Nougat 4

Some of us may have heard or have told others to ‘look at the bright side’ of an overwhelming situation. Today’s Holy Nougat invites us to look for the God side.

“The Lord was with Joseph, so he became a successful man. He worked in the house of his Egyptian master.” Genesis‬ ‭39:2‬ ‭GW‬‬

Amidst adversity … God is!

Joseph’s physical reality – he suffered the ultimate betrayal by his brothers; literally being trafficked into slavery.

I often imagine Joseph as being a little spoiled and a lot protected from hard work. Aside from being a dreamer literally and perhaps figuratively; and despite being a young man, Joseph was not engaged in agriculture or the manual labor set for his 10 older brothers. All resentment aside (and I know that is hard for some of us), Joseph doesn’t seem to have been prepared for manual labor or any form of servitude.

It must then have been a challenge to find himself enslaved and in some other country far from his own land. ( This was approximately 5,600 miles or 11 days walking if using a direct route).

But there was also Joseph’s spiritual reality. Yes, he was in bondage. Yet we are told that the Lord was with Joseph and he was successful in whatever he did in Potiphar’s household. We see him adjusting to his new circumstances and making the best of it. What we do NOT hear, is that Joseph lost his faith. We hear of the Lord’s favour sustaining him and of Joseph’s prophetic work and insights at different points during captivity, and eventually he tells his brothers that God worked all things for good.

Unfortunately human trafficking continues to wreak havoc in several countries’ informal economies today, despite the pandemic upon us. And some reading this may have first-hand knowledge of persons being trafficked or abused. There is no justification for trafficking. We DO have a moral, spiritual and ethical obligation to do everything we can to effect such persons’ rescue and support to wholeness.

Others of us might not be victimized by the ravages of human trafficking, but face our own situations of betrayal by loved ones.

And betrayal hurts.

But we are not defined by our physical circumstances but by the grace and favor of God in us. We can choose to overcome hurt by allowing God to overshadow us with favour and the grace to forgive.

So let’s look at the God side wherever bitterness may be lurking in us: let us CHOOSE to let God’s Grace to transform the pain to something beautiful in God’s time.

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May all we seek be found in Christ