“So you’re planning to leave?”
"Yeah, I've made my decision. It'll be a good experience for me to get away from everything and learn to fend for myself and stand on my own two feet. I want to make a few fast bucks, pay off my debts and buy some things. Then I'll come back and settle down. Even Joseph in Genesis ended up far away from home. It didn't look so great at the start but then he turned a corner. Everything eventually worked out for him, and he got a good job."
Be careful when reading the Bible not to twist the Scriptures to justify what you want to do. Intentionally, truthfully and prayerfully subject your decision-making process to the scrutiny of the spiritual microscope of the Word of God.
Yes, Joseph ended up far away from home. But it wasn’t a personal goal he had for himself. He wasn’t chomping at the bit to get away from it all, nor was it a get-rich-in-Egypt scheme he devised for himself. It was an entirely different set of circumstances.
Joseph didn’t push himself away from the shelter of Hebron. He was dragged away with many tears. He arrived in Egypt surrounded by people he did not know and a godless culture of which he wanted no part.
But what could he do about it? He chose to walk closely with his God despite everything all around him. Rather than exploring, with newfound freedom, the entertainments of Egypt and being googly-eyed over urban excitement, he focused on how to live for God, surrounded by the ungodly, so far away from home.
His mission in Egypt was to honour God despite the free-wheeling lifestyles of a godless culture. So when the big temptation came, how did this young, single man respond?
“Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. And after a time, his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.” But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge…except yourself, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” And when she grabbed him, he “fled and got out of the house.” Genesis 39:6-9,12
Although he wasn’t living under the watchful eye of Jacob, his father, he lived very carefully each day under the watchful eye of the God he loved and wanted to please.
When Joseph realized that people from home weren’t looking over his shoulder, what do you think he did? Did he blow his first month’s paycheck on things that would bring him pleasure during off-hours when he wanted to chill? Do you think Joseph explored the city’s nightlife after dark and slipped anonymously into a club?
Others from Egypt might think nothing of engaging with the nightlife and enjoying its pleasures — but Joseph was living under the scrutiny of God’s all-seeing eyes and enjoying His protection. He was very aware that any wrong he did was, first and foremost, a sin against God.
On what basis have I concluded that it’s the Lord’s will for me to make this change? Is He leading me there, or am I just going? Am I pouring out my heart to God that this decision will give me a fresh start to deepen my relationship with Christ and to serve Him more faithfully? Or has my decision-making process been primarily influenced by non-spiritual factors?
Consider just a few verses:
Romans 12:2 – “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
As you consider your options and choices, are you in a good spiritual frame of mind?
Proverbs 3:5-6 – “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
Upon what or whom am I leaning as I move forward? Does willfulness or submission characterize my thoughts?
Colossians 3:17 – “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
What answer do you get when you ask, “Will Jesus be pleased with the decision I am trying to make?”
Choices and Decisions – Things to Consider
Once again, be careful when reading the Bible not to twist the Scriptures to justify what you want to do. Intentionally, truthfully and prayerfully subject your decision-making process to the scrutiny of the spiritual microscope of the Word of God.
We only have one life to live. May we consciously live each day under the all-seeing eye of God, with a sensitivity to pleasing Christ in every choice we make.