Much bigger than me

Those who thrive
        don't have things easier than others,
    indeed, 
their circumstances may not appear favorable at all.
But they
          see things from a different perspective.

Joseph is one of those people.
          (Genesis 37-50)
He lived the reality of God's Presence
wherever God led him:
        thrown in a pit as a teenager,
        sold to slave traders by his brothers,
        worked as a household slave in a foreign land,
        unjustly accused and imprisoned,
        forgotten in jail,
and when life appeared the bleakest,
                        God redeemed it all
                        for His great purposes.

Joseph was not thrown by circumstances,
because he knew the sovereignty of God
                           is never random.
 
Joseph was faithful in every situation,
      knowing God always works from goodness.
Yes, even in that.
Not for personal gain,
not even for the common good,
     but for God's greater purposes,
something much bigger going on here.

And when Joseph finally came face to face 
with his brothers,
he was still faithful to God.
He never let bitterness
                    sour the outcome
       nor his relationships.
Joseph saw reality from 
           a different perspective.
"God, use even this."

And he told his brothers,:
"As for you,

       you meant it for evil,

but God meant it for good,

to bring it about

that many people should be kept alive,

as they are today."

                         Genesis 50.20

God redeems it all,

in ways that extend far beyond

            what I can imagine,

His purposes are always greater

            than what concerns me.