Feb 04 35_The beauty of God’s timing
35_The beauty of God’s timing Ps 105:16And He called for a famine upon the land; He broke the whole staff of bread. 17 He sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. 18 They forced his feet into shackles, He was put in irons; 19 Until the time that his word came to pass, The word of the Lord refined him. 20 The king sent and released him, The ruler of peoples, and set him free. 21 He made him lord of his house, And ruler over all his possessions, Ps 113 7 He raises the poor from the dust, He lifts the needy from the garbage heap, 8 To seat them with noblemen, With the noblemen of His people. 9 He has the infertile woman live in the house As a joyful mother of children. Praise the Lord! Gen 41:1 Now it happened at the end of two full years that Pharaoh had a dream, and behold, he was standing by the Nile. Alexander Cruden, a Christian from 18th-century Scotland, experienced profound injustice when he was repeatedly committed to an asylum under dubious claims of insanity. Yet, in those trying times, Cruden completed his monumental work—a concordance of the Bible that has since guided countless believers in their study of Scripture. It was through this season of seclusion and hardship that God’s plan unfolded, using Cruden’s affliction to bring about a blessing that would last generations. Similarly, Joseph, in Genesis 41, found himself in a prolonged period of waiting and suffering. Forgotten in prison for two years after the cupbearer's release, Joseph could have felt abandoned. Yet God was working—not just in Joseph's life, but in the grand narrative of Egypt and Israel. As Psalm 105 tells us, God orchestrated a famine to fulfill His purpose of bringing Israel to Egypt. Through Joseph’s trials, God was preparing him for a role that would change history. Dreams have always been a unique medium through which God reveals His plans. However, discernment is key. Only when we walk humbly with God and align our hearts with His will can we confidently discern His voice in our dreams and aspirations. Joseph’s life exemplifies this humility. Despite the ingratitude of the cupbearer, Joseph placed his trust in God, not in people. Human forgetfulness or injustice never disrupts God’s sovereign plans. While the cupbearer may have forgotten Joseph, God never did. The waiting period was not wasted. Just as David, another of God’s chosen leaders, spent years in preparation—first serving Saul and later as a fugitive—Joseph’s years of hardship were refining him. David learned to lead men, to show justice, and to act with mercy. When Saul and Jonathan died, David mourned with grace and honored their memory without bitterness or revenge. Such spiritual maturity is forged in the crucible of waiting, where God molds and shapes His servants for His purposes. In Genesis 41, we see God using Pharaoh, a pagan king, to further His divine plan. God revealed the impending famine not to Jacob or Joseph, but to Pharaoh. This revelation set in motion the fulfillment of a