Happy Sabbath friends! This week I read the story on Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife, and it really inspired me to write this blog post for you all today. Sometimes when we go through dark times, or even betrayal of some kind, it’s easy for us to give up and lose hope of things getting better for us. I love the story of Joseph because his own family betrayed him, and then, he was even sent to prison, and yet, he never lost hope in the Lord. Shouldn’t that be how we react the moment things don’t go our way? That is easier said than done, but it’s what God calls us to do!

“Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there. The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the Lord was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field. So Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph’s care; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!” But he refused. “With me in charge,” he told her, “my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her. One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by his cloak and said, “Come to bed with me!” But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house. When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house, she called her household servants. “Look,” she said to them, “this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us! He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed. When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.” She kept his cloak beside her until his master came home. Then she told him this story: “That Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me. But as soon as I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.” When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, “This is how your slave treated me,” he burned with anger. Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined. But while Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.”
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭39‬:‭1‬-‭23‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Chapter 39 starts with Joseph being taken to Egypt after his brothers sold him. I love that the story mentions right at the beginning, “the Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered…”. Even after Joseph’s family betrayed him, God was still with him. Not only that, but Potiphar saw that God was within Joseph. Potiphar saw this and found favor in Joseph. Because of Potiphar finding favor in Joseph because God was with him, the Lord blessed the household, and everything that Potiphar had. Because Joseph was filled with the Holy Spirit, he had success in everything he did, even when he was at his lowest. Even though his brother’s betrayed him, God was right there with him blessing him along the narrow way. It is so easy after being betrayed and/or hurt by someone in our lives, especially our own family, to allow the pain to break you down, and turn you further from God. Yet, that didn’t happen to Joseph. God stayed by his side every step of the way, and Joseph knew this and believed it. In turn, he was blessed, and the people around him were also blessed because of his faithfulness to the Lord.

You might be thinking because Joseph had such a strong foundation in the Lord, that no more trouble was brought upon him after this, but that is unfortunately incorrect. Remember, Satan does not want us to be close to our Heavenly Father, so he is going to do everything in his power to break us down, and make us turn away from Him. I am sure Joseph’s faith in God threatened Satan, and that is when he put Potiphar’s wife into the mix. Joseph was a very good-looking man, and Potiphar’s wife saw this, and tried to tempt him. She kept pressuring him to sleep with her, but Joseph stayed strong amidst the temptation that Satan was throwing at him. He stayed firm in his faith, and did not give into his flesh. Reading this story shows us how we should display our faith in God amidst this world. Satan is going to try to break, tempt, and hurt us, but we should be like Joseph and not give in. We should not give Satan that power. Instead, we should give it all to God. The One who will truly protect us, and wants the best for us. In Him, we will always succeed. Just as Joseph found success in this story in the book of Genesis, we will find success in this world if we build a strong foundation and faith in Christ.

When we choose to build a strong foundation in Christ, and allow Him to take over our lives, we will be filled with His everlasting success. We will continue to see and receive countless blessings even amidst the storms we may face. Joseph kept being hit with storms, yet God kept him afloat. Joseph never got discouraged, instead, he put his complete faith in God to carry him through because he knew God was bigger than everything he was facing with his brothers, and then, Potiphar’s wife.

Do not be afraid. Do not be discouraged. Do not give up. Do not back down.

THE LORD IS WITH YOU.

The story of Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife ends with Joseph being sent to prison because Potiphar’s wife lied and said Joseph tried to make an advance on her when she is a married woman (which as we know from reading this story, she was lying). Joseph still did not get afraid. He did not get discouraged. He did not give up. He did not back down. He fully trusted in the Lord because he knew the Lord was with him. Because the Lord was with him, yet again, Joseph found success and favor in the prison warden’s eyes.

The parts in this story that stand out to me are after every trial that Joseph encountered, it was always stated that the Lord was with him.

Example:

This story in the book of Genesis serves as a constant reminder that if we allow God to take full control of our lives, and if we put our complete trust in Him, that we will find success in whatever we do. Believe me, every time I read this story, it shocks me that Joseph did not get afraid, angry, and/or discouraged because I definitely would’ve. It’s always a wake up call for me that I need to work on putting my complete trust in God even amidst the storms and trials that Satan tries to throw at me. I suffer with perfectionism with everything I do, so when I fail, or something does not go my way, my first response is anger, discouragement, etc. That is why I wanted to share this story in the book of Genesis because it really spoke on something I am continually working on getting better at, and I pray this story speaks to you as well.

I am sure when times get hard, that it can be difficult to let it go, and give it all to God. I understand completely how hard it can be, but God wants to hear all about it. Our God is bigger than ANY problem, trial, storm, etc. that you may face. Give it all to Him today. Trust when I say that He can handle it. He can honestly handle it better than anyone else could, so why not take the weight off and allow Him to have full control? Based on the story with Joseph and the Potiphar’s Wife, we know that if we put our complete trust in Him, that we will have success in whatever we do. Give it ALL to Him today. God’s got your back, always and forever.

Amen.