Overcoming Circumstances
People daily fight adversities: cancer, job, injury, divorce, survival. How can these be overcome? Where is God during these times? Genesis 39:21 tells us how God helped Joseph to overcome the challenges of his life.
Genesis 39:21 states, “But the LORD was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.” This text relates three things God gives to enable us to overcome all of life’s circumstances. First, God gives us His presence—“the LORD was with Joseph.” Listen! God was with Joseph in the pit. God was with Joseph on the caravan. God was with Joseph at the slave market. God was with Joseph in Potiphar’s house. God was with Joseph in prison. God was with Joseph with Pharaoh. God was with Joseph in leading the country. God was with Joseph in restoring his family. God is in all circumstances: by His Word, His Spirit, His people, and prayer. He was with Joseph, and He is with you. Second, God gives us His kindness—“showed him mercy.” The Hebrew word is chesed; it appears in the Old Testament 245 times and literally means, “to take pity” or “to give undeserved benefit.” God’s kindness has two qualities: (1) it is expressed in action and (2) it is permanent. Joseph experienced God’s mercy and kindness as he endured the trials of his life; from ages 17 to 30 (13years), he was left in a cistern, sold to a slave caravan, enslaved, and imprisoned. Third, God gives us His favor—“gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.” God granted Joseph favor with others—his father, Potiphar, the prison warden, and Pharoah. God can grant you favor in the eyes of others, even if they are not Christians! “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.” (Proverbs 21:1) It is not what we do but what God does as He goes before us!
Sin cera, Erik
Erik O. Garthe is Associate Pastor at Canton Baptist Church in Baltimore, Maryland.
