Joseph: Finding Purpose in Feast or Famineနမူနာ

Letting Go of the Reins

Have you ever wondered about your purpose in this life? Some seek their so-called destiny for a lifetime and never find it, while others seem to embrace a calling in which they find fulfillment and “God’s pleasure,” as Eric Liddell described it in the 1981 movie, Chariots of Fire. For those who haven’t yet felt that God-pleasing fulfillment on earth—or perhaps never will in this lifetime—I believe every Christ-follower will be met with this knowledge in eternity. We will fully know our perfect purpose even as we’ve been fully known by the One who knit us together in our mother’s womb (1 Corinthians 13:12).

Whether we become aware of our purpose while on earth or not, the Bible tells us that the God who knit us together in our mother’s womb created us for His good purpose (Philippians 2:13). It makes perfect sense, therefore, to pursue that purpose even if we’re not quite sure in the beginning what we’re chasing. Granted, there may be potholes, even detours or dead ends, that we can choose to endure as frustrating failures or embrace as God-directed adventures. Can you, right now, let God hold the reins and allow Him to lead you—expressing every emotion to your Creator—as you traverse each mountain and valley on a path of His choosing?

Joseph gave God the reins, but discovering his true purpose was a lifelong process of faith-building for this Bible hero. No one is born with mega-faith. Pure trust is developed through both feast and famine as we intentionally allow God to reveal His purpose for us in His time and unfolding circumstances.

In Genesis 37:1-4, Joseph was seventeen when he was pasturing the family flocks with the sons of Jacob’s slave wives, Bilhah and Zilpah. Joseph was the firstborn of his father’s favored wife, Rachel, and would legally have been entitled to the firstborn’s inheritance. “And Joseph brought a bad report of them [the slave wives’ sons] to their father” (Gen. 37:2b ESV). Our hero begins his story as a tattletale.

The next verse says Jacob loved Joseph more than his other sons and gave him the famed “coat of many colors” that enflamed his brothers’ jealousy even further. Joseph then receives two prophetic dreams, each predicting he’d someday rule over his brothers (and Jacob). His purpose seems clear, doesn’t it? Surely, God had chosen him to rule over Jacob’s Bedouin household someday and become the leader of the covenant tribe.

However, Genesis 37 reveals God’s alternate plan, and Joseph’s life takes a devastating detour when Jacob sends him to check on his brothers in Shechem—a four-day journey from the Beersheba camp—in the role of an overseer. The assignment seemed to confirm Joseph’s purpose. Instead, his brothers sell him to slave traders, and he’s shipped off to Egypt, shattering his God-given dream. Had God lied to him? Had Joseph misunderstood his purpose? We know the answers because we’ve read Joseph’s life story, but he didn’t. He lived out each step not knowing his future—as do we.

Has your life taken an unexpected detour? Can you trust God’s goodness even when your purpose seems unsure? In what ways do you need to let go of the reins and let God guide you?