FEBRUARY 7, 2013
Stranded
Read: Genesis 39:19-23
The
Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy. —Genesis
39:21
Traveling
by bus from Memphis, Tennessee, to St. Louis, Missouri, typically
takes about 6
hours—unless the bus driver leaves you stranded at a gas
station. This happened
to 45 passengers aboard a bus who waited 8 hours
overnight for a replacement
driver after the original driver abandoned them.
They must have felt frustrated
by the delay, anxious about the outcome,
and impatient for rescue.
Joseph
probably shared those feelings when he landed in prison for a crime
he didn’t
commit (Gen. 39). Abandoned and forgotten by any human who
might help him, he
was stranded. Still, “the Lord was with Joseph and
showed him mercy, and He
gave him favor” (v.21). Eventually, the prison
warden promoted Joseph to
oversee fellow inmates, and whatever Joseph
did, “the Lord made it prosper” (v.23). But despite God’s presence and
blessing, Joseph remained incarcerated for years.
You
may be stranded in a hospital room, a jail cell, a country far from home,
or
your own inner prison. No matter where you are, or how long you’ve been
there,
God’s mercy and kindness can reach you. Because He is God Almighty
(Ex. 6:3)
and present everywhere (Jer. 23:23-24), He can protect, promote,
and provide
for you when it seems no one else can help.
Dear God, help us to remember
Your presence and power even when
we are not where we want to be in life. Remind us
to reach for You when no one else can reach us.
God is present—even when we feel He is absent.
Source:
Our Daily Bread 2012
