journey onWord with us

Would it be safe for me to assume that life experiences have brought you to the following conclusion? People in your world like you and some may even love you, but very few, if any, ever really focus on what is important to you.  If someone in your world needs assistance, you should move heaven and earth to help.  But if you have a pressing burden, others don’t seem to be that concerned.  Sometimes they even forget what your needs are.  Feelings of aloneness, discouragement and disillusionment naturally creep into our hearts when others (who we have helped) are seemingly blind to our needs.  We may even cry out words like this to God, “Lord, it’s Mike, can I have some help?”  My reading this week caused me to reflect on the forgetfulness of others, as I saw how Joseph (a great servant of God) was neglected.

You may know the story, but let me remind you of some particulars.  Joseph is thrown into prison after being falsely accused.  He is in a dungeon with two men placed there by the Pharaoh of Egypt.  An ultimate plan was being crafted in Joseph’s life, and the dungeon was part of it.  As the story goes, the two prisoners (chief cupbearer and chief baker) had dreams on the same night, and God used Joseph to interpret them.  One of the prisoners (cupbearer) would be restored, while the other (baker) was to be hanged.  Joseph’s one request to the cupbearer was this – But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. For I was forcibly carried off from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon — Genesis 40:14-15. Can you believe what the cupbearer did?  He forgot Joseph’s request!  And it must be said, God allowed Joseph to be forgotten, but God never forgot him.

Two long years later Pharaoh had a dream that no one could interpret.  Can you imagine the cupbearer’s memory- jolt?  He finally remembers the Hebrew who interpreted his dream, and tells Pharaoh about Joseph.  Joseph is brought to Pharaoh, interprets his dream, is placed charge of Egypt under Pharaoh, eventually sees his family restored and is used of God to preserve the remnant in fulfillment of God’s promises to Abraham.  You see, God had a plan through all of the pain and suffering that Joseph endured.  He was forgotten, but never Forgotten!

Undoubtedly, there were some long nights in that dungeon.  Joseph probably even had to fight some emotional how he could forget me moments.  But I truly believe that Joseph understood that God was in control of his circumstances.  And at just the right moment God intervened in ways that Joseph could not have manipulated.  You may be in a circumstance even today that causes your emotions to cry out words like, “I don’t deserve this,” or, “does anyone care about my needs?”  You aren’t in a physical dungeon, but you certainly feel imprisoned with thoughts of discouragement and aloneness.  Others may have forgotten about your needs, but the Father has definitely not Forgotten you.  I don’t completely understand why God chooses to give us long periods of waiting, but I am confident that He always intervenes at just the right moment.

We can either view times of difficultly from a human perspective (frustrated with injustice, and others forgetting to care for us) or from a divine perspective (God cares about us, and uses difficulty to train and prepare us – or even reach us for Christ).  I really struggled in writing this article, but I sensed that there was someone who needed to hear the words,  you may feel forgotten, but you are never Forgotten.   C.S. Lewis stated in The Problem of Pain, God whispers in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains.