Only remember me, when it is well with you, and please do me the kindness to mention me to Pharaoh, and so get me out of this house. Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.
--Genesis 40:14, 23
In today’s verse, we read one of the saddest sentences in the entire Bible.
Joseph had asked the chief cupbearer to remember him when he was released from prison. But when the cupbearer was set free, he forgot about Joseph altogether!
Joseph had to languish in prison for two more years after this point. Yet through it all, Joseph trusted in God’s timing. And God used those two years to fashion Joseph into an incredible leader…right there in prison!
Have you ever faced adversity or pain or pressure…a “prison” of some kind that you couldn’t understand? Have you ever faced trials, tests, tribulations in your life?
Sure you have! And why? It’s called life.
As followers of Christ, you and I are never promised an easy road or an exemption from problems and stress. Despite what you may hear some preachers say! What’s important to remember is that how we handle our problems and pressures and adversities make all the difference in the world.
Rarely can we change our circumstances…but we can always respond to our circumstances in God’s way. Just like Joseph did there in that jail cell!
Because…just like Joseph…God can use adversity in your life to move you forward as long as you live in obedience to Him and trust in His perfect timing!
You will always have problems…it’s how you handle them that makes all the difference in the world.
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must need go and see it: I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.”
Luke 14:17–20
When people do not want to do something, they will use any excuse to justify their conduct. At one point the noted author O. Henry was having difficulty getting a royalty check that was due to him from a New York publishing house. He had been promised that it would come, but no payment arrived. Finally, he went to the office in person only to be told that the man who signed checks for the company had a sprained ankle. “Does he sign them with his feet?” O. Henry asked.
Rather than trying to avoid what we should do, we need to demonstrate character by taking on responsibility and seeing to it that we do all that we can and should do. This is true in our work for God and in every other part of our lives. There is no part of life where we should not be diligent and faithful. Those who rely on excuses may avoid work in the short term, but they rob themselves and others in the process.
When his father instructed him to take food to his brothers, David did not abandon his responsibilities or make excuses. “And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took, and went, as Jesse had commanded him” (1 Samuel 17:20). The path to accomplishment is never paved with excuses.
Today’s Growth Principle:
Instead of making excuses, do the work necessary to make progress in your life today.
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