“But while Joseph was there in the prison, the LORD was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did” (Genesis 39:20-23).

• The LORD was with him…
• The LORD showed him kindness and granted him favor…
• The LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did…

That’s exactly what we would want. Right? What a life. The presence of the LORD. The kindness and favor of the LORD. The LORD giving us success in whatever we do.

That’s what God’s blessing looks like. That’s exactly the way we would draw this up.

Right?

But look at where all this is taking place.

“But while Joseph was in prison…” Not only was Joseph in prison, he was wrongly put in prison. He was framed. He did nothing wrong. Yet, he was still in prison. And he would still be in prison for years before he would be set free.

How does being wrong imprisoned for years and God’s blessing work out? How is that blessing?

Joseph’s time would come. But there were still lessons for Joseph to learn while in prison, still some chiseling of honing of character. Eventually Joseph would be set free and become the second in command only to the Pharaoh in the land of Egypt. But not yet.

The truth is, even in the most horrendous situations we can still be living in God’s blessing.

You find yourself going through a difficult time, remember Joseph. God’s still blessing you with his kindness and favor. You are not alone. You are right where God wants you to be. God is shaping and forming you for a great work.

The main question that we ought to be asking when going through a difficult time is not, “Why is this happening to me?” but “How can I glorify God in this?”

God is always with you. God’s favor and kindness is always with you. Open your eyes to see God in the place you find yourself. As you seek his glory, you will discover God’s favor and grace.

“Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33).

Everyone wants to be successful. Everyone wants to be healthy. Every Christian wants to grow and mature in their faith.

That’s fantastic! It’s good that this is what everyone desires. Imagine a world where everyone lived into these wants and made them realities.

If everyone wants these things, why are so few actually succeeding? What are the biggest factors that differentiates those who succeed and the rest of us? Two things: Priorities and Discipline.

Seek first.

First, has to do with priorities. Those who succeed choose what is best over what they want now.

Seek first. Pursue what is best with every ounce of your being. There will be plenty of times when you won’t want to be disciplined, to work out, to study, to practice. There will be plenty of times when you will want to cheat on your diet, your character, your promises.

Seek first. Choose what is best over what you want now.

Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. The second quality of those who succeed is discipline. Successful people do consistently what others do occasionally. This has to do with discipline. Now only do they know what is best, but they have the discipline to do consistently what others do occasionally. Key is consistency. Key is discipline.

Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. And when we do, all these things will be given to us as well.

1. Choose what is best over what you want now – priority
2. Do consistently what others do occasionally – discipline

“There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes. a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community” (Proverbs 6:16-19).

The LORD hates.

We don’t see that often. When we think of God we think of love. After all, God is a God of love. But because God is a God of love, God’s love must also hate. The reason for this is because God doesn’t love for the sake of love. God loves us. We are the object of God’s love. Therefore, God hates that which harms us.

What are the things God hates?

• A haughty eye
• A lying tongue
• Hands that shed innocent blood
• A heart that devises wicked schemes
• Feet that are quick to rush into evil
• A false witness who pours out lies
• A person who stirs up conflict

Notice that each of these things destroys community. These things make community impossible. Because God loves us, God hates that which destroys God’s community.

God’s community is precious to him because we are precious to him. God is most pleased when we live in harmony and unity.

Pursue love. Pursue unity. Pursue harmony.

That’s what honors the God who loves his people.