July 28, 2025 • 34 mins
This week we take a break from our series in Romans as Elder Annalee shares lessons from the life of Joseph on waiting well. Video and sermons slides are included below.
- Marshmallow Test (Intro Video)
- Sermons Slides
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Great is your faithfulness to me.
Great is your faithfulness tome, from the rising sun to the
(00:22):
setting, I will praise your name.
Great is your faithfulness tome.
I'll still bless you.
(00:43):
I'll still bless you.
I'll still bless you.
I'll still bless you.
I'll still bless you, lord.
(01:23):
I'll still bless you, lord.
I'll still bless you, I'llstill bless you.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
I'll still bless you.
I'll still bless you, would you?
Speaker 3 (01:28):
pray with me, dear God, thank you so much for this
day.
Thank you so much, lord God,for this opportunity.
Lord, I pray that you wouldgive me clarity of mind, clarity
of speech.
Father, I pray that your wordswould go and hit all the hearts,
lord God, of all your peoplehere.
I pray, lord God, that beyondthe points, beyond my speech,
(01:54):
that what people would rememberis that your spirit was here.
I thank you, lord, god.
I thank you for these, yourpeople, lord, your sons and your
daughters, who you love so much.
So right now, father, I praykingdom of God come.
(02:16):
Will of God be done.
We bless you, god, in Jesus'name.
Amen.
Amen.
We bless you, god, jesus name,amen.
Good morning everyone.
Um, so we are going to betalking a little bit about
(02:37):
weight training, not the kind,but I realized that I probably
should have done my Jane Fonda,worn my leg warmers and headband
.
That was a missed opportunity.
But here we are.
If we go to the next slide, ourBible passages for today, we're
(02:59):
going to be in Genesis 37,genesis 39, and Deuteronomy, if
you'd like to turn there.
But while you're turning there,there is a really short video
that I'd love to show you howmany of us can relate.
So that video was areproduction of something called
(03:25):
the Stanford MarshmallowExperiment.
So this was a famouspsychological experiment that
looked at a child's ability toresist immediate temptation to
receive a larger reward later.
Kids in the original study wereolder.
(03:46):
What they found was thatchildren who waited for the
second marshmallow had higherSAT scores, lower levels of
substance abuse, were lesslikely to be obese and had
better social and self-controlskills.
Who knew that learning how towait could have so many benefits
?
Now think about a time in yourlife when you've had to wait.
So we do a lot of waiting inlife.
(04:08):
Right, we wait at red lights,we wait in line at our favorite
coffee shop, we wait patientlyand sometimes not so patiently
for Amazon to deliver that shinynew thing we ordered 12 hours
ago.
But how many of you would agreethat the hardest kind of waiting
is waiting on God?
(04:29):
We have to wait on God forthings like a new job, a new
home, a financial breakthrough,sometimes a spouse, children,
for friends or meaningfulcommunity for friends or
meaningful community, forphysical or mental healing, for
God to show us what our purposein life is.
(04:49):
So what do we do when ourprayers haven't been answered
yet, because it's God whoorchestrated the wait.
How will we wait and how do wewait?
Well, we've all at some pointhad to wait on God, without a
really clear reason as to why,but because we trust him, we
(05:11):
have to believe that the waitingserves a purpose, that there is
hope to be found at the end ofour wait.
So let's start by getting intoJoseph's story, and let's let
Joseph's story encourage us inthat hope and teach us how to
wait well on God.
So, if you're not already there, turn with me to Genesis 37,
(05:33):
and let's read verses 1 through9.
Is there someone who has itthat can read those verses for
me?
I didn't ask to use this mic,but does anyone want to
volunteer?
Yeah, okay, thank you.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed
, the land of Canaan.
These are the family records ofJacob.
At 17 years of age, Josephtended sheep with his brothers.
The young man was working withthe sons of Bila and Zilpah, his
father's wives, and he broughta bad report about them to their
(06:16):
father.
Now Israel loved Joseph morethan his other sons, because
Joseph was a son born to him inhis old age and he made a
long-sleeved robe for him.
When his brothers saw thattheir father loved him more than
all his brothers, they hatedhim and could not bring
themselves to speak peaceably tohim.
(06:36):
Genesis 37, 1 to 9.
Thank, you.
Speaker 3 (06:41):
So on the next slide you're going to see that Joseph
was the son of Jacob, thegrandson of Isaac and the
great-grandson of Abraham.
His father, jacob, whose nameGod changed to Israel, had 12
sons and a daughter, but Josephwas his favorite.
Jacob's favoritism is actuallya bit ironic, I think, because
(07:06):
his father, isaac, also had afavorite son, and it wasn't
Jacob, by the way.
But when we first meet Joseph,he's a 17-year-old teenager and
he's a little bit annoying.
We'll say he's a little bitspoiled, but he's the first son
of Jacob's favorite wife, Rachel, so he's the favorite child and
(07:30):
he knows it.
He even gets a special coatfrom his dad, so there can be no
ambiguity about his favoritestatus.
Not only is he spoiled, he'salso what we like to call a
tattletale, to use a technicalterm.
He's a snitch.
He told his father when hisbrothers weren't doing what they
(07:51):
were supposed to be doing andwhile his father doted on him.
His brothers hated him.
But the root of his brothers'hatred, if we look closer,
wasn't Joseph's annoyingpersonality.
The root of their hatredstemmed from Jacob loving Joseph
more than them.
But they couldn't take theiranger out on their father right,
(08:12):
so they took it out on Joseph,and maybe some of you have been
there, maybe you're in, I don'tknow a volunteer group trying to
show up, trying to do greatwork, trying to treat people
well, and when the group leadernotices and gives you a public
compliment, all of a sudden youstart to notice that a fellow
(08:32):
volunteer is a little bit icy intheir responses to you.
If this is you, just let meencourage you.
Sometimes people will hate youbecause of the way other people
love you.
Don't stop showing up, don'tstop being excellent just to
accommodate someone else'sinsecurities.
(08:54):
Don't let the accolades causeyou to be prideful, but let your
work and your life speak forthemselves and rest in knowing
that God is with you.
So even though Joseph wasn'tthe real reason for his
brother's anger, it didn'tchange their hatred of him
either.
And they hated him even moreafter he told them about these
(09:15):
dreams he had where his oldersiblings were bowing down to him
.
And so in biblical times youmay know that bowing down to
someone symbolized respect,submission, reverence, a plea
for mercy or worship, dependingon the context.
So this spoiled teenagerexpected them to believe that
they were going to bow down tohim?
(09:36):
No way.
Verses 12 through 35 of chapter37 goes on to tell us that
Joseph traveled to see hisbrothers, trying to see what
they were doing.
So he could report back to hisfather, and he was proudly
wearing that coat of many colorsthat Jacob gave him.
The brothers they had just hadit.
(09:57):
They were going to get rid oftheir problem once and for all.
They initially planned to killhim, but instead they sold him
to some traitors who werepassing by on their way to Egypt
.
Just like that, joseph became aslave.
The utter aloneness heexperienced on that 130-mile
trip must have been palpable.
(10:20):
22 years would pass before heand his brothers would see each
other again, but Joseph'stransformation during that time
teaches us volumes about waitingon God, but, more importantly,
about waiting.
Well, in Joseph's dreams, godrevealed his plan for Joseph's
life to him, but God didn'treveal how that future was going
(10:41):
to come about.
Ultimately, joseph's confidencewould have to be in God, not in
God's plan, and so it is withus.
We want God's plan so we cantrust the plan, but God
sometimes hides the plan.
So we'll trust him, and so wewait.
(11:02):
Sometimes we want God to changeour situation, but God is more
interested in changing us in thesituations.
So on the next slide, if you'retaking notes, you can write
down this first thought Waitingwell involves honest assessments
of our own character.
(11:24):
We want answers.
We're a microwave internet andnow AI society.
We have these expectationsquick fixes and immediate
answers.
We want to be relieved andhappy and we want the waiting to
end.
But God is so much moreinterested in our holiness than
he is in our happiness.
He's much more interested inour character.
He's much more interested inour character.
(11:46):
He's much more interested indelaying his promises for a
season so the foundation of ourfaith can be built up, because
he knows that the weight of hispromises on a broken foundation
will just increase thebrokenness.
So sometimes what may seem likeGod's apathy in not answering
(12:08):
our requests is really his mercy.
What we're asking God to do,even if it's completely within
the bounds of scripture, comesfrom our very limited
perspective.
Sometimes it takes a waitingseason to reveal blind spots in
our character and in our heartthat we didn't know were there
Immaturity, insecurity, anxiety,fear, pride.
(12:32):
Sometimes our waiting season isa gift from the Lord to reveal
to us what he's been seeing allalong.
Waiting is an act of faith, andfaith will bring answers, but
enduring faith will bringanswers with character".
It reminds us of anotherprominent biblical figure, david
as the youngest of his brothers.
(12:53):
It probably came as a surpriseto everyone when the prophet
Samuel announced that he was theone God himself had chosen to
be the next king.
Maybe David thought like I surewould have, that he was about
to be king immediately post-hate, right now.
Cue the fireworks, cue the pompand circumstance, all the
(13:16):
things.
But as it turns out, the waitwas much longer and much, much
more difficult than he imagined.
David had to wait about 15years to become king over Judah
and another seven years tobecome king over Israel.
You see, god routinely anointsus for a task or vocation.
He gives us the desire and thegifting, but then he withholds
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the opportunity for a time,maybe a long time, to prepare us
for what we will face when weget the opportunity.
It prepares us to become thekind of people that can be
trusted with more.
So the next time we see Joseph,he's in Egypt, serving in the
house of a man named Potiphar.
(14:00):
He probably got to Egyptfeeling confused and isolated,
maybe even scared, but he wasn'talone.
So in Genesis 39, 1 through 6,the Bible tells us that Joseph
distinguished himself and becamesuccessful.
Please don't miss verse 2.
It says the Lord was withJoseph and that made all the
(14:24):
difference.
The Bible doesn't give usdetails about the time between
when he was sold into slaveryand when he was serving in
Potiphar's house, but we knowthat because the Lord was with
Joseph, he was in the process ofshaping and transforming his
heart and his character.
In this foreign land he had zerospiritual encouragement or
accountability, but he refusedto abandon God.
(14:47):
Think about how Joseph mighthave remembered and repeated all
the stories he'd been told as achild.
Maybe in the quiet moments hecould almost hear his father's
voice recounting all the waysGod had guided their family and
kept his promises.
And as he matured, his father'sfaith became his own and he
(15:10):
resolved to live a life worthyof the God who he believed had
the power to perform miraclesand that he knew would someday
bring his dreams to fruition.
So if you're taking notes, youcan write down this next point
Waiting well involves an activepursuit of God's word.
It requires very intentionallystudying the scriptures,
(15:35):
learning and meditating on histruth, encouraging ourselves
with his promises, praying hisword so that in times of
darkness or uncertainty, theHoly Spirit can bring them back
to our memory.
Proverbs 3 encourages us tocarry God's truth with us
wherever we go.
It says let love andfaithfulness never leave you.
(15:56):
Bind them around your neck,write them on the tablet of your
heart, then you will win favorand a good name in the sight of
God and man.
And that faithful life he choseto live eventually found favor
with Potiphar.
Verse 5 tells us that from thetime that he put him in charge
of his household and all that heowned, the Lord blessed the
(16:20):
Egyptian's house because ofJoseph.
As far as we can tell, potipharwasn't a follower of Yahweh,
but God blessed him because ofJoseph.
How powerful is that?
By God's grace.
May the same be said of us thatour employers were blessed and
more successful because of ourpresence there and because of
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how faithfully we perform ourwork.
That our families and ourfriends are blessed because of
the prayers we offer up to Godon their behalf and because of
the authentically faithful,godly life we live in front of
them.
And may it be said of Ecclesiathat because of our presence in
this community, the prayers weoffer to God on its behalf, how
(17:05):
we serve and support those wholive here that the Lord blessed
Princeton because of us.
But Joseph's blessing alsoinvited some unwanted attention.
The Bible says that Joseph washandsome and well-built.
So Potiphar's wife took noticeof him and tried to seduce him.
(17:25):
I would imagine that, being thewife of one of the most
prominent men in Egypt, sheprobably wasn't used to people
telling her no.
But despite her growingdesperation, joseph refused her
constant advances In this testof Joseph's character.
He knew that it wasn't worthhis integrity.
He knew he had a master onearth and a God in heaven, both
(17:50):
of whom would hold himaccountable.
So to punish him for notsleeping with her, potiphar's
wife falsely accused him ofsexual assault.
This infuriated Potiphar andjust like that Joseph was thrown
into prison.
First he was sold into slaveryand we thought his life couldn't
get much worse.
And then, as he's trying tolive a godly life, he gets
(18:13):
falsely accused and imprisoned.
But through it all we'rereminded again in chapter 39,
verse 21, that the Lord was withJoseph and extended kindness to
him, and again in verse 23,that the warden did not bother
with anything under Joseph'sauthority because what the Lord
(18:34):
was with him and the Lord madeeverything that he did
successful.
So wherever you see phraseslike this that are repeated over
and over again in a singlenarrative.
God's trying to emphasize itfor a reason.
Please don't miss it.
God used this unfair situationto advance the plan he had
revealed to Joseph all thoseyears ago in his dreams.
(18:57):
Eventually, the king's bakerand his cupbearer also ended up
in the prison too.
They each have a dream, andwouldn't you know it?
God gives Joseph the ability tointerpret them.
He goes from dreaming dreams tointerpreting dreams.
Ability to interpret them.
He goes from dreaming dreams tointerpreting dreams.
Joseph's seeming demotions wereactually God's sovereign
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promotions.
The opportunity to interpretthese dreams was a kind of test
for Joseph.
Could he still believe God'swords even after 11 years being
a slave?
Words even after 11 years beinga slave?
He could have respondedcynically.
He could have said somethinglike you had a dream.
(19:39):
I had a dream before too.
See where that got me.
But Joseph's response in verse 8gives us a glimpse into how God
was continuing to shape hischaracter and increase his faith
in his weight.
He says don't interpretationsbelong to God?
Joseph hasn't forgotten hisdreams and he hasn't given up on
(20:00):
them either.
He's still waiting on God tofulfill them.
He refused to give up on hisfaith and after correctly
interpreting that the cupbearerwould be reinstalled to his post
, he pleads with him in verse 14.
He says when all goes well foryou, remember that I was with
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you.
Please show kindness to me bymentioning me to Pharaoh and get
me out of this prison, for Iwas kidnapped from the land of
the Hebrews and even here I'vedone nothing that they should
put me in the dungeon.
He must have been so hopeful atthat point.
But despite everything Josephsaid coming true, the cupbearer
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didn't remember him.
On the surface, this looks likethe most epic disappointment
ever.
I used to think that it's likewhen you're waiting on a
doctor's report and instead of adiagnosis they tell you they
need to run some more tests.
You get your hopes up, thinkingyour wait is finally over, only
for you to have to wait somemore For Joseph.
(21:06):
He had to wait another twoyears in prison before the next
turn of events.
But imagine with me for asecond what would have happened
if the cupbearer did rememberJoseph.
Best case scenario, let's sayhe released him and allowed him
to go back to his family inHebron.
That really happy reunion storywould have ended a few years
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later, when they all died ofstarvation in the famine, nobody
but God knew about the faminethat was coming.
God allowed the cupbearer toforget Joseph and allowed Joseph
to wait some more so he couldreceive an answer better than he
could have ever imagined.
If you're taking notes, you canwrite down this next point
(21:53):
Waiting well requires trust inGod's timing and in his
sovereignty.
The faith we develop while wewait affirms our belief in his
providence and in hissovereignty.
It's trusting his timing andtrusting in his ability to bring
about the good he promises.
Trust requires delayedgratification.
(22:17):
Hope requires waiting.
Patience itself is the art ofwaiting well.
We see a similar story in John11.
The Bible tells us that Jesusloved Martha, her sister, mary,
and Lazarus, their brother.
So when he heard that Lazaruswas sick, he stayed away two
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more days.
Instead of rushing there toheal him, he intentionally
lingers and extends their weight.
Seems counterintuitive to me.
But sometimes God delaysbecause he wants to give us more
than what we ask for.
Instead of healing him, jesusraises Lazarus from the dead,
(23:00):
revealing God's power, bringingGod glory, bringing people to
faith in a way that simplyhealing Lazarus wouldn't have
done.
You see, sometimes God willbreak our hearts just so that he
can blow our minds.
He loves us enough to wait togive us his very, very best.
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To give us his very, very best.
And many of you know my ownstory of waiting on God for a
job.
So many of you prayed for meand encouraged me, and I'm so
grateful.
I faced rejection afterrejection, but at just the right
time and in a way that couldhave only been orchestrated by
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God himself.
He not only provided my dreamjob, but he added so many
blessings on top of it,including some flowers.
We have a slide with someflowers on there, so these
beautiful flowers ofcongratulations came from the
Ecclesia staff and from folks inmy small group.
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So we may know the mostgenerous, we may think we know
the most generous andspectacular solution God could
provide for us.
But the God who's able to doimmeasurably more than all we
could imagine.
He knows the outcome that willastound and bless us, and he
(24:33):
knows the outcome that will be aseed of faith for others.
And he's about to blow Joseph'smind too, but not before he
made Joseph wait just a littlelonger.
After two more years in prison,pharaoh had a dream that he
can't shake.
Finally, finally, the cupbearerremembers Joseph, and at the
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age of 38 years old.
Remember we first met him whenhe was 17.
He's now 38 years old when hestands before Pharaoh.
Joseph's first words, out ofprison, point it to God.
God alone gave the promotionand he alone got the glory.
He says I'm not able tointerpret your dreams.
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It is God who will give Pharaoha favorable answer.
Joseph proceeds to interprethis dream, reveal to Pharaoh
that there's a famine coming andgive him instructions on how he
should prepare for it.
Just like that, joseph goesfrom a prisoner to second in
command all over Egypt.
(25:38):
God honored Joseph'sfaithfulness in the little
things, and now he would honorJoseph's faithfulness with even
more influence.
Psalm 105 says until the timethat his word came to pass, the
word of the Lord tested him.
Joseph's dreams didn't sayanything about ruling over Egypt
.
It said he'd rule over hisfamily.
(25:59):
So while it might be temptingto think this would make a great
ending to the story, josephstill had more waiting to do and
if you think about it, hisseemingly sudden success was yet
another refining test.
Now that he'd made it, it mighthave been tempting for him to
give up on the dreams God gavehim all those years ago.
(26:22):
But Moses' warning to Joseph'seventual descendants paints a
different picture.
It paints a picture for us ofan essential component of
waiting well.
If you're taking notes, you canwrite this down Waiting well
requires remembering God'sfaithfulness in past seasons,
(26:42):
after being freed from over 400years of slavery and then
wandering the desert for 40years.
Requires remembering God'sfaithfulness in past seasons,
after being freed from over 400years of slavery and then
wandering the desert for 40years when they were poised to
enter the promised land.
Deuteronomy 8, 11 through 16records Moses as saying be
careful, be careful you don'tforget the Lord, your God, by
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failing to keep his commands,ordinances and statutes that I'm
giving you today.
When you eat and are full andbuild beautiful houses to live
in and your herds and flocksgrow large and your silver and
gold multiply and everythingelse you have increases, be
careful that your heart doesn'tbecome proud and you forget the
(27:25):
Lord, your God, who brought youout of the land of Egypt, out of
the place of slavery.
He says don't forget.
Don't forget who was with youthrough all of your waiting.
Don't forget who provided foryou.
Don't forget who encouraged youwith his word and built you up
in your most holy faith.
Who refined your character.
Don't forget.
(27:45):
Who promoted you.
Don't forget all the miracleshe performed.
Don't forget, please don'tforget.
Joseph didn't forget, even inhis success.
His growth and strength ofcharacter proved that success
for Joseph came long before heruled Egypt.
(28:06):
Because of that, God was ableto prove his faithfulness to his
word given in Joseph's dreams.
So when the famine came andJoseph's brothers traveled from
Hebron to Egypt in search offood for their family, they
unknowingly encountered thebrother they abandoned and
thought dead many years ago.
Chapter 42 tells us that theybowed down before him with their
(28:29):
faces to the ground.
After a series of events meantto test the brother's repentance
, joseph reveals his trueidentity and says to his stunned
brothers God sent me ahead ofyou to preserve life.
God sent me ahead of you toestablish you as a remnant
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within the land and to keep youalive by a great deliverance.
This powerful prince of Egyptsays in humility therefore, it
was not you who sent me, but God.
In humility, therefore, it wasnot you who sent me, but God.
So, as I invite the worshipteam up, I've always wanted to
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say that, if you're taking notes, you can write down this last
point Waiting well involvesguarding your heart from
bitterness.
With all that Joseph had beenthrough, nobody would blame him
for being bitter.
But Joseph had learned to lookat every event in his life, even
the painful ones, through thelens of God's sovereignty.
(29:35):
Over those 22 years he had tofight to keep from getting jaded
and bitter.
And when we've waited andwaited and waited some more on
God for years, after a while ourhearts can get discouraged.
But in those times we have tofight.
(29:58):
We have to fight to choose hopeover hardness so that we can
eventually say like the psalmistI would have despaired unless I
had believed that I would seethe goodness of the Lord in the
land of the living.
Wait for the Lord, be strong andlet your heart take courage.
(30:21):
Yes, wait for the Lord.
Strong and let your heart takecourage.
Yes, wait for the Lord.
So when you're in your waitingseason, remember these five
things.
First point waiting wellinvolves honest character
assessments.
This means taking a deep lookat ourselves and asking God to
reveal areas where we needgrowth.
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Sometimes the wait exposes ourimpatience, our pride, our fear,
but God uses that exposure toheal and transform us.
Yes, god wants to use us tochange the world, but his first
work is in us.
It's in us, not through us, andit always will be.
(31:01):
Second waiting well involves anactive pursuit of God's word.
We can't expect to hear fromGod if we're not spending time
in his word.
Reading scripture daily,meditating on it and letting it
shape our thoughts and ouractions is essential.
It's how we stay grounded wheneverything else feels uncertain.
(31:22):
Three waiting well involvestrusting God's timing and in his
sovereignty.
God's timing is rarely ourtiming, amen, but his timing is
always perfect.
When we trust that he sees thefull picture, we can rest even
when we don't understand thedelays.
Number four don't understandthe delays.
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Number four waiting wellinvolves a good memory.
We must remember how God hascome through for us in the past.
When we recall his faithfulness, it strengthens our faith for
the future.
Maybe you want to keep ajournal, write down your prayers
and how God answers them.
It's going to encourage you inthe next season of waiting.
(32:12):
Finally, waiting well involvesguarding our heart from
bitterness.
It's easy to become bitter orcynical when we've waited a long
time, but God calls us to keepour hearts tender and open.
A soft heart is one that stillhopes, still believes, still
loves, even in the waiting.
And so, if you're in a waitingseason, can I encourage you?
(32:34):
God's delays doesn't mean he'snot concerned with what you're
going through or that he hasn'theard your prayers.
God's patience has purpose.
Eugene Peterson's paraphrase ofRomans 8, 24 says waiting does
not diminish us any more thanwaiting diminishes a pregnant
(32:56):
mother.
We are enlarged in the waiting.
Whatever you're waiting for,may you be enlarged in your
waiting, knowing that god custombuilds our refining fires and
our waiting seasons to shape usand to mold us into the people
(33:17):
equipped to receive and stewardwell the blessings he has for us
.
May you see God's hand that'son you, and may you know that he
is with you.
May you believe his promisethat nothing's too hard for him,
and may you wait expectantlyfor his power with open hands.
(33:41):
Ultimate fulfillment won't comefrom our career, or a husband
or a wife or children, or ahouse or a church, or good
health or anything else we mightdesire.
May you remember that thefulfillment of all our desires
is ultimately in Jesus.
(34:01):
Don't ever let what you'rewaiting for distract you from
faithfulness to him.
Amen.
Great is your faithfulness to me.
Great is your faithfulness tome, from the rising sun to the
(00:22):
setting, I will praise your name.
Great is your faithfulness tome.
I'll still bless you.
(00:43):
I'll still bless you.
I'll still bless you.
I'll still bless you.
I'll still bless you, lord.
(01:23):
I'll still bless you, lord.
I'll still bless you, I'llstill bless you.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
I'll still bless you.
I'll still bless you, would you?
Speaker 3 (01:28):
pray with me, dear God, thank you so much for this
day.
Thank you so much, lord God,for this opportunity.
Lord, I pray that you wouldgive me clarity of mind, clarity
of speech.
Father, I pray that your wordswould go and hit all the hearts,
lord God, of all your peoplehere.
I pray, lord God, that beyondthe points, beyond my speech,
(01:54):
that what people would rememberis that your spirit was here.
I thank you, lord, god.
I thank you for these, yourpeople, lord, your sons and your
daughters, who you love so much.
So right now, father, I praykingdom of God come.
(02:16):
Will of God be done.
We bless you, god, in Jesus'name.
Amen.
Amen.
We bless you, god, jesus name,amen.
Good morning everyone.
Um, so we are going to betalking a little bit about
(02:37):
weight training, not the kind,but I realized that I probably
should have done my Jane Fonda,worn my leg warmers and headband
.
That was a missed opportunity.
But here we are.
If we go to the next slide, ourBible passages for today, we're
(02:59):
going to be in Genesis 37,genesis 39, and Deuteronomy, if
you'd like to turn there.
But while you're turning there,there is a really short video
that I'd love to show you howmany of us can relate.
So that video was areproduction of something called
(03:25):
the Stanford MarshmallowExperiment.
So this was a famouspsychological experiment that
looked at a child's ability toresist immediate temptation to
receive a larger reward later.
Kids in the original study wereolder.
(03:46):
What they found was thatchildren who waited for the
second marshmallow had higherSAT scores, lower levels of
substance abuse, were lesslikely to be obese and had
better social and self-controlskills.
Who knew that learning how towait could have so many benefits
?
Now think about a time in yourlife when you've had to wait.
So we do a lot of waiting inlife.
(04:08):
Right, we wait at red lights,we wait in line at our favorite
coffee shop, we wait patientlyand sometimes not so patiently
for Amazon to deliver that shinynew thing we ordered 12 hours
ago.
But how many of you would agreethat the hardest kind of waiting
is waiting on God?
(04:29):
We have to wait on God forthings like a new job, a new
home, a financial breakthrough,sometimes a spouse, children,
for friends or meaningfulcommunity for friends or
meaningful community, forphysical or mental healing, for
God to show us what our purposein life is.
(04:49):
So what do we do when ourprayers haven't been answered
yet, because it's God whoorchestrated the wait.
How will we wait and how do wewait?
Well, we've all at some pointhad to wait on God, without a
really clear reason as to why,but because we trust him, we
(05:11):
have to believe that the waitingserves a purpose, that there is
hope to be found at the end ofour wait.
So let's start by getting intoJoseph's story, and let's let
Joseph's story encourage us inthat hope and teach us how to
wait well on God.
So, if you're not already there, turn with me to Genesis 37,
(05:33):
and let's read verses 1 through9.
Is there someone who has itthat can read those verses for
me?
I didn't ask to use this mic,but does anyone want to
volunteer?
Yeah, okay, thank you.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed
, the land of Canaan.
These are the family records ofJacob.
At 17 years of age, Josephtended sheep with his brothers.
The young man was working withthe sons of Bila and Zilpah, his
father's wives, and he broughta bad report about them to their
(06:16):
father.
Now Israel loved Joseph morethan his other sons, because
Joseph was a son born to him inhis old age and he made a
long-sleeved robe for him.
When his brothers saw thattheir father loved him more than
all his brothers, they hatedhim and could not bring
themselves to speak peaceably tohim.
(06:36):
Genesis 37, 1 to 9.
Thank, you.
Speaker 3 (06:41):
So on the next slide you're going to see that Joseph
was the son of Jacob, thegrandson of Isaac and the
great-grandson of Abraham.
His father, jacob, whose nameGod changed to Israel, had 12
sons and a daughter, but Josephwas his favorite.
Jacob's favoritism is actuallya bit ironic, I think, because
(07:06):
his father, isaac, also had afavorite son, and it wasn't
Jacob, by the way.
But when we first meet Joseph,he's a 17-year-old teenager and
he's a little bit annoying.
We'll say he's a little bitspoiled, but he's the first son
of Jacob's favorite wife, Rachel, so he's the favorite child and
(07:30):
he knows it.
He even gets a special coatfrom his dad, so there can be no
ambiguity about his favoritestatus.
Not only is he spoiled, he'salso what we like to call a
tattletale, to use a technicalterm.
He's a snitch.
He told his father when hisbrothers weren't doing what they
(07:51):
were supposed to be doing andwhile his father doted on him.
His brothers hated him.
But the root of his brothers'hatred, if we look closer,
wasn't Joseph's annoyingpersonality.
The root of their hatredstemmed from Jacob loving Joseph
more than them.
But they couldn't take theiranger out on their father right,
(08:12):
so they took it out on Joseph,and maybe some of you have been
there, maybe you're in, I don'tknow a volunteer group trying to
show up, trying to do greatwork, trying to treat people
well, and when the group leadernotices and gives you a public
compliment, all of a sudden youstart to notice that a fellow
(08:32):
volunteer is a little bit icy intheir responses to you.
If this is you, just let meencourage you.
Sometimes people will hate youbecause of the way other people
love you.
Don't stop showing up, don'tstop being excellent just to
accommodate someone else'sinsecurities.
(08:54):
Don't let the accolades causeyou to be prideful, but let your
work and your life speak forthemselves and rest in knowing
that God is with you.
So even though Joseph wasn'tthe real reason for his
brother's anger, it didn'tchange their hatred of him
either.
And they hated him even moreafter he told them about these
(09:15):
dreams he had where his oldersiblings were bowing down to him
.
And so in biblical times youmay know that bowing down to
someone symbolized respect,submission, reverence, a plea
for mercy or worship, dependingon the context.
So this spoiled teenagerexpected them to believe that
they were going to bow down tohim?
(09:36):
No way.
Verses 12 through 35 of chapter37 goes on to tell us that
Joseph traveled to see hisbrothers, trying to see what
they were doing.
So he could report back to hisfather, and he was proudly
wearing that coat of many colorsthat Jacob gave him.
The brothers they had just hadit.
(09:57):
They were going to get rid oftheir problem once and for all.
They initially planned to killhim, but instead they sold him
to some traitors who werepassing by on their way to Egypt
.
Just like that, joseph became aslave.
The utter aloneness heexperienced on that 130-mile
trip must have been palpable.
(10:20):
22 years would pass before heand his brothers would see each
other again, but Joseph'stransformation during that time
teaches us volumes about waitingon God, but, more importantly,
about waiting.
Well, in Joseph's dreams, godrevealed his plan for Joseph's
life to him, but God didn'treveal how that future was going
(10:41):
to come about.
Ultimately, joseph's confidencewould have to be in God, not in
God's plan, and so it is withus.
We want God's plan so we cantrust the plan, but God
sometimes hides the plan.
So we'll trust him, and so wewait.
(11:02):
Sometimes we want God to changeour situation, but God is more
interested in changing us in thesituations.
So on the next slide, if you'retaking notes, you can write
down this first thought Waitingwell involves honest assessments
of our own character.
(11:24):
We want answers.
We're a microwave internet andnow AI society.
We have these expectationsquick fixes and immediate
answers.
We want to be relieved andhappy and we want the waiting to
end.
But God is so much moreinterested in our holiness than
he is in our happiness.
He's much more interested inour character.
He's much more interested inour character.
(11:46):
He's much more interested indelaying his promises for a
season so the foundation of ourfaith can be built up, because
he knows that the weight of hispromises on a broken foundation
will just increase thebrokenness.
So sometimes what may seem likeGod's apathy in not answering
(12:08):
our requests is really his mercy.
What we're asking God to do,even if it's completely within
the bounds of scripture, comesfrom our very limited
perspective.
Sometimes it takes a waitingseason to reveal blind spots in
our character and in our heartthat we didn't know were there
Immaturity, insecurity, anxiety,fear, pride.
(12:32):
Sometimes our waiting season isa gift from the Lord to reveal
to us what he's been seeing allalong.
Waiting is an act of faith, andfaith will bring answers, but
enduring faith will bringanswers with character".
It reminds us of anotherprominent biblical figure, david
as the youngest of his brothers.
(12:53):
It probably came as a surpriseto everyone when the prophet
Samuel announced that he was theone God himself had chosen to
be the next king.
Maybe David thought like I surewould have, that he was about
to be king immediately post-hate, right now.
Cue the fireworks, cue the pompand circumstance, all the
(13:16):
things.
But as it turns out, the waitwas much longer and much, much
more difficult than he imagined.
David had to wait about 15years to become king over Judah
and another seven years tobecome king over Israel.
You see, god routinely anointsus for a task or vocation.
He gives us the desire and thegifting, but then he withholds
(13:40):
the opportunity for a time,maybe a long time, to prepare us
for what we will face when weget the opportunity.
It prepares us to become thekind of people that can be
trusted with more.
So the next time we see Joseph,he's in Egypt, serving in the
house of a man named Potiphar.
(14:00):
He probably got to Egyptfeeling confused and isolated,
maybe even scared, but he wasn'talone.
So in Genesis 39, 1 through 6,the Bible tells us that Joseph
distinguished himself and becamesuccessful.
Please don't miss verse 2.
It says the Lord was withJoseph and that made all the
(14:24):
difference.
The Bible doesn't give usdetails about the time between
when he was sold into slaveryand when he was serving in
Potiphar's house, but we knowthat because the Lord was with
Joseph, he was in the process ofshaping and transforming his
heart and his character.
In this foreign land he had zerospiritual encouragement or
accountability, but he refusedto abandon God.
(14:47):
Think about how Joseph mighthave remembered and repeated all
the stories he'd been told as achild.
Maybe in the quiet moments hecould almost hear his father's
voice recounting all the waysGod had guided their family and
kept his promises.
And as he matured, his father'sfaith became his own and he
(15:10):
resolved to live a life worthyof the God who he believed had
the power to perform miraclesand that he knew would someday
bring his dreams to fruition.
So if you're taking notes, youcan write down this next point
Waiting well involves an activepursuit of God's word.
It requires very intentionallystudying the scriptures,
(15:35):
learning and meditating on histruth, encouraging ourselves
with his promises, praying hisword so that in times of
darkness or uncertainty, theHoly Spirit can bring them back
to our memory.
Proverbs 3 encourages us tocarry God's truth with us
wherever we go.
It says let love andfaithfulness never leave you.
(15:56):
Bind them around your neck,write them on the tablet of your
heart, then you will win favorand a good name in the sight of
God and man.
And that faithful life he choseto live eventually found favor
with Potiphar.
Verse 5 tells us that from thetime that he put him in charge
of his household and all that heowned, the Lord blessed the
(16:20):
Egyptian's house because ofJoseph.
As far as we can tell, potipharwasn't a follower of Yahweh,
but God blessed him because ofJoseph.
How powerful is that?
By God's grace.
May the same be said of us thatour employers were blessed and
more successful because of ourpresence there and because of
(16:42):
how faithfully we perform ourwork.
That our families and ourfriends are blessed because of
the prayers we offer up to Godon their behalf and because of
the authentically faithful,godly life we live in front of
them.
And may it be said of Ecclesiathat because of our presence in
this community, the prayers weoffer to God on its behalf, how
(17:05):
we serve and support those wholive here that the Lord blessed
Princeton because of us.
But Joseph's blessing alsoinvited some unwanted attention.
The Bible says that Joseph washandsome and well-built.
So Potiphar's wife took noticeof him and tried to seduce him.
(17:25):
I would imagine that, being thewife of one of the most
prominent men in Egypt, sheprobably wasn't used to people
telling her no.
But despite her growingdesperation, joseph refused her
constant advances In this testof Joseph's character.
He knew that it wasn't worthhis integrity.
He knew he had a master onearth and a God in heaven, both
(17:50):
of whom would hold himaccountable.
So to punish him for notsleeping with her, potiphar's
wife falsely accused him ofsexual assault.
This infuriated Potiphar andjust like that Joseph was thrown
into prison.
First he was sold into slaveryand we thought his life couldn't
get much worse.
And then, as he's trying tolive a godly life, he gets
(18:13):
falsely accused and imprisoned.
But through it all we'rereminded again in chapter 39,
verse 21, that the Lord was withJoseph and extended kindness to
him, and again in verse 23,that the warden did not bother
with anything under Joseph'sauthority because what the Lord
(18:34):
was with him and the Lord madeeverything that he did
successful.
So wherever you see phraseslike this that are repeated over
and over again in a singlenarrative.
God's trying to emphasize itfor a reason.
Please don't miss it.
God used this unfair situationto advance the plan he had
revealed to Joseph all thoseyears ago in his dreams.
(18:57):
Eventually, the king's bakerand his cupbearer also ended up
in the prison too.
They each have a dream, andwouldn't you know it?
God gives Joseph the ability tointerpret them.
He goes from dreaming dreams tointerpreting dreams.
Ability to interpret them.
He goes from dreaming dreams tointerpreting dreams.
Joseph's seeming demotions wereactually God's sovereign
(19:18):
promotions.
The opportunity to interpretthese dreams was a kind of test
for Joseph.
Could he still believe God'swords even after 11 years being
a slave?
Words even after 11 years beinga slave?
He could have respondedcynically.
He could have said somethinglike you had a dream.
(19:39):
I had a dream before too.
See where that got me.
But Joseph's response in verse 8gives us a glimpse into how God
was continuing to shape hischaracter and increase his faith
in his weight.
He says don't interpretationsbelong to God?
Joseph hasn't forgotten hisdreams and he hasn't given up on
(20:00):
them either.
He's still waiting on God tofulfill them.
He refused to give up on hisfaith and after correctly
interpreting that the cupbearerwould be reinstalled to his post
, he pleads with him in verse 14.
He says when all goes well foryou, remember that I was with
(20:21):
you.
Please show kindness to me bymentioning me to Pharaoh and get
me out of this prison, for Iwas kidnapped from the land of
the Hebrews and even here I'vedone nothing that they should
put me in the dungeon.
He must have been so hopeful atthat point.
But despite everything Josephsaid coming true, the cupbearer
(20:43):
didn't remember him.
On the surface, this looks likethe most epic disappointment
ever.
I used to think that it's likewhen you're waiting on a
doctor's report and instead of adiagnosis they tell you they
need to run some more tests.
You get your hopes up, thinkingyour wait is finally over, only
for you to have to wait somemore For Joseph.
(21:06):
He had to wait another twoyears in prison before the next
turn of events.
But imagine with me for asecond what would have happened
if the cupbearer did rememberJoseph.
Best case scenario, let's sayhe released him and allowed him
to go back to his family inHebron.
That really happy reunion storywould have ended a few years
(21:30):
later, when they all died ofstarvation in the famine, nobody
but God knew about the faminethat was coming.
God allowed the cupbearer toforget Joseph and allowed Joseph
to wait some more so he couldreceive an answer better than he
could have ever imagined.
If you're taking notes, you canwrite down this next point
(21:53):
Waiting well requires trust inGod's timing and in his
sovereignty.
The faith we develop while wewait affirms our belief in his
providence and in hissovereignty.
It's trusting his timing andtrusting in his ability to bring
about the good he promises.
Trust requires delayedgratification.
(22:17):
Hope requires waiting.
Patience itself is the art ofwaiting well.
We see a similar story in John11.
The Bible tells us that Jesusloved Martha, her sister, mary,
and Lazarus, their brother.
So when he heard that Lazaruswas sick, he stayed away two
(22:39):
more days.
Instead of rushing there toheal him, he intentionally
lingers and extends their weight.
Seems counterintuitive to me.
But sometimes God delaysbecause he wants to give us more
than what we ask for.
Instead of healing him, jesusraises Lazarus from the dead,
(23:00):
revealing God's power, bringingGod glory, bringing people to
faith in a way that simplyhealing Lazarus wouldn't have
done.
You see, sometimes God willbreak our hearts just so that he
can blow our minds.
He loves us enough to wait togive us his very, very best.
(23:22):
To give us his very, very best.
And many of you know my ownstory of waiting on God for a
job.
So many of you prayed for meand encouraged me, and I'm so
grateful.
I faced rejection afterrejection, but at just the right
time and in a way that couldhave only been orchestrated by
(23:45):
God himself.
He not only provided my dreamjob, but he added so many
blessings on top of it,including some flowers.
We have a slide with someflowers on there, so these
beautiful flowers ofcongratulations came from the
Ecclesia staff and from folks inmy small group.
(24:07):
So we may know the mostgenerous, we may think we know
the most generous andspectacular solution God could
provide for us.
But the God who's able to doimmeasurably more than all we
could imagine.
He knows the outcome that willastound and bless us, and he
(24:33):
knows the outcome that will be aseed of faith for others.
And he's about to blow Joseph'smind too, but not before he
made Joseph wait just a littlelonger.
After two more years in prison,pharaoh had a dream that he
can't shake.
Finally, finally, the cupbearerremembers Joseph, and at the
(24:53):
age of 38 years old.
Remember we first met him whenhe was 17.
He's now 38 years old when hestands before Pharaoh.
Joseph's first words, out ofprison, point it to God.
God alone gave the promotionand he alone got the glory.
He says I'm not able tointerpret your dreams.
(25:17):
It is God who will give Pharaoha favorable answer.
Joseph proceeds to interprethis dream, reveal to Pharaoh
that there's a famine coming andgive him instructions on how he
should prepare for it.
Just like that, joseph goesfrom a prisoner to second in
command all over Egypt.
(25:38):
God honored Joseph'sfaithfulness in the little
things, and now he would honorJoseph's faithfulness with even
more influence.
Psalm 105 says until the timethat his word came to pass, the
word of the Lord tested him.
Joseph's dreams didn't sayanything about ruling over Egypt
.
It said he'd rule over hisfamily.
(25:59):
So while it might be temptingto think this would make a great
ending to the story, josephstill had more waiting to do and
if you think about it, hisseemingly sudden success was yet
another refining test.
Now that he'd made it, it mighthave been tempting for him to
give up on the dreams God gavehim all those years ago.
(26:22):
But Moses' warning to Joseph'seventual descendants paints a
different picture.
It paints a picture for us ofan essential component of
waiting well.
If you're taking notes, you canwrite this down Waiting well
requires remembering God'sfaithfulness in past seasons,
(26:42):
after being freed from over 400years of slavery and then
wandering the desert for 40years.
Requires remembering God'sfaithfulness in past seasons,
after being freed from over 400years of slavery and then
wandering the desert for 40years when they were poised to
enter the promised land.
Deuteronomy 8, 11 through 16records Moses as saying be
careful, be careful you don'tforget the Lord, your God, by
(27:03):
failing to keep his commands,ordinances and statutes that I'm
giving you today.
When you eat and are full andbuild beautiful houses to live
in and your herds and flocksgrow large and your silver and
gold multiply and everythingelse you have increases, be
careful that your heart doesn'tbecome proud and you forget the
(27:25):
Lord, your God, who brought youout of the land of Egypt, out of
the place of slavery.
He says don't forget.
Don't forget who was with youthrough all of your waiting.
Don't forget who provided foryou.
Don't forget who encouraged youwith his word and built you up
in your most holy faith.
Who refined your character.
Don't forget.
(27:45):
Who promoted you.
Don't forget all the miracleshe performed.
Don't forget, please don'tforget.
Joseph didn't forget, even inhis success.
His growth and strength ofcharacter proved that success
for Joseph came long before heruled Egypt.
(28:06):
Because of that, God was ableto prove his faithfulness to his
word given in Joseph's dreams.
So when the famine came andJoseph's brothers traveled from
Hebron to Egypt in search offood for their family, they
unknowingly encountered thebrother they abandoned and
thought dead many years ago.
Chapter 42 tells us that theybowed down before him with their
(28:29):
faces to the ground.
After a series of events meantto test the brother's repentance
, joseph reveals his trueidentity and says to his stunned
brothers God sent me ahead ofyou to preserve life.
God sent me ahead of you toestablish you as a remnant
(28:50):
within the land and to keep youalive by a great deliverance.
This powerful prince of Egyptsays in humility therefore, it
was not you who sent me, but God.
In humility, therefore, it wasnot you who sent me, but God.
So, as I invite the worshipteam up, I've always wanted to
(29:11):
say that, if you're taking notes, you can write down this last
point Waiting well involvesguarding your heart from
bitterness.
With all that Joseph had beenthrough, nobody would blame him
for being bitter.
But Joseph had learned to lookat every event in his life, even
the painful ones, through thelens of God's sovereignty.
(29:35):
Over those 22 years he had tofight to keep from getting jaded
and bitter.
And when we've waited andwaited and waited some more on
God for years, after a while ourhearts can get discouraged.
But in those times we have tofight.
(29:58):
We have to fight to choose hopeover hardness so that we can
eventually say like the psalmistI would have despaired unless I
had believed that I would seethe goodness of the Lord in the
land of the living.
Wait for the Lord, be strong andlet your heart take courage.
(30:21):
Yes, wait for the Lord.
Strong and let your heart takecourage.
Yes, wait for the Lord.
So when you're in your waitingseason, remember these five
things.
First point waiting wellinvolves honest character
assessments.
This means taking a deep lookat ourselves and asking God to
reveal areas where we needgrowth.
(30:41):
Sometimes the wait exposes ourimpatience, our pride, our fear,
but God uses that exposure toheal and transform us.
Yes, god wants to use us tochange the world, but his first
work is in us.
It's in us, not through us, andit always will be.
(31:01):
Second waiting well involves anactive pursuit of God's word.
We can't expect to hear fromGod if we're not spending time
in his word.
Reading scripture daily,meditating on it and letting it
shape our thoughts and ouractions is essential.
It's how we stay grounded wheneverything else feels uncertain.
(31:22):
Three waiting well involvestrusting God's timing and in his
sovereignty.
God's timing is rarely ourtiming, amen, but his timing is
always perfect.
When we trust that he sees thefull picture, we can rest even
when we don't understand thedelays.
Number four don't understandthe delays.
(31:49):
Number four waiting wellinvolves a good memory.
We must remember how God hascome through for us in the past.
When we recall his faithfulness, it strengthens our faith for
the future.
Maybe you want to keep ajournal, write down your prayers
and how God answers them.
It's going to encourage you inthe next season of waiting.
(32:12):
Finally, waiting well involvesguarding our heart from
bitterness.
It's easy to become bitter orcynical when we've waited a long
time, but God calls us to keepour hearts tender and open.
A soft heart is one that stillhopes, still believes, still
loves, even in the waiting.
And so, if you're in a waitingseason, can I encourage you?
(32:34):
God's delays doesn't mean he'snot concerned with what you're
going through or that he hasn'theard your prayers.
God's patience has purpose.
Eugene Peterson's paraphrase ofRomans 8, 24 says waiting does
not diminish us any more thanwaiting diminishes a pregnant
(32:56):
mother.
We are enlarged in the waiting.
Whatever you're waiting for,may you be enlarged in your
waiting, knowing that god custombuilds our refining fires and
our waiting seasons to shape usand to mold us into the people
(33:17):
equipped to receive and stewardwell the blessings he has for us
.
May you see God's hand that'son you, and may you know that he
is with you.
May you believe his promisethat nothing's too hard for him,
and may you wait expectantlyfor his power with open hands.
(33:41):
Ultimate fulfillment won't comefrom our career, or a husband
or a wife or children, or ahouse or a church, or good
health or anything else we mightdesire.
May you remember that thefulfillment of all our desires
is ultimately in Jesus.
(34:01):
Don't ever let what you'rewaiting for distract you from
faithfulness to him.
Amen.
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