“You intended to harm me, but God
intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many
lives.” – Genesis 50:20
Years ago a story was shared in Reader’s Digest about a man
who woke up one morning and discovered a pool of water in the center of his
waterbed. Hoping to more easily locate the hole, he dragged the mattress out to
his yard, attached a hose, and filled it completely. Unfortunately, the added
weight made the mattress slide down a hill and into a bush that punctured it
beyond repair. In frustration the man scrapped the water bed frame and
purchased a new traditional mattress. Unfortunately, the next morning he
awakened to discover a pool of water in the center of his new bed. You see, the
upstairs bathroom had a leaky drain.
Have you ever had a leaky drain kind of day? Joseph
did—every day for about 13 years. In Genesis 37, we are introduced to Jacob’s
favorite son, Joseph. Not only had he been born to Jacob later in life, he was
one of only two sons born to the love of Jacob’s life: Rachel. Unfortunately
for Joseph, he wore his father’s favoritism on his sleeve…literally. Jacob gave
his son a one-of-a-kind colorful robe that not-so-subtly screamed, “Favorite son! Favorite son! Favorite son!” As
a result, Joseph’s ten brothers were jealous of him and hated him.
In anger, they tossed Joseph into a pit and then sold him as
a slave to some traders heading for Egypt. And on the heels of that
unconscionable act of treachery, Joseph spent the next 13 years of his life as
a slave and prisoner in Pyramid Central. Sadly, those thirteen years ushered in
two other doses of treachery that added insult to injury.
For starters, after having worked his way up to chief of
staff in his master’s home, his master’s wife slandered his good name by
accusing him of attempted rape. Piping mad, Joseph’s master threw him into the
king’s dungeon, where Joseph would experience a third act of treachery. After
several years in prison, one of Joseph’s friends betrayed him by failing to do
for Joseph what he had promised to do: mention his plight to the king and
petition for his release.
For 13 years Joseph suffered the agony of rejection,
betrayal, slander and broken promises. All hope for Joseph would have been lost
had it not been for one not-so-small reality: “The LORD was with Joseph and
he prospered.” In a
matter of moments, Joseph was promoted to the second highest position in Egypt.
By God’s mercy and grace Joseph ascended from the pit to the palace. And within
that position he was used by God to save thousands of people—including his own
brothers—from starvation during a seven-year famine. The story of Joseph in Genesis
37-50 is an inspirational rags-to-riches story. And honestly, Joseph would have
never made it to the palace had it not been for the pit.
This leaves us with a marvelous lesson from God’s Word: Oftentimes, God uses those who have
suffered to rescue others who are suffering. It’s no coincidence that God
used a man who had suffered for 13 long years to rescue a nation that would
suffer for 7 years. It’s no coincidence that God used Jesus—a man of sorrows,
acquainted with suffering—to deliver us from our own sin-cursed suffering. And
it won’t be a coincidence when God places individuals in your path who are
suffering in some of the same ways you have suffered.
If you’ve suffered through the horror of physical abuse, God
will likely call on you to help others who have suffered in the same way. If
you’ve suffered through an addiction to drugs or alcohol, God will likely use
you to help others who are struggling with addiction. If you’ve suffered
through betrayal and divorce, God will likely use you to minister to other
betrayed spouses. And if you’re a cancer survivor, guess who God will likely
call you to strengthen and encourage?
The fact that you’re a survivor, having persevered through
your suffering, you have a wonderful gift: instant credibility. Your story is
believable and relatable to those who are suffering in the same way that you
yourself have suffered. Yes, that is an incredible gift from God, and you dare
not waste it. The Lord wants you to use your post-pit credibility to encourage
and pray for those who are suffering and point them to the only One in the
universe who can promote them from the pit to the palace: Jesus Christ. Don’t
miss your golden, God-given opportunity as a pit survivor to lead others to the
hope and salvation that only Christ can bring.
Friend, at some time or another, each of us has been treated
badly. Through no fault of our own, some of us have suffered abuse, been hit by
a drunk driver or have been falsely accused of a crime we didn’t commit.
Motivated by hatred and jealousy, certain people conspire to toss us into a pit
and keep us there. But that’s not the end of the story. Our great God is able
to use our deepest, darkest pit to help shape us into powerful instruments of
peace, strength and healing in His hands. God does some of His most important
character-shaping while we’re in the pit. But when our season in the pit has
reached its end, God can promote us to the palace. He did for it for Joseph.
Perhaps He will do the same for you.
Dane Davis is the Lead Pastor of
First Christian Church in Victorville. For more information,
