“In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.” (Eph 1:11-12)
The Bible teaches not only that God is the creator of everything (Genesis 1, John 1, Colossians 1) but that we were chosen before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in God’s sight. That gives us tremendous purpose and destiny in life – which should counter the meaninglessness and lack of purpose which so often is the malaise of modern living. As Michael Card says, “God shapes every second of our little lives/ And minds every moment as the universe waits by.” (The Poem Of Your Life)
Joseph is perhaps the greatest example in the Bible of what it means to live with confidence in God’s purposes and plans, which nothing can thwart. Neither adverse family circumstances (hated by his jealous brothers so much they plotted to kill him and sold him into slavery!), nor difficult work circumstances (the victim, in modern parlance, of continued sexual harassment), nor wrongful imprisonment nor famine could stop God’s plans being worked out in his life. As we read his story from Genesis 37 through to Genesis 50, we see how difficult life can be, even when we are living godly lives. Yet we are told repeatedly that Joseph found favour with the Lord and it is evident that God was with him in it all. It took years of patient waiting before that childhood dream became reality; Joseph had to learn what it meant to walk by faith and not by sight even when forgotten by the cupbearer and left to languish in prison.
Foresight, the ability to see what is going to happen, is what we’d all like. God is able to see what will happen in the future, because He does not inhabit time. The rest of us muddle along in the now, seeing with our eyes only what is immediately visible. Occasionally, through prophecy or through visions or dreams, God gives us a glimpse into the future, as he did with Joseph back in Genesis 37, but we then have to go through this long process of life whereby we are refined and we have to wait for God’s timing – which is always perfect, but rarely seems so to us as we wait! Hindsight helps us to see the story in perspective. Hindsight is the understanding of a situation or event only after it has happened. At the end of this long narrative, we see how Joseph’s position in Egypt is key to Israel’s survival, for Jacob sends his sons to Egypt to get food, since that is the only place which has food, thanks to God’s providence and preparation. Nothing has been wasted in this long journey from seventeen to thirty; Joseph has learnt to see not with foresight or hindsight but with God’s sight:
“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” (Gen 50:20)
Others may intend to harm us, but God intends everything to work together for good so that we become like Christ (Rom 8:28), so that we may be for the praise of His glory (Eph 1:12). We truly do have great purpose and meaning in our lives; we truly do have a great destiny. Whether our destiny is to ‘just be’ whatever we are called to be in a small-town location or whether God has other plans for us, may we be faithful to God in the small things, never doubting that He is able to work all things out in conformity with the purpose of His will. And while we’re waiting? What do we do in the meantime?
“While I’m waiting
I will serve You
While I’m waiting
I will worship
While I’m waiting
I will not faint
I’ll be running the race
Even while I wait.”
(John Waller, ‘While I’m Waiting’)
Listen to the song here & make it your prayer:
http://vimeo.com/3768562