Day by Day - Jan. 24, 2008

January 24, 2008    

DON’T PANIC... TRUST
by Charles R. Swindoll

Read Genesis 41:41-46

This is an excellent opportunity to shift the scene for a moment and look at all this from the perspective of the guy who's out working in the fields, moving stones for one of those interminable, ever-ongoing pyramid projects. He knows nothing at all about what's just happened in the dungeon and throne room. All he knows is that some young upstart, some foreigner, has maneuvered his way into Pharaoh's good graces. And he is being told, "Bow your knee to this man!"

"Oh, man, look at that!" whispers the workman. "Who does he think he is? Who did he bribe to get all this? He must know somebody. That's the way it is up there in the court."

Given that same situation, we'd probably think the same thing. Back in the Vietnam era, we often heard the phrase, "Never trust anyone over thirty." Today, given the large segment of aging populace, we are more likely to hear, "Never trust anyone under thirty."
 
But what we can't see from our limited perspective is what God has been doing on the inside. That worker in the field doesn't know---doesn't have the slightest idea---what has gone on before in Joseph's life, nor is he even aware of his years in the dungeon. He doesn't know about Joseph's faithfulness when nobody else was around.

Joseph has been appointed, chosen, selected, prepared, and refined into gold by Almighty God. That's how he has come to wear the ring. That's how he has come to get the robe, the necklace, and the chariot. That's why others are saying, "Bow the knee." Joseph himself isn't saying that; others are.

I wonder what Joseph was thinking at that moment. I believe he was saying to himself over and over, "Praise be to God." I think he was tallying up all the things God had taught him in the past thirty years, things God also wants to teach us.

During the waiting period, trust God without panic. Count on Him to handle the cupbearers of your life, the people who forget you, the people who break their promises. It's God's job to deal with the cupbearers of your past. It's your job to be the kind of servant He has designed you to be. Be faithful during the waiting periods of life. God will not forget you or forsake you.

Reprinted by permission. Day by Day, Charles Swindoll, July 2005, Thomas Nelson, inc., Nashville, Tennessee. All rights reserved. Purchase "Day by Day" here.