God will often allow us to repeat life experiences and situations until we learn the lesson that He is trying to teach us through the situation.
I think additionally that there are life messages that God gives us. They become the story of our life and the message God wants us to bring to people in need. I think for me… one of my life messages parallels the story of Joseph… here is the part I’m keying in on…
4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! 5 And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. 6 For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. 7 But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.
Now… if you notice, Joseph tells his brothers that God sent him ahead of them to bless them. When I read my Bible – I see that Joseph was sold into slavery, was carted off to Egypt like a piece of property, was framed for a crime he didn’t commit, thrown into one of the worst prisons one could imagine, was lied to, forgotten, abused and rejected by his own family…. and yet, he didn’t blame his brothers, he didn’t seek revenge, he didn’t claim to be a victim in this life… but instead he simply says…
8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.
So radically transformed was Joseph’s heart that he would eventually tell his brothers…
20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
Now that is transformation!!!
How often do we want to blame those in our life for the way our lives turn out? How often do we want to judge what God is doing in our hearts while we’re mid-stream instead of trusting God and allowing Him to complete the work in us? How often do we take matters in our own hands simply because we really don’t believe that God loves us?
As I’ve pondered over the last few years of my life in ministry, I realize there have been times when I wanted to fix blame and hold others accountable for things that happened in my life – all the while not really understanding that the person that I was ultimately dealing with was God Himself. If my life belongs completely to Him, then it really is His will in my life – no longer I who live, but Christ in me. If my life is completely surrendered to Him and I am truly His servant – then the real test comes when I am treated like I am His servant. How do I respond?
Maybe you can relate to the story of Joseph. Maybe you have people in your life who are jealous over you and so they seek to wear you down or even undermine your ability to perform. Maybe you are in a situation where you are being falsely accused or even fired unjustly.
Whatever the situation is… allow God to work in you as He did in Joseph. To give you the perspective of His Kingdom. The perspective that allows you to see His hand leading and directing you and not bringing harm to you. The perspective that allows you to see how He takes ALL things in your life to work together for your good. The perspective that allows you to see God’s plan in the bigger picture…. and remember that no matter what you’re going through it has no bearing on your future!!!