Remember Joseph

I recently had a first in my real estate career.

I lost a listing. 

It sounds more dramatic than it really was. 

I had a client who had asked me to list their home this summer. They were moving out of state and wanted to sell their home that was on family land. At the time of them contacting me, no one in the family desired to purchase it. However, as the day to go active drew closer, it became clear that the home should stay within the family. 

It was a good decision, even one I felt was best for my clients. But upon hanging up the phone with the owners, the enemy was lurking with his litany of lies. 

You know the ones. Your’s may have a different tempo and tune, but his whispers haven’t changed since the beginning of time. 

Is God really for you? 

Did He really say that? 

If He loves you, why would He…

I’m thankful for a voice that is always louder than the enemy’s taunts. The key is in not only hearing, but accepting when the truth of God’s Word comes to counter the confusion. 

As the enemy hurled his fallacies, the Holy Spirit countered the chaos…

“Remember Joseph”, He whispered.

I’d been studying the story of Joseph for about a week prior to losing the listing. His story was the focus of one of our recent Sunday messages in church, and afterwards I found myself drawn to this familiar account of a faithful man. 

I was once again brought back to Genesis 37-39, reading with a new intent. If God wanted me to remember, there must be something He wanted to teach me through these chapters. I soon realized three things that have shaped how I dealt with this disappointment. And I know that God will continue to use this lesson to grow me through future unexpected circumstances. 

In the life of Joseph we see three things.

#1: FAVOR

Throughout the story of Joseph the Bible mentions that the favor of God is on him. It never says that Joseph sensed the favor of God or that he feels God’s blessing. In fact, if you read the story you know that the events of his life are anything but favorable. Joseph is abandoned by his jealous brothers, sold into slavery, wrongly accused and thrown into prison. He is later forgotten by someone who promised to take care of him. Through all of this the scriptures declare that Joseph had the favor of God in his life. Furthermore, other people in Joseph’s life recognized that favor. However, anyone watching his story unfold would have questioned such a truth. 

Through this aspect of Joseph’s life I understand that God’s favor cannot be measured by our circumstances. We cannot assess what’s going on in our day to day to determine whether or not we carry God’s favor.

Too often I flippantly decide that God must not be for me when things don’t go my way, but that is such an immature response. Throughout the Bible we are reminded that we will have struggles and challenges, but in God’s economy of exchange evil can be used for good. To believe the reality of our circumstances over the supernatural truth of His word is watered down faith. Joseph made the most of every opportunity even though most of them were seemingly unfair and unwarranted. The Bible doesn’t give us a lot of insight to his personal feelings through each disappointment, but he was human. I am certain that he struggled with the injustice of it all. But still, God’s favor was with him. We know that for sure. No matter the natural, the divine favor of God rested on Joseph. 

#2: FORWARD

Ironically the same day that I lost my listing, I had spent my lunch break deciding how our family would use that commission. (Word to the Wise…don’t count those chickens before they hatch.) You see, I love forward motion. I hate feeling stagnant. One of the things I love most about real estate is the financial flexibility it gives me to provide for my family, be generous to my community, and bless others unexpectedly. My plan is to be able to do real estate full time by 2026. In order to do that, we have to be strategic in paying off debt now. In addition, I have a goal to make it to Integra’s Gold Club. That means I have to have $250K in gross commissions. Every dollar that I make has a purpose, and as I looked at my potential commission from this listing I named each one. 

So again, when the call came and plans changed, the disappointment was personal. It appeared I’d not be moving forward as quickly as I’d hoped. 

But again in remembering Joseph I saw a different kind of forward motion. Joseph, at age 17, had a dream that he would one day rule over his brothers. That dream eventually came to pass, but only after Joseph endured years of challenge and struggle. During that time I have to believe that God grew Joseph in spirit, faith and character. His brothers had completely back-stabbed him by faking his death and selling him into slavery. Had Joseph been given the opportunity to rule over his brothers months or even years after that betrayal there’s little chance that he would have been able to do so with any level of humility or purity of heart. God used those challenges, as difficult as they were, to mature Joseph. The pain was a part of the preparation for his future purpose. God saw the landing spot that Joseph was headed for, and in His infinite wisdom He also knew that his character needed to be developed along the journey. 

So it is with us. Forward motion doesn’t always look like diminishing debt or more credit towards a business goal. Sometimes it’s not tangible.

Sometimes what God is doing on the inside is the progress we need to prepare for our destiny. He knows where He’s taking us and He doesn’t waste a moment.

I’m learning to have goals, yes, but also to surrender to His plan and His ways. He sees the full picture and I can trust that His love for me is so complete that He won’t let me miss an opportunity to grow. 

#3: FLOODGATES OF FRUITION

Joseph’s life wasn’t easy. It started with a big dream. Along the way a lot of people let him down. The unfair actions of people caused him much pain and suffering. It would have been very easy for him to grow bitter and callous towards others. Most would have probably given up on God along the way as well. But what I love most about the story of Joseph is that he stayed the course. I believe he often remembered that dream and perhaps even had a general understanding of how it might play out as the days drew closer. In the end, his dream came to fruition. He did rule over his brothers, but not in a proud or narcissistic way. God gave Joseph the chance to save his family because of the position He had placed him in as Pharoah’s number two. 

And here’s what I love about the places of fruition in our lives. God never delivers the dream in the fashion we expect. He gives in abundance. The details of our dreams lived out in reality are often far greater than we could have ever imagined. For Joseph, he didn’t just save his family from starvation, he made a way for the entire nation of Israel to experience God’s provision. His childhood dream coming to fruition had many more layers than what Joseph had anticipated. This is our God. It’s never just about us. His dreams for us are for generations after us. 

Joseph’s story encourages me in that God has given me dreams as well. They are somewhat general in nature, but the themes are surely from Him. I can trust that as I continue to embrace His favor and allow for forward motion, He will eventually bring me to a place of fruition. And what I learn from Joseph, is that if I allow the process now I will be both prepared and positioned to steward the dream well. That understanding propels me to want to follow Him ever more closely in this season. I don’t want to miss a thing. 

So in the days to come, I will declare:

I have the favor of God, no matter what the circumstances say.

I am moving forward in His timing and His way.

I will see the dreams He’s put on my heart come to fruition in complete fullness.