“And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.” Genesis 45:5

As sad as I am to admit it, I am seeing the effects of fall coming in strong. I will miss the summer months and the joy it brings, but there is something special about fall. You are able to witness the beautiful colours in the changing of seasons. As beautiful as it is, I find it disheartening to see the colours fade and everything look dead and dirty.

As much as I find it difficult, I am finding this season comforting in some ways to my faith. Seeing past hard times is hard for us, but when we recognize that this is a specific season in our lives it can put us back into perspective. This hard season of life that is happening right now is here, but won’t stay. Like fall, perhaps it is needed to clear the debris away and make room for new life, make way for growth.

If we look at the life of Joseph in Genesis, we can see how his life turned out. His life was a struggle for the vast majority of it. From being sold to slavery, wrongly convicted of rape, and imprisoned. His life had many ups and downs, but for the most part his whole life was a struggle until the end. Yet at the end of his life he tells his brothers, those that began all of his trials, to not be upset, because even though you meant it for bad, God has used it for God and through me He is able to save so many lives. What hindsight he had in order to recognize that the troubles and trials led him to exactly where and who God wanted him to be.

I don’t doubt that Joseph struggled with feeling forgotten, or neglected by God, but he trusted in Him and still used his gifts to glorify God. We live for so much more than time here on earth, these troubles that we face are meant to make way for growth and new life, either in our lives or in the lives of others. We trust in the faithfulness of God that he does have a plan, and we are able to be a part of that plan, even if that involves the troubles, because God can use those difficulties, and he can make way for a new season where great work can be done.

Prayer: Thank you Lord that you are everlasting, and you see so much more than we do. We pray that you can use us, even if that means we face trials. Help us to be servants of you and rely on your unchanging faithfulness. When we face hard times, remind us that you can use this to bring new growth and cleanse us of the things we need cleaning from.

-Austin Christianson

Shepherding and Worship Pastor