Joseph was 17 years old when God gave him the dreams. He was 30 when those dreams began to unfold in real life. That's thirteen years in the inbetween. 13 years he had to wait.
And the first response to Joseph's calling wasn't support or celebration , it was jealousy. Scripture says that his brothers were jealous of him. The dream didn't create the problem. It exposed what was already there. So when Joseph shared what God showed him, it didn't go well at all.
That's an important reminder for us
the call of God doesn't protect you from being misunderstood or rejected. A lot of times, it guarantees you will be. Joseph’s brothers stripped him of his robe, threw him into a pit, and sold him into slavery The dream didn’t protect him. It marked him. It put a bullseye on him.
But when Joseph is sold into Potiphar’s house, Scripture says, "The Lord was with Joseph". Gods presence didn't keep him from the bad stuff, but it sustained him through it. Joseph served faithfully. He was trusted. He was promoted. And then he did the right thing and refused sin and it cost him everything. He was falsely accused and thrown into prison. But Again, Scripture repeats "But the Lord was with Joseph".
God didn’t rescue Joseph quickly. But He stayed with him through it. In prison, Joseph continued to serve. He used the gift God gave him. He interpreted dreams correctly and still got forgotten. Two more years passed.
That's the waiting. And waiting doesn't just test patience, it tests our character. It tests who we are.
Recently, a well known evangelist shared a vision publicly, and it wasn't received well. There was criticism and pushback, and that's never easy. But what happened after was harder to watch. His public anger and tantrum did more damage than the criticism itself. It hurt his character and his witness.I understand the hurt. We're all human. We all have emotions. No one handles things perfectly all the time. But Genesis teaches us something important here, calling and character always go together. And If God calls us to share something publicly , a word, a vision, a dream ,then we also have to be prepared for the aftermath. That includes criticism, Misunderstanding, Jealousy. And sometimes ridicule.
Joseph didn't stop believing the dream, but he also didn't defend himself or react recklessly. He trusted God with the timing, the process, and the outcome. Waiting seasons don't just shape what we carry, they shape how we carry it.
Joseph's waiting wasn't wasted. It was a time of preparation. By the time he stood before Pharaoh, he wasn't just Joseph the dreamer .... He was steady, wise, and trustworthy. The wait didn't cancel the promise but It prepared him to handle it.
You may be right in the middle of it.
This is the reminder Genesis 37-40 gives us....
Be wise with what you share.
Be careful who you share it with.
Guard your response.
And don't let your reaction damage your witness.
Love Pastor Mandy
Ark of Hope Ministry
Daily reading Genesis 37-40
In the waiting... wait well.
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