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Theme: Reflecting God - God Calls His People.
- Proverbs 3:5-6 says to trust in the Lord. Have you ever looked back on an event months later and had a better understanding of what God was doing in your life at the time?
- At times in Joseph’s life, things were very, very bad. Early in the story, his own brothers sold him into slavery. Later, he went to jail for a crime he didn’t commit. But Genesis 39:21 says that God was with Joseph while in prison and “showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden.” As you listen to Joseph’s story, think about God’s faithfulness even during bad times.
After you listen
Memory Verse
“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
Quiz
A: In the first dream, all the sheaves bowed to his sheaf. In the second, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars bowed down to him.
Reflect
There’s no way that Joseph could have imagined what God had planned for him. He had hints, though, but those dreams about bowing stars and bowing sheaves of grain only led to him being sold into slavery. Sitting in the jail, how could he have known that he would be Pharaoh's right-hand man in just a few years?
The leading actor in Joseph’s story is God. Even though, throughout Joseph’s life, he’s surrounded by evil people, God watches over him for good purposes. Throughout the Bible, God flips people’s evil intentions and works all things out to keep his covenant promises. Looking ahead to the story of Jesus, we can see that even though the Pharisees and other temple leaders intended Jesus harm, God used them for good. Even today, we must be faithful to God’s plan and remember Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
Read Joseph’s story (Genesis 37, 39-50). Want to dig deeper and learn more about God’s plan? Check out 1 Timothy 2:3-4, 2 Peter 3:9, and Micah 6:8.
Challenge
Pray the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13 and pay extra attention to the line “your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Ask God what his will is for your life. Talk to a parent or friend about things you are good at doing. Find a way to serve using those gifts and see where God might lead you.
