Trust the timing of God (Genesis 40: 14)
By Lynette Kittle
“But when everything is going well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison ” - Genesis 40: 14
Have you ever felt the feeling of being forgotten by someone who promised to keep in touch with you, or said they would recommend you for an opportunity, but then seemed to be gone and forgot everything about you?
The scriptures tell us about the extraordinary life of Joseph, a man who understood what it meant to be forgotten by others. Sold into slavery by jealous brothers who really wanted to forget everything about him, their actions led to Joseph's imprisonment.
While serving time with fellow inmates, Joseph interpreted a dream for the chief butler who was also imprisoned at the time. Joseph requested that he be remembered upon his release. But, after a quick release, this inmate forgot everything about Joseph's help. Genesis 40: 23 explains: “The chief butler, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot it. "
So was the butler just a terrible person who had deliberately forgotten about Joseph? Was he a totally ungrateful egotistical individual for her help? Or, was it his delay in remembering Joseph all in God's timing? This is a question we might also want to ask ourselves when it seems like we've been forgotten by someone we thought would remember us.
Genesis 41: 1-13, describes what followed. After two full years, the chief butler, the pharaoh, had a dream he did not understand. When all of his advisers and consultants couldn't interpret the troubling dream for him, the butler had an “aha” moment when he remembered Joseph.
This "aha" moment led Joseph to be called before Pharaoh to interpret his dream, an act which led to his release from prison and to be placed in an elevated position in the kingdom (Genesis 41: 41).
Although forgotten throughout his life by others, God never forgot Joseph, working his life in remarkable ways (7 Acts: 9-10).
Like Joseph, when we have felt forgotten by others, we can take comfort in knowing that God remembers us. We can also believe that God is at work in our lives, whether it is through those we hope to think of us, or through those who might surprise us.
I have a family member who was praying and asking God for a job, when friends who were thousands of miles away, those he hadn't been in contact with in years, "just happened" to drop by. looking through a box that led him to spirit.
Thinking of him, they had an “aha” moment, where they felt compelled to contact him in anticipation of an upcoming opening in their organization. Calling to reconnect with him, they discovered that he was looking for a job, which led to him being hired for the job.
So whenever we feel forgotten by others, we can choose to trust God has not forgotten us. We can believe that He has a plan for our lives and will bring us to the minds of those who know us, at the perfect time and according to His will.
Who has God reminded you of recently? Someone you haven't thought of in years? Take some time to think about why you are thinking of them, and ask God if he will prompt you to contact them.
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