Turning Defeat into Success
And unto Joseph were born two sons . . . And the name of the second called he Ephraim: For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction. -Genesis 41:50, 52
Yesterday I discussed Joseph’s firstborn son, Manasseh, and how he symbolized an erasing of all of Joseph’s painful memories. But today, I want to talk about the next step in Joseph’s progression: his second son, Ephraim.
After all of the heartache and turmoil that Joseph had been through in His life, he was simply trying to break even and be released from prison. Little did he know that God had an amazing plan for him: and it can be summarized in two simple words—and they happen to be the names of Joseph’s two sons—Manasseh and Ephraim.
God’s pattern and plan
First, God gave Joseph victory over his past. He brought a blessing upon his life that eclipsed all the pain that he had ever been through. I like to think of this as breaking even. God had undone all of the hurts that were inflicted upon Joseph, and made his life worth living. This was summarized in his first son, Manasseh, which means, forgetfulness.
But next, God caused Joseph to not only break even, but to flourish and excel. And, this is truly where God wants to bring each believer on their walk with Him. He wants to turn our past defeats into victories. For Joseph named his second son Ephraim, which means, fruitfulness.
- Manasseh: forgetting the past
- Ephraim: becoming fruitful and abundant
Walking in God’s will
The key to arriving at this place of blessing is walking in the will of God. Some ways to discover His will are through reading His word, seeking His face in prayer, and obeying His commands in faith. When we walk in His will, He will lead us to His blessing.
The only problem is, when we look at His path, we think that it couldn’t possibly lead to the blessing that God has in store for us, and so we try to reach God’s destination in our own way. We quit God’s path, (but maybe not God’s goals), and try to go about things in our own way. This is a serious folly! It must be His ways, in His timing, for His blessing: we are only His servants.
Take the life of Joseph as an example: God promised him in a dream that he would be promoted to great honor, and that his parents and brothers would one day bow down before him. And yet, the path that God used to bring him to this blessing was completely counter-intuitive to what you might expect to be the path to success: in order for Joseph to become a ruler, he first had to become a slave. In order for him to become a free man, he first had to become a prisoner. I don’t think that Joseph fully understood what was happening, or how God would fulfill His promises to him.
But the important part was that Joseph didn’t try and take matters into his own hands. He could’ve complained, or rebelled, or attempted to escape: but that wasn’t the will of God. And in the midst of his pain, Joseph still trusted God, and in his confusion he looked unto and waited for his saving Lord to deliver him.
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. -Proverbs 3:5-7
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