Selections from Genesis 45

Joseph said to his brothers, "Please, come near me," and they came near. "I am Joseph, your brother," he said, "the one you sold into Egypt. And now don't be worried or angry with yourselves for selling me here, because God sent me ahead of you to preserve life. "For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there will be five more years without plowing or harvesting. God sent me ahead of you to establish you as a remnant within the land and to keep you alive by a great deliverance. "Therefore it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household, and ruler over all the land of Egypt."

Whether it happened all at once or gradually came into view, Joseph finally saw what God was up to in his life. Of course, it took a wicked plot by his brothers. It took some extra prison time. It took a famine. Only God could have put all of that together and made something out of it.

God loves you and offers a wonderful plan for your life. It's the first of the Four Spiritual Laws. And it reveals a fundamental need in every person - to realize that God has made plans for us, "plans of peace and not of evil ... a future and hope" (Jeremiah 29:11). Knowing what those plans are isn't always easy. God's reasons are rarely on the surface. But would we really want them if they were? Would we believe in the power of God if he couldn't perform his will through the most unbelievable of ways?

Blind faith is not a biblical concept. It's not that we believe in spite of the fact that we're in an unending night; rather, we believe because we see the invisible light and are "certain of what we do not see" with our human eyes. We trust in Someone who defines the word reliable. We can know from God's Word the kind of trials that we might face, and we can know from God's Word that he will deliver us. We can understand what God means and expects, and we can discern whether or not we're in line with those expectations. In fact, we must discern this, or we'll never know whether we're on the right path - whether we should persist in what we're doing or whether we should stop. The Christian's call is not to blind, confused floundering, hanging on to God even though we can't know him or understand him. The call is to know our great God and Father, to understand his intentions, and - by his grace, wisdo m, and strength - to walk in good ways. To know him is to love him - and to understand that he's the God of love, not luck. - James R. Lucas

Trying to think the way God thinks requires getting to know Him better.  Learning how to be ever aware of His presence.  You're doing it right now by reading this.  Keep sticking with Him.