The Joseph PrinciplesSample

Releasing Our Rights

What are some rights you are entitled to? Most would say, life, good health, freedom, to be loved and cared for. But what happens when tragedy strikes and those rights are stripped away? Suddenly, we realize that our rights were merely perceived rights all along.

And then, how do we respond? Are we hurt? Do we complain? Rebel? Get angry? Or do we turn to God in trust? While there’s nothing wrong with desiring certain rights, when we cling to them, it can interfere with our intimacy with God and our ability to love others.

When Joseph was left with nothing, he believed God had everything. He didn’t demand answers, but rather waited for God to work, trusting Him in the process.

Jesus had all the rights in the world and gave them all up to come to earth as our Savior. “Though he was in the form of God, [He] did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

So how do we yield our perceived rights to God? First, we must determine what they are and then ask God to guide us in releasing them. It won’t happen all at once—we will likely have to choose over and over to give up our rights whenever we feel they have been violated. But we can thank God along the way for being everything we need.

Consider

What are some rights you’ve been clinging to? Health, respect, money and possessions, time? Ask God to give you an awareness of those areas where you need to let go of something that is keeping you from closer intimacy with Him.