Narcissism.  Vanity.  Conceit.  Arrogance.  Pride.  Those are familiar attitudes for most of us.  But before God does anything significant through us, He leads us through a process to kill the notion that our glory is any priority to Him at all.

No Average Joe Series

It had been over 20 years since Joseph had seen his brothers.  Despite the dream of his family bowing down to him, Joseph had no reason to expect to ever see his father or brothers again.  But widespread famine changed all of that.

Now Jacob saw that there was grain in Egypt, and Jacob said to his sons, “Why are you staring at one another?  And he said, “Behold, I have heard that there is grain in Egypt; go down there and buy some for us from that place, so that we may live and not die—Genesis 42:1-2.

So as the story goes, ten of Joseph’s eleven brothers traveled to Egypt to buy food, and soon bowed down to their brother who was in charge of selling all the available grain.  And although Joseph recognized them, they had no clue who he was.

One might think Joseph would have celebrated this unexpected turn of events.  Seriously, after all of these years, his dream came true.  His brothers were on their faces in front of him.   This was the gotcha moment he had waited for.

Sure, if this had happened 20 years ago, Joseph would have done a victory dance on the heads of his brothers.  But God spent many years and orchestrated an entire cast of characters in a complex drama to do something very important in Joseph.

So if your dream is delayed, here are some things God may want you to know:

The dream was never about you.

God promised Jacob several years earlier that nations would come from him (Genesis 35:11).  But at this point, they faced famine and extinction.  God’s plan was to preserve a people who would usher in the Messiah.  But for now they needed food to survive, and Joseph was in a place to provide for their future.  Whatever dream God has given you, it’s always about something bigger than you.

The dream must die first.

Jacob’s dream for his son Joseph died many years before.  Joseph’s dream was a distant memory.  It seems that before God promotes us to the front of His purposes, He must kill the pride of our hearts.  And He often does that by delaying or even killing the dream.  Joseph let it go.  So must we.

The dream will surprise you.

In killing our dream, God preserves us for a special work.  Although there is pride in our hearts that must be removed, God never breaks us beyond His grace.  While the dream seemed lost, God was with Joseph, empowered him, and elevated him to a position of usefulness.  So when Joseph saw his brothers bowing to him, he knew God was up to something bigger and better than he ever imagined before.

The dream challenges you first.

Joseph disguised himself.  After all these years, Joseph still needed more time.  I don’t know why, but I suspect he had some self-examination to do.  Perhaps he was overwhelmed with gratitude for the grace and mercy of God.  Whatever was going on, God challenged him.  When God resurrects the dream, He will test our character.

Joseph’s dream was not about Joseph at all.  It was ultimately about giving good news to the captives. It was about the glory of God displayed in foreign places.  It was about preserving a people for God’s own possession.  And God will do whatever necessary to refine and redefine our God-given dreams for that same end.

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