Genesis 37:5-7 One night Joseph had a dream, and when he told his brothers about it, they hated him more than ever. “Listen to this dream,” he said. “We were out in the field, tying up bundles of grain. Suddenly my bundle stood up, and your bundles all gathered around and bowed low before mine!” (NLT)

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God-given dreams do not always meet with everyone’s approval. Some people absolutely loathe dreamers and their dreams. They are busy tending the sails, not thinking about the New World and all its wonders that lie beyond the endless sea. 

Thank God for dreams. 

Thank God for dreamers. 

Thank God for Willy Wonka, who quotes Arthur O’Shaughnessy’s poem, Ode: “We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams.”

Since I know a person who finds herself frequently uncomfortable with dreams and dreamers, let’s speak to her clan of practical pragmaticians, and agree that, Yes, every dream requires a plan, a procedure, and hard-earned money, preferably residing securely in the bank before beginning any dream-oriented behavior. 

Dreams, like dreamers, require refinement. 

– Joseph was a tattletale (verse 2). 
– Joseph was The Favorite (verses 3 and 4). 
– Joseph was an arrogant little snot (verses 5-7). 

Before long, Joseph was thrown into a cistern where he stayed while his brothers decided how to kill him. Then, instead of killing him and putting an end to his dreaming, they sold him. Why not make a profit to help them live the lives of their dreams while simultaneously solving their problem?

Then, well, there is so much more to the story. It should probably be told in stages. Joseph went down, down, down, until his God-given dreams lifted up not only his boat but all other boats as well. His success overflowed into everyone’s lives. He saved the whole world. In other words, his dreams came true. 

How would the world be saved, including his extended family, if Joseph had been killed? What if he had learned his lesson and stopped tattling and started fitting in with his rascally brethren? What if he told his Old Man he didn’t want that stinking sissy jacket? What if he had kept his dreams to himself?

Joseph wasn’t safe if he stayed where he was.
Joseph wasn’t secure as long as his father singled him out as his favorite.
Joseph wasn’t loved by his brothers from other mothers.
Joseph wasn’t wanted by those brothers.
Joseph wasn’t successful as long as he stayed where he was.
Joseph wasn’t good enough to stay where he landed.
Joseph didn’t have a purpose as a betrayed brother, a victim of a liar’s lies, or a trusty in a bottomless prison. 

Then God began the great reversal according to his plan, in his timing, to his glory then and forever. At seventeen, Little Joe heard God whisper in his ear the equivalent of, “Stick with me, Kid, and I’ll make you a star.” Little Joe knew at seventeen and as a grown man who the real star of the show was and is. 

Only God could keep him safe from his brothers, the slave traders, the vengeful husband, the prisoners, and the jealous politicians who suddenly became his inferiors by rank.

Only God could keep him secure at home, on the road, under the ownership of a ranking official, and in dank, dark room filled with people who inhabit nightmares.

Only God could keep him secure in his loving care through his lifetime of demotions before his signature promotion.

Only God could keep him wanted when everyone else wanted to discard him.

Only God could make him successful against the odds of bullying brothers, belligerent slave traders, a bad boss’s wife, and bindings in the dark.

Only God could give him a purpose bigger than all the badness and all the sadness of what appeared to be a wasted life until a moment of God’s perfect timing.

God sees where you are, and in his hands, you are safe, secure, loved, wanted, successful, good enough, and yes, you have a purpose. 

What part of your story are you living now? What’s next? And, do remember, it’s not over until it’s over, and then the best begins.

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I will live the life of God’s dreams for me.

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Our Father, you know my question. You know my fears. You know my needs. I trust you with all of it. You have the answer I seek. You have the remedy I need. You have a purpose for me that is good and getting better. You are in charge here. I belong to you. Amen.