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Life is very interesting. The way life unfolds is very interesting. Life does not always unfold logically.
We cannot predict how our lives will unfold simply by relying on our own understanding. Sometimes what we think is bad turns out to be good. Sometimes what we thought was a misfortune turns out to be a blessing.
I have prayed for many things, thinking they would be good for me. Looking back, I am so glad that God did not answer some of those prayers.
Sometimes I have asked God, “Why are these things happening to me?” They were painful. I could not see anything good in them.
But surprisingly, some of those experiences did me good. Through difficult times, I became more intimate with God.
That was Joseph’s life.
So many things happened to Joseph that did not make sense. So many bad things happened to him, and Joseph did not deserve them. What happened to Joseph was not his fault.
Joseph’s brothers hated him because they were jealous of him. They all ganged up on him. They even tried to kill him.
That’s too much. Jealousy is frightening.
Cain killed his brother Abel because of jealousy. Joseph’s brothers were ready to do the same thing to him. Instead of killing Joseph, they sold him to merchants who were going down to Egypt.
In Egypt, Joseph worked hard to make a life for himself in a foreign land. But good fortune did not seem to follow him. His master’s wife falsely accused Joseph of sexual assault because she could not have him as she wanted. So Joseph went to prison.
In prison, he happened to meet an official from Pharaoh’s court. Joseph helped him by interpreting his dream. But even after the official was restored to his position, he completely forgot about Joseph.
One bad thing after another happened to him. But Joseph was strangely quiet.
He simply watched what was happening in his life. He did not understand why these things were happening to him, but he kept them in his heart.
He did not spend his life blaming people. He did not blame his circumstances. He did not blame God.
Why was Joseph so quiet?
One sentence summarizes Joseph’s attitude toward life:
“Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today.”
— Genesis 50:20
Joseph did not justify the evil his brothers had done simply because something good eventually came out of it.
He clearly named their wrongdoing:
“You intended to do harm to me.”
What they did was wrong. That does not change simply because the outcome was good.
But what is important is what Joseph said next:
“God intended it for good.”
All along, Joseph believed in a good God. Do you believe in a good God?
All along, he believed that his circumstances could not overpower God’s plan. His brothers’ evil deeds could not supersede God’s plan.
Underneath everything that happens in your life, there is a movement. There is a flow. That movement is the movement of God’s plan for you.
Do not look only at what is happening on the surface. Look deeper. Throw your net into the deep water. And wait. You will begin to see God’s plan for you.
I had my own plan. I had my own ambition. But that was not God’s plan for me.
When I found the path God had prepared for me, I was overjoyed. Then I understood the expression, “walking on air.” Literally, when I walked up the stairs leading to Robarts Library, I felt as though I were walking on air.
Joseph knew that there was a plan greater than his own plan.
Solomon also understood this when he said:
“The human mind plans the way,
but the Lord directs the steps.”
— Proverbs 16:9
It is not I who determines life’s ultimate destiny. Your circumstances do not have the final say over your life. God has the final say.
That was what St. Paul believed:
“We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.”
— Romans 8:28
This year is the 30th anniversary of this church.
When I finished my ministry at TKPC, I really wanted to study. I thought I was free. Then a few people approached me.
They told me that there was a small group of people who had come out of a United Church congregation. They asked me to work with them. Somehow, my heart was moved to accept their invitation. That was in 1992.
Then, a few years later, North York Presbyterian Church approached me. Their minister had just left. Instead of calling a new minister, they wanted to amalgamate with the church I served. That was in 1996.
It was not my plan. It was God’s plan. And God has a great plan for this church. Our task is to discern God’s plan and obey.
When the angel came to Mary and announced that she would have a child, it was not Mary’s plan. It was God’s plan.
It was difficult for Mary to accept. And yet, ultimately, she obeyed.
“Let it be with me according to your word.”
God has a wonderful plan for you. God’s plan is for your good.
That was what Jeremiah believed when he said:
“For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.”
— Jeremiah 29:11
And then he said:
“Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. When you search for me, you will find me.”
— Jeremiah 29:12–13
Do not be anxious because things are not going well. Do not be discouraged because things are not going according to your plan. God has a plan for you.
And God’s plan will make its way through hardships, challenges, and difficulties. Even through situations that seem hopeless, God’s plan will find a way.
Joseph believed this throughout his life. That was why he was able to forgive his brothers for the evil they had done to him.
Forgiveness becomes possible when you see the bigger picture of your life. Forgiveness becomes possible when you realize that the evil others do to you does not have the power to determine the final outcome of your life.
What others have done to you may hurt you. It may wound you deeply. It may even change the course of your life. But it cannot defeat God’s good purpose for you.
Joseph could look at his brothers and say:
“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good.”
You do not need to spend your life blaming people. You do not need to spend your life blaming your circumstances. You do not need to be imprisoned by what others have done to you.
Trust God. Live your life believing in God’s good plan for you. And let your life become a testimony to the goodness of God’s plan.
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