"I am NOT having a good day" Part 1

Daily Devotional

Brought to you by Prayer Warrior Jonathan Vasgar

"I am NOT having a good day" Part 1 
 Open Mouth, Insert Foot

 (Please note I will have two versions of this, one using KJV, the other NKJV. If you prefer KJV, please find it on my page)
 

Genesis 37:2-4 'This [is] the history of Jacob. Joseph, [being] seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brothers. And the lad [was] with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives; and Joseph brought a bad report of them to his father. Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he [was] the son of his old age. Also he made him a tunic of [many] colors. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him.'

There's a whole lot to be found about Joseph. Some might say he had a rather unfortunate life, yet as we shall see, it's often in the darkest circumstances that light comes pouring through. But, I don't want to get ahead of myself. Let's begin!

So, for those of you not too familiar with the story, Joseph was the great grandson of Abraham. He was not the youngest in his family, but was close. However, he was the oldest of Rachel's sons. Rachel was Jacob's (Israel) favorite wife, therefore Joseph was Jacob's favorite son. He had given his son a coat of many colors to show how favored he was, which as you can see, made his brothers angry. So angry, they hated him. It got worse though. You see, Joseph was young. Impetuous. And, a bit of a braggart.

Let's take a look at what happens: Verses 5-11 tell us, 'Now Joseph had a dream, and he told [it] to his brothers; and they hated him even more. So he said to them, "Please hear this dream which I have dreamed: "There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf." And his brothers said to him, "Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us?" So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words. Then he dreamed still another dream and told it to his brothers, and said, "Look, I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me." So he told [it] to his father and his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, "What [is] this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?" And his brothers envied him, but his father kept the matter [in mind].'

Yes, this would come true later on, but that's not the point. Notice how Joseph rubbed his dreams in his brothers' faces. He lorded it over them. He knew he wasn't liked and that he was the favorite, so he decides to tell them his dreams about how he'd be the ruler over them! He took the dreams God had given him and rather than see how he could become the man that would be the leader, he goes and spreads it loudly.

We are sometimes that same way. I know I can be. Someone gives you a high compliment at church and the next thing you know, you are telling EVERYONE how wonderful you are. Being a braggart is not the way to handle things at all. Not according to God who says in Matthew 6:3-4 '"But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.' Let God handle your reward, you don't need to make a big show of giving in church or showing everyone how wonderful you are because you serve in a certain position. James 4:6 "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble." God doesn't want us to grow proud, He wants us to be humble. If God is using you in a great way, AMEN! But, don't let it become your sole focus. So focused on getting accolades, you miss out on God's blessings. On being a blessing to others!

Do you want to leave a legacy or a tragedy? We will focus on how God starts to use Joseph next, but before you can be used, sometimes you have to be broken...

My prayer for you is that you find the spot where God can use you, whether it be behind the scenes or in front of life's camera, but that you know it's God that put you there. Let His love flow through you. Leave that kind of legacy!