Finding Purpose in the Process: Joseph’s Journey from Promise to Fulfillment

Have you ever felt like God gave you a promise, but the path to fulfillment seems filled with unexpected hardship? The story of Joseph in Genesis provides powerful insights into how God works through both promise and process to shape us for His purposes.

What Does It Mean When God Gives You a Promise?

Joseph’s story begins with a divine promise delivered through dreams. At just 17 years old, God showed Joseph a glimpse of his future – that one day his brothers and even his parents would bow down to him. This was a prophetic preview of God’s calling on Joseph’s life.

But like many of us, Joseph didn’t understand what those dreams would cost him. He didn’t realize that the promise would be accompanied by pain, hardship, rejection, betrayal, slavery, prison, and years of silence before becoming reality.

God gives us promises too – eternal life, victory over sin, power of the Holy Spirit, and a place in His kingdom. These promises are amazing, but what we sometimes miss is that they’re delivered through a painful process called sanctification.

Why Does God Allow Suffering in the Process?

The truth is, God is far more interested in making you holy than making you comfortable.

Joseph went from being a favored son to a forsaken slave in a matter of hours. His brothers plotted to kill him, threw him in a pit, and eventually sold him into slavery for 20 pieces of silver. This was the beginning of Joseph’s process – a journey that would include:

• Rejection by his own family
• Being stripped of his identity
• Slavery in a foreign land
• False accusations
• Imprisonment
• Being forgotten

Psalm 105:17-19 reveals something profound about this time: “Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them—Joseph, who was sold as a slave. They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar. Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the Lord tested Joseph’s character.”

Notice that God wasn’t punishing Joseph – He was testing him. The process wasn’t punishment; it was preparation.

How Do We Hold Onto Faith During Difficult Times?

When the promise feels like a distant memory and the process is all you can see, what do you do?

John 16:33 provides guidance: “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

There’s tension in this verse – you will suffer, but take heart. Jesus doesn’t offer comfort by changing our circumstances; He offers comfort by speaking truth into them and teaching us to live by faith.

Joseph didn’t go from a robe to a ruler in a week. It took years of silence and injustice. During this time, all he had to hold onto was the promise God had given him and the stories of God’s faithfulness to his ancestors.

Proverbs 24:16 reminds us: “The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again.” What makes you godly isn’t that you never fall or never doubt – it’s that when you fall, you reach up and cling to God, allowing Him to lift you back up.

What If Your Struggle Is Actually God’s Activity?

What if the struggle you’re in isn’t a sign of God’s absence but of His activity in your life? What if God is working that promise deep into your soul so that when He fulfills it, you’ll be prepared to carry it with strength and humility?

The process doesn’t cancel the promise – it prepares you for it. It strips away what can’t stay, humbles you, softens you, and deepens your dependence on God. When you come through it, you won’t just have a promise; you’ll be the kind of person who can handle the promise.

By the time Joseph stood in Pharaoh’s palace, he was humble, wise, and able to forgive the very brothers who had betrayed him. That’s what God can do through the process.

Life Application

If you’re in a difficult season right now, here are some practical steps to take:

1. Remember what God has promised you. Go back to something you know He said to you – a calling, a verse, a burden, or a word that someone spoke over your life that you knew was from God.

2. Hold onto that promise. Write it down. Speak it again. Preach it to yourself daily, even hourly if needed.

3. Trust God through the process. Ask Him for strength to endure. Remember that you cannot microwave maturity – it takes time.

4. Don’t waste your refining season. Like Joseph, continue to serve God faithfully even in your pit or prison.

5. Get back up if you’ve fallen. If you’ve become bitter or walked away from God, don’t stay down. A godly person gets back up again.

Questions to Reflect On:

• What promise has God given you that seems far from your current reality?
• How might God be using your current struggles to prepare you for that promise?
• Are you resisting the process or surrendering to it?
• What would it look like to trust God’s timeline rather than pushing for your own?
• How can you serve God faithfully even while waiting for His promises to be fulfilled?

Remember: The process doesn’t mean the promise is gone. The pit doesn’t mean the dream has died. God is working in your life, shaping you into someone who will be ready when the promise is fulfilled.