Your Gift and Your Portion of Favor Foreshadow Your Destination

If we were to be transported back to the times in which Joseph lived out this story, we’d likely find every Jewish man wearing a coat (robe). It was part of their daily wardrobe. It was part of the style and fashion of the time. It was what was swag, hip, and trendy. All this to say that Joseph being given a robe wasn’t the issue of contention with his brothers. The issue was that Joseph was given a “special” robe.

Placing the knowledge that coats/robes were not an unusual part of the Jewish wardrobe alongside the bacchanal (The word bacchanal did not originate in the Caribbean. However, it is embedded in the vernacular of several Caribbean countries, referencing trouble of epic and dramatic proportions; nasty business) that ensued after he was given the robe, we can rightly surmise that Joseph’s robe was definitively a robe out of the ordinary.

Researchers and scholars have suggested that it may have been longer than the knee-length tunics often worn. They have also suggested that the colorful fabric with which this robe was made was expensive and out of the ordinary; one fit for nobility and kings. And that may have been so, because callously, in doling out his punishment, his brothers tore it from him, almost as if to say, “We are stripping you from any notions that you will lead, and we will bow”.

If I’m making the case, I will say with definition, “Joseph’s robe was a revelation of Joseph’s destiny”. He was a man who would lead. And as if to confirm this, when Pharaoh recognized that God was with him, he outfitted him in “robes of the best linen”.

Take a moment to thank God for His call to a purpose for you. Thank Him for the unique gifts, talents, and opportunities He has placed in your life. Ask Him to direct your paths and order your steps. Invite Him to guide you towards fulfilling your purpose and destiny. Ask God to place you in the right places at the right time. Trust that He has a divine plan for your life and that He will orchestrate the events and encounters necessary for your journey.

This plan was adapted from my book Dreamer and its accompanying journal.