Can I Really Overcome?

Have you ever heard of Joseph from the book of Genesis? He was a dreamer who believed God had big plans for his life—and he was quick to share these dreams with his brothers. Unfortunately for Joseph, his brothers were less than enthusiastic about his dreams and believed he was getting too full of himself.

Thus, they tossed Joseph into a pit, sold him into slavery, and then told their father he’d been killed. Joseph’s story continues in Egypt where he’s then falsely accused of a crime, imprisoned, and forgotten.

Joseph’s story seems like nothing but a long string of mistreatment and injustice. Seemingly, he was wronged at every turn. Even though we’ve spent the last few days talking about eternal hope in Christ, at times our lives can feel similar to Joseph’s. We suffer setbacks through no fault of our own. We’re laid off from jobs, battle illnesses, or lose loved ones. Yet still, we are called overcomers!

It’s easy to look at our circumstances and wonder, “God, where are you in all of this?!”

There was a twist in Joseph’s story that I want to share with you. Eventually, God took him from a jail cell to the throne room as second-in-command over all of Egypt. From this position, God used him to save millions of people from an impending drought. In the end, he was able to save his whole family, and in the most profound way reconciled with his brothers, and later his beloved father.

As his brothers apologized, begging for forgiveness, Joseph responded in Genesis 50:20, “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”

In today’s verse, Paul echoes Joseph’s story, encouraging us that no matter how bad things seem, God weaves every thread together for beautiful purposes. There is no one who takes evil and turns it for good like Him. After all, look at what He did with Jesus’ crucifixion. He turned the greatest tragedy in history into the triumph of all mankind.

This devotional by Steve Robinson is available at Bible.com.