God Works behind the Scenes

Pharaoh was furious with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker. So he put them in confinement in the house of the captain of the bodyguard, in the jail, the same place where Joseph was imprisoned.
—Genesis 40:2-3

This week we have been discovering how to live a life that matters by looking at the life of Joseph. In Genesis 40 we see what happens after Joseph was promoted in jail. “Then it came about after these things, the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt offended their lord, the king of Egypt. Pharaoh was furious with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker. So he put them in confinement” (vv. 1-3).

You may think, “Wait, we were talking about Joseph in jail. Why does the scene shift to a squabble going on with the baker and the cupbearer?” I am going to share with you an encouraging word, so pay attention to this: right now God is working in people you have never met, perhaps in a place unfamiliar to you, to accomplish His purpose in your life. That’s exactly what God was doing in Joseph’s life. There was a squabble going on in Pharaoh’s court. The cupbearer was in charge of tasting the king’s wine to make sure it wasn’t poisoned. The baker was in charge of all of the king’s food. Now these guys did something to infuriate Pharaoh, so he threw them into prison. “So he put them in confinement in the house of the captain of the bodyguard, in the jail, the same place where Joseph was imprisoned” (v. 3). Coincidence? There are no coincidences in God’s plan.

The baker and cupbearer ended up in the same place where Joseph was. Genesis 40:4 says, “The captain of the bodyguard put Joseph in charge of them, and he took care of them; and they were in confinement for some time.” Now look at how their lives intersect.

“Then the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt, who were confined in jail, both had a dream the same night, each man with his own dream and each dream with its own interpretation. When Joseph came to them in the morning and observed them, behold, they were dejected” (vv. 5–6). Joseph asked them, “Why are you sad today?” They told him, “We have had a dream and there is no one to interpret it” (v. 8). Joseph said, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell it to me, please” (v. 8).

God had been working behind the scenes, in the lives of two men Joseph had never met, to bring these three men together in the same place for this very moment–so that Joseph could interpret their dreams. And wherever you are right now, you can know that God is working in the lives of a person or people perhaps you have never met, in a place you have never been, in order to accomplish His purpose for you and for them.

***
Today’s devotion is excerpted from “Forgotten, Forsaken, Forever?” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2009.

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.