Not Allowing Setbacks To Take Control

In review of Genesis 37:19-20 it says, “Then they said to one another, ‘Look, this dreamer is coming! Come therefore, let us now kill him and cast him into some pit; and we shall say, “Some wild beast has devoured him.” We shall see what will become of his dreams!”

Bottom Line:

Joseph's brothers were jealous of him because of his father's favor and because of his dreams. So they plotted to kill him and throw him into a dry well so that his dreams could not come true.

What this means to me:

Things can happen to me that seem terrible, like Joseph and his brothers throwing him into a dry well because of their jealousy of him. However, I know that God doesn’t waste anything. He has a purpose in everything. He will use the events of my life to build my faith and my character.

So when things go wrong, I often drift toward a gamut of emotions, just as Joseph did: rejection, betrayal, false accusations, bitterness, depression, and desire for revenge, hatred for those who have betrayed me, the agony of being forgotten by those I've helped.  Satan tries to tell me things like, “if I was truly a child of God, my life couldn’t possibly get this messed up.” I need not listen to this, for results of problems will be broken as I walk from this life to be present in his palace.

For now, I need to just get beyond any of my heartbreaking setbacks to achieve my divine destiny. I need to get from any bitterness to blessing, from tragedy to triumph, from devastation to re-creation in the hands of the master.

Therefore, I should not let my emotions blind me and/or steal my love, joy, and peace. When I allow things (or people other than Christ) to become my obsession, they will end up owning me. And I will never find a true sense of completion until I live out the dream that Christ has placed in my heart.

This is good reminder of some of the feelings and concerns I have over myself and my team longer term as it relates to an on-going contract. Seems our client is making plans that may limit the services we offer (device hosting), and thus reduce the need for us. I just need to keep doing my best and allow Christ to work out the details and trust in Him for my future. As I dwell on this issue (which is beyond my control) it just ends up owning me. Today I will do my best to let this go and follow His lead.