Trust in the Lord with all your heart...

Believers, remember Pharaoh's chief cup-bearer and chief baker whose dreams Joseph correctly interpreted in Genesis 40 while he was in jail courtesy of Potiphar? Joseph said these words to the cup-bearer whose dream interpretation was restoration to his former position by Pharoah:

14 "And please remember me and do me a favor when things go well for you. Mention me to Pharaoh, so he might let me out of this place.15 For I was kidnapped from my homeland, the land of the Hebrews, and now I’m here in prison, but I did nothing to deserve it.”

Joseph was looking for help and favour from man (the cup-bearer and Pharoah) and what a disappointment he received. Here's what happened after the cup-bearer was restored and the chief baker hanged just as Joseph predicted when he interpreted their dreams:

"23 Pharaoh’s chief cup-bearer, however, forgot all about Joseph, never giving him another thought."

Two full years passed and the cup-bearer forgot about Joseph. "The arm of flesh will fail."

Pharaoh had his "cows and ears of grain" dreams but the cup-bearer didn't speak of Joseph immediately. He could have told Pharoah about Joseph immediately but he waited until all the magicians and wise men of Egypt had exhausted their brains. Verse 9 tells us "Finally, the king’s chief cup-bearer spoke up. “Today I have been reminded of my failure,” he told Pharaoh." Then he finally told Pharoah about Joseph.

If the Lord was not involved and any one of the magicians could give a suitable interpretation, Joseph would have remained in prison! But glory be to the Lord that like Joseph, the Lord is involved in our lives. In fact, in Christ, He is our whole life! The plan of our life in Christ and its execution is not dependent on us or (assistance or favour from) man but wholly on the Lord our God. See Ephesians 2:9- "For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago." Without Christ, we cannot.

Glory be to the Lord that in Christ, even at those times we take our eyes of Him and look to ourselves or to man to help us out of our troubles, our Saviour Jesus never says "So you think the chief cup-bearer and Pharoah can get you out of your situation, abi? Oya, continue!" He Himself said "...for without me you can do nothing." (John 15:5)

As He did with sinking Peter, He saves all who believe. We can take our eyes of Him to look to ourselves or man for help and have little faith when trouble comes but "He will never leave you nor forsake you". (Deut. 31:6.)

We can wonder if He has forgotten us and even have hard thoughts about Him but look what our Lord says to us in Isaiah 49:15-16-

“Can a woman forget her nursing child

And have no compassion on the son of her womb?

Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.

16 “Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands;

Your walls are continually before Me."

He's not fazed or angry at our occasional "not so holy" thoughts about Him (the times we feel that He is not listening or near.)

Man will fail you, but the Lord never will. It took the Lord's execution of His plan for Joseph to get him out of prison and what a rescue it was: from prisoner to number 2 man in all of Egypt! It all worked out for his good. See Romans 8:28 - "We know that God makes all things work together for the good of those who love Him and are chosen to be a part of His plan."

Bear in mind that loving God does not involve the slavish fear of being punished when you sin. This is not love. This is slavery to sin. See 1 John 4:

"18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 19 We love, because He first loved us."

The one who fears isn't perfected in love. He is afraid of bad things happening to him because he is not convinced of Christ's perfect love for him. Loving God is borne out of knowing how much He loves us: so much that He gave His Son to bear our curse and die for our sins. Because of Christ's sacrifice for us by which we have the forgiveness of sins, there no longer remains any punishment or any curse for us in Christ. See Hebrews 10:18 "Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin." But the one who is afraid still expects the punishment of the law to fall on him if he does not do certain things (offerings) by his own power.

In Christ, God will never be angry with us or punish us. See His word to we who are under His covenant of blessing: Grace (Isaiah 54:9), this immediately after Isaiah 53 where the suffering of our Saviour Jesus Christ was prophesied:

“Just as I swore in the time of Noah

that I would never again let a flood cover the earth,

so now I swear

that I will never again be angry and punish you."

Our Abba Father corrects His children, but His correction is for our profit and that we might live forever, according to Hebrews 12- "9 Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever? 10 For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in His holiness."

His correction is never unto death. It is unto life. The wages of sin is death. Christ died this death for us all. God will never lay this death (sickness, curses, fear, depression, etc are death begun) on anyone that believes.

We love Him (and our neighbour) as we realise His love for us and see how much we are forgiven. Very hard to hurt those that you truly love. "We love because He first loved us."

Believer, have you been let down or betrayed by someone lately, even something akin to Joseph's brothers selling him into slavery or the cup-bearer forgetting him in prison or even Potiphar's wife bearing false witness against him? BY GOD'S GRACE ALONE (so tell Him about it,) don't fret or wonder "how could they do this to me?" This is human nature: very fickle. Sometimes, people forget you or they are too embarrassed to tell you they that can't. At other times, people are just mean and really want to see you fail.

Anyone of us could be any of these things at anytime but for the grace of God.

Whatever it is you are faced with, I believe that the Lord is doing a work in your life that will elevate you beyond your wildest dreams and make you able to forgive and even love those who hurt you deeply, much like Joseph's experience. By His grace, keep seeing yourself as Christ is.

Plus Joseph was not all puffed up with pride at his ability to interpret dreams. Pharoah told him "...But I have heard that when you hear about a dream you can interpret it.” See Joseph's response: “It is beyond my power to do this,” Joseph replied. “But God can tell you what it means and set you at ease.”

He gave a similar response to the cup-bearer and the chief baker while in prison. Many of us attribute our success to our "hard work" and smarts but remember Deut. 8:18- "But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day."

And we remember that it is the Lord that provides only by grace! Without Him, we can't take our next breath!

The Holy Spirit will teach you all things.

Believe Right and you will Live Right.