Then Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by him. He cried, “Make everyone go out from me.” So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. And he wept aloud, so that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it. And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence.
So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near. And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt. | Genesis 45:1–8
If God loves us and takes care of us, why do troubles come? God’s children get sick sometimes. They have sorrows and pains. Even God’s little lambs get sick sometimes, or get hurt. When troubles come, is God forgetting to take care of us? Oh no! Troubles come for our good.
That seems strange, doesn’t it? How can trouble be for our good? The Bible tells a wonderful story about a boy named Joseph. He had many troubles. But all his troubles turned out for his good, and for the good of many more of God’s people too.
Joseph had ten older brothers. They were not always good boys. Sometimes they did things that were wrong. Joseph was a good boy. Yes, there was sin in his heart, too. But he tried to do the right things. Joseph’s father, Jacob, loved Joseph very much. Sometimes Joseph told his father about the worng things his big brothers did. That made his brothers angry. After a while they hated Joseph.
One day, Jacob sent Joseph to see how his brothers were getting along. They were far from home. They had gone away to find better pasture for their sheep. Joseph went to find them. The brothers saw Joseph come. They said to each other, “Let’s get rid of Joseph!”
So, when Joseph came near, they grabbed hold of him. They threw him down into a deep dark hole. Joseph cried. He said, “Please let me out! Let me go home!” But the brothers would not listen.
After a while some men came by, riding on camels. Joseph’s brothers said, “Let’s sell Joseph to these men. They will take him far away. Then we will never see him again. We will be rid of him, and we will tell our father that a wild animal killed him.”
They did sell Joseph. And they told their father, Jacob, that a wild animal had killed him. But the men took Joseph to Egypt. He became a slave in Egypt. Years went by. Then came a famine. There was hardly anything to eat. There was no rain. The grain did not grow. Joseph’s brothers did not have bread for their families.
One day Jacob said to his sons, “I have heard that there is bread in Egypt. Go there and buy some.” So the brothers went.
In Egypt they talked to a great man, who was next to the king. This man spoke angrily to them. He said they were thieves and spies. He even put one of them in prison.
The brothers said, “This is because we sold Joseph!” They were afraid. But this great man was Joseph, and at last he told them that he was Joseph, their own brother.
He said, “Do not be afraid. I will not punish you. You did evil, but God turned it to good, so that there would be plenty of grain for all of us in this time of famine.”
All of Joseph’s troubles turned out for his good and for the good of God’s people. We must believe that all our troubles are for our good, because God loves us. He does not let anything happen to us that is not good for us.
Something to talk about
- Can you tell more of the story of Joseph?
- Should we complain when we are sick or sad?
- What should we remember?
Memory Verse
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.| Romans 8:28