Cool Under Pressure
There are very few people who one day they are help captive in a dungeon and then things changed and they were second in command of the whole country. That is what happened to Joseph. He was imprisoned because of false accusations, but he kept his faith in God. On this particular he was sent for because Pharaoh had experienced a bad dream and the wise men and officials serving the king could not explain the dream. Check this out…
14 So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon. When he had shaved and changed his clothes, he came before Pharaoh.
15 Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.’
16 ‘I cannot do it,’ Joseph replied to Pharaoh, ‘but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.’ (Genesis 41:14-16 NIV)
So Joseph interprets Pharaoh’s dreams and in those dreams the Lord is revealing 7 really good years of food and 7 really lean years without food. Joseph also reveals a plan to be prepared. He suggested that Pharaoh build storehouses and store food the seven good years and appoint officials to organized the storage facilities and be prepared when the seven bad years come. Check this out…
37 The plan seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his officials. 38 So Pharaoh asked them, ‘Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?’
39 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. 40 You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.’ (Genesis 41:37-40 NIV)
Joseph had a deep relationship with the Lord and it showed in his words, his posture, and all of his behavior. I believe his wise and discerning spirit is what got him noticed. He was calm, cool and collected in front of the king because God’s Spirit was inside him. He completely trusted God with his destiny and not what he could do on his own gifts, talent or ability. History reveals that Pharaoh made a good decision that day to trust Joseph with the leadership of this huge project. Joseph proved his wise and discerning heart many times over.
Pressing On!
Dwayne