Today we explore the familiar story of the beloved child of Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham. Joseph, also known as the Dreamer, was the beloved son of Jacob’s old age and the offspring of his first love– Rachael. So loved was this child that Jacob made him a coat of many colours to showcase his love and admiration. That stirred the jealousy and spite of his 10 older brothers. And that hate led them to sell the young lad into slavery while they deceived their aged father that the child was killed by a wild animal. That was a callous thing to do, but this turned out to be strongly sponsored by the Lord Almighty because although Joseph had the potential to be an astute businessman and manager, all those qualities were hid beneath the colourful clothe and his father’s doting love.
Joseph’s managerial skills did sprout when he got to Portiphar’s house, but it did not start there. He had always had it in him. When he saw the misconduct of his brothers, he reported them to his father (Genesis 37:2). This was why his father always asked him to check up on his brothers, a task that led to his eventual arrest and disappearance. He had inherent ability to manage and oversee the good and optimal use of resources, but he was still pampered by the colourful admiration and protection of his father. As beautiful and essential the favour he received from his father was, they shielded Joseph from maximizing his capacity. He was in comfort and the best he could do from that place of comfort was to report his brothers to his dad. Compared to the office of the Prime Minister of the greatest economy of his time, checkmating his brothers was far from grand. However, at that myopic state of existence available to him by the glory of a multicolored vest, it was a glorious place to be. Did Joseph know that a task as simple as reporting his brothers for ill performance could ever blossom into becoming a manager of a thriving enterprise? Nope. Not at all.
This generation can boast of a lot of dreamer-Josephs. There are a number of people who have grand desires and have received needle-point accurate revelation of a glorious future. They announce these dreams so unapologetically that they probably have earned themselves an enemy or two. In addition to that, they have some beautiful skills and inert qualities that pop up every now and then, producing some level of result in their day-to-day activities. But that is just how far they go. The lofty dreams, the admirable applause of friends and family, and the fair results they produce make them certain that they are headed to a glorious future. And they really would head for a glorious future, but not the way they think.
Despite the enemies they make or the sneers that they receive due to their decision to walk against the tide, they are in actuality wallowing in the comfort that fans mediocrity. In spite of the glorious destinies they have, they underutilize the grace of God and the empowerment of His presence. Many times, they do it ignorantly. And so God, in His mercies, brings an interruption to their normalcy. He pulls them away from the comfort that prevents them from wielding their full potential, creating a split-rock effect just as He did with Joseph. Only in that discomfort does their full potential begin to bud.
Out of Comfort
I remember having such split-rocks not so long ago. I have had serial revelations about my glorious future and the desires of the Lord for my life and destiny. I was the number one mould-breaker I knew because I was determined not to submit to the trends of society, whether religious or non-religious. The only thing that was capable of bringing me to conformity was Biblical truths. If it doesn’t align with scriptural truths, I definitely will not listen to it, no matter who says it. The Lord had recently begun to spin a new phase for my life, giving me clues and ideas about them. I accepted them with thanksgiving, lots of prayers and lots of strategic planning. However, I still wallowed in comfort.
Comfort isn’t always cozy. It is called comfort because it prevents you from exploring the deep, not necessarily because you have all you need there. It keeps you eased at one end of your life that you see no need to make the next decisive step. For me, comfort was earning a salary. I had finished my program that granted me steady, assured income. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I had to get engaged in an arrangement with some colleagues that still brought me some money but not half as much as before.
As inadequate as the earning was, it still made me lax about taking any genuine move towards financial security. I was lax about my assignments and my contribution to the world. I was lax about an alternative source of income. I was just comfortable with what I received. It took my colleagues pulling out of the deal to open my eyes. Comfort would not allow me to see that laxity. A twist did. It is true that it still took me about 3 months to eventually start out what the Lord had directed me to, but that would never have happened if I still received the multicolored robe from my colleagues.
Like me, the Lord was with Joseph. God has always been with him. But Joseph was not in a place that could manifest God’s greatness. The Lord had to use his brothers to transport him to a place where he would step into his full capacity.
More times than not, comfort is the reason our destinies are delayed. We might be in an unstable situation, but in the eyes of the Lord, we are in a place of much comfort. The business you are doing may be the comfort that prevents you from taking on the assignment the Lord has for you to your generation. That office you occupy in your place of work might be the covering cast that limits the effulgence of God’s ability hidden in you. Maybe you are due for a promotion, but there might be things in or around you that actually make you comfortable with where you are, even when it is not the most ideal place to be.
Discomfort: A necessary evil
LeCrae Moore sung a song titled “Being broke made me rich.” Often that is what we need to step into our upgrade. Sometimes, we need disappointments to recognize our place of appointment. Sometimes we need a heartbreak to stop being self centred. Sometimes we need a backstab to evaluate our band of longtime but unresourceful friendships. Many times, we need to be sold to slavery for our managerial skills to manifest. You might need the let down of colleagues so that comfort will not ambush the glow of your inherent capabilities. It is important to note that there is nothing wrong with earning a salary. In fact, it is one stream of income you can always fall back to for recurrent needs. However, for me at that point in time, it was not my stepping stone. To another, that might be the very place the Lord will push them into so that they can become more valuable to their world.
The Lord is in the business of using people and circumstances to relocate us to a place of seeming slavery, but which in reality is the right ground to force you into your glorious height. Make it a genuine hearty for the Lord to transport you to a place where your earthen vessel can be cracked open so that the hidden treasure can see the light of day. This is the will of the Lord for you.
God bless you.
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