THE SET UP: Have you ever heard the superstition that bad things happen in threes? It always seems that if something bad happens, two more bad things are going to follow.
I was at a friend’s house the other day when this exact thing played out. Earlier that week, the spring on the garage door busted. Her husband was planning on looking at it that afternoon after he helped his dad with something. As he grabbed the doorknob to leave, the doorknob popped off and fell to the ground. Thankfully, putting a doorknob back on is an easy fix, so we got that taken care of before he left. After about five minutes, her husband walked back in the door, saying, “You know what they say, ‘It happens in threes.’”
Apparently, their car was making an awful thumping noise and jerked whenever he put on the brakes.
We all looked at each other and laughed. What else do you do in those circumstances? Thankfully, the problems were fairly easy fixes – more annoying and time-consuming than anything.
It is hard to find joy when it seems like bad things keep happening, though. The past couple of years facing a global pandemic and racial and political tension has proven that. How do can we choose joy when we can’t get a break from the bad things happening in our world?
There’s a man in the Bible that exemplifies this. You have probably heard of the story of Joseph and his coat, maybe even seen the musical, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat. While I doubt the characters in the biblical account broke out in choreographed numbers, there’s a lot we can learn about finding joy in the hard times from Joseph’s story.
The life of Joseph takes up a large chunk of the book of Genesis. If I tried to retell all of his story, this would turn out to be more of a novella than a devotional, so I am just going to hit on some main snapshots. If you want to read the entire account, you can find it in Genesis 37-50.
Joseph was the favorite child of his parents, Jacob and Rachel. His father gave him a special coat, signifying his favoritism, which led to tension between Joseph and his other brothers. It didn’t help matters that Joseph shared his dreams with his brothers, dreams that he would one day rule over them. One day, the brothers’ animosity and jealousy boiled over, and they threw Joseph in a pit, later selling him to a caravan of slave traders.
The caravan eventually came to Egypt, where Joseph was sold to a man named Potipher. Potipher was one of Pharoh’s ministers. Things start to look better for Joseph. Potipher was impressed by the young Hebrew, so he put Joseph in charge of his estate. Unfortunately, Potiphar’s wife was attracted to Joseph and pursued him, hoping for an intimate relationship. Joseph continually refused her. One day, he was so desperate to get away from her, that he slipped out of the robe she was holding and ran away. The angry woman twisted the story and told Potipher that it was Joseph who was trying to take advantage of her. This landed Joseph in prison.
While in prison, Joseph continued to be a successful, righteous man. The warden even placed Joseph as his right-hand man! Not only was Joseph the model prisoner, but he used his gifts of dream interpretation. A couple of years later, Pharoh had a dream that no one could interpret. Joseph’s gifts were remembered, and he was brought before Pharoh where he correctly interpreted the ruler’s dream. Pharoh made Joseph his viceroy, putting him in charge of preparing the nation for the famine that was predicted in his dream.
Joseph rose from being the hated brother to the second-in-command of Egypt. His wisdom and trust in God allowed him to save countless lives by preparing for a nationwide famine. Eventually, Joseph would be reunited with his family and say his well-known line, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good” (Genesis 50:20).
Throughout all the negative events that happened in his life, Joseph never gave up his faith in God or set aside his values. His faith allowed him to have true joy, to see the good that God was preparing for him, even if it wasn’t happening at the time.
Bad things do happen, but like Joseph, we can find joy in the hard times. This doesn’t mean that we have to ignore the bad times or pretend like we aren’t hurting. Real joy isn’t fake happiness; real joy gives room for real emotions. Real joy allows us to feel the pain and sorrow in the moment, but helps us remember that this world and it’s troubles won’t last forever. It helps us hold on to the hope that we have about what awaits us in eternity.
Things may be unbelievably hard right now. The holiday season often brings up hard memories and pain. Maybe you’re thinking of that spot at the table that’s going to be empty this year for the first time. Maybe all the tension going on in our world has affected your family, and this year won’t feel like a time of celebration, but a time of mourning over the relationships you’ve lost.
I want you to know that it is totally okay if you are mourning during this Christmas season, but I pray that you mourn with hope. Jesus’ birth can remind us of the good God has planned for us and that God does keep His promises. Even when the world is hard and everything seems hopeless, we can find true joy because we know that God is working out something amazing for us.
PASSAGES TO READ: Genesis 50:14-21
REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
Is it possible to feel sad and be hurt yet still find joy? How?
Have you ever experienced a time when you didn’t understand the hardship you were facing, but God worked it out? What was that like?
What emotions would you say describe your feelings about this year’s holiday season? Why did you choose those?
PRAYER IDEA: “Jesus, You have a much grander understanding of our lives that we do. You see beyond the here and now, and know exactly how everything will work out. Thank you for giving me that to trust in. Even when I don’t understand the bad things that are happening in our world, I can trust that You will work everything out for my good and Your glory. Give me Your strength to enter into this holiday season with joy and hope, knowing that Your birth makes it possible to find joy in all things. Amen.”