This morning we continue our mini-series on “Purpose and Vision” by taking a brief look at the life of Joseph. I could teach for months on Joseph’s life, but I will attempt to simply highlight a few thoughts about this amazing man of God. In Genesis 37 the Lord gave Joseph two dreams. Joseph was just a kid at the time (a teenager), but he had the capacity to believe that God would bring the dreams to pass. Joseph was already the favorite son of his father Jacob, and his older brothers, 10 of them in all, were not happy about the treatment he received. When Joseph told his brothers about his dreams they hated him even the more and they plotted to kill him, but they thankfully changed their minds and sold him off as a slave. They did so saying, “Then let us see what will become of his dreams!” It’s obvious that the attack was against the dreams, but without knowing it the brothers were actually sending Joseph off down a path that would eventually lead to the manifestation of the dreams.
Five chapters and about 20 years later we find the same 10 brothers standing in front of Joseph. They don’t recognize him, but he recognizes them. The brothers that once attempting to kill him were now asking for help from Egypt and Joseph was the second in command in the most powerful nation on the planet (at the time). This was a true reversal of fortune. Since Joseph was the governor (the sultan), they bowed before him with their faces to the ground. As they did the scene triggered Joseph’s memory and our text says that he remembered the dreams which he dreamed. The scene before him was a completion of the first (Gen 37:7) and the manifestation of the second would shortly follow. More than half his life had expired between the time of the dream and the completion, but he still remembered. He held on to that God-given dream and he believed that some day it would come to pass. Guess what? It did!
Are you a dreamer? Do you have a God-given dream? Receiving vision from God is about receiving divine dreams. What dream has yet to come to pass in your life? No matter how long it takes between the promise and the performance, never give up on your dream. I grew up in a neighborhood full of broken homes and broken dreams. Many talked of greatness, but most gave up on their dreams and buckled under the pressure of the harsh environment. Joseph too had been through a great deal. You would think that he would’ve been a candidate for giving up on his dream. You would’ve thought that the pit and the prison would’ve caused Joseph to abort his destiny, but true believers have the ability to endure the pain in order to see the promise! Do you remember your dream? Are you still expecting it to come to pass?
So what does this mean to you today? A few things:
1. Nothing happens until you announce it! Something special happens when you muster up the courage to openly talk about your dream, before it happens. Especially when you declare, by faith, that it will happen. Your words of faith initiate a response from both heaven and hell – demons get to work to stop you and angels get to work to protect you.
2. Beware of dream killers. Don’t be afraid of taking God (and your dream) public, but use wisdom concerning when and with whom to share your dreams.
3. Never lose sight of the dream. Joseph’s dream took over 20 years to become a reality. Along the way he had ample opportunity to give up on it – enduring slavery, slander, and prison – but Joseph held on to his dream and it finally came to pass. The same will happen for you!
Closing Confession: Father, my dream is the fuel in my fire. I refuse to abort my dream or my destiny. I have the perseverance to endure the pit and the prison phases of my life, if that’s what it takes to make it to the palace phase. No matter how long it takes, and no matter how much opposition I face, I am convinced that the dreams You have given me shall come to pass before I die. I remind You of my dreams this morning and by reminding You, I encourage myself. You give me big dreams and I put the action and faith behind them to bring them to pass. Thank You Father for being the Lord of my dreams and my destiny! In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper!
