It Was, and Is, All God!

“Then Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by him. He cried, ‘Make everyone go out from me.’ So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers.  And he wept aloud, so that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it. And Joseph said to his brothers, ‘I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?’ But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence.

“So Joseph said to his brothers, ‘Come near to me, please… I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. Do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life.  For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest.  And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt. Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, “Thus says your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; do not tarry…”‘

“Joseph said to them, ‘Do not fear, for am I in the place of God?^‘ As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.’ Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.” Genesis 45:1-9; 50:19-21

Jacob had trouble staying out of the hub of his life, occasionally acknowledging the Lord as supreme, but mostly living with selfish inclination. My desire, my family, my goods, my way. Conversely, his son Joseph learned early on that life was all about his God. Ridiculed, betrayed, nearly killed, and sold as a slave by his brothers, then falsely accused and imprisoned by his Egyptian boss, he remained steady in obedience and faith. He sought, served, and honored his Lord with godly resolve because he trusted His plan and goodness. (Genesis 37:5-28; 39:1-23; 40:5-8)

One way the devil gets into the unsmooth parts of life is by churning them up into discontent, grumbling, and blaming. He instills an ‘all about me’ mentality that warps our worldview off-center from how God intends us to live. When we readjust our orientation toward the Lord, and begin each day acknowledging it as His to design and unfold, we can with serenity enjoy a new and hopeful outlook. Life is indeed all about Him, promising fulfillment of His glorious eternal purposes and divine sufficiency along the way.

And when it’s all of God, it is through and through, in every circumstance and at all times. Am I behaving as though I believe in His sovereignty over present trials, detours, and challenges? Where do I need a reordering of motives, or realignment of life compass, so I view and seize life as about Him, not me?

Lord on high, incline my heart and orient my living to center on, trust, and exalt You alone.