This Is God's Perfect Timing!
And Pharaoh said to his servants,
“Can we find such as one as this Joseph,
a man in whom is the Spirit of God?”
Genesis 41:38
We know virtually nothing about the life of Christ from His
infancy until public ministry began (exception: Luke 2:41-52).
The same is true of John the Baptist. Even Moses spent forty
years as a shepherd before becoming the Hebrews’ deliverer.
After the apostle Paul was converted to Christ, it was fourteen
years before he was welcomed by leaders of the Jerusalem
church (Galatians 2:1). Preparation for ministry takes time
and patience.
Joseph had the same experience. Prior to being second-
in-command in Egypt, he was a prideful teenager who was
sold into slavery by his brothers. In Egypt, he was thrown in
prison based on a false accusation, where he waited for two
years. But during these times of testing “the Lord was with
Joseph” (Genesis 39:2-3, 21). Finally, God’s favor gave him
an audience with Pharaoh, and his ministry in Egypt began.
Joseph reached maturity on God’s perfect timetable.
If you want to be used by God in ministry, be faithful
where you are. Faithfulness in little things leads to
faithfulness in much (Matthew 25:21, 23).
"God never places any real emphasis on the
present—except as preparation for the future."
Joni Eareckson Tada
