his master’s houses, “Why are your faces so sad today?’ Then they said to him, ‘We have had a dream and there is now one to interpret it.’ Then Joseph said to them, ‘Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell it to me, please.'”

Genesis 40:6-8 NASB