in the beginning Genesis chapter thirty-seven VII
"He also told the dream to his father, and his father scolded him: 'What kind of a dream is that? Do you think that your mother, your brothers, and I are going to come and bow down to you?'" (Genesis 37:10 GNB).
Remember that Joseph was a young, inexperienced, 17 year old guy at the time that he spoke with his family about his dreams. This youth and inexperience probably had something to do with his decision to speak openly about these dreams, a subject that Joseph should have known would be sure to anger the rest of his family. And unfortunately, what Joseph did was typical of the kind of mistake that anyone is likely to make at that stage of their lives.
There is a very famous commentator who lived in the 1700’s named Matthew Henry who explained the problem like this:
"Joseph dreamed of his preferment, but he did not dream of his imprisonment. Thus many young people, when setting out in the world, think of nothing but prosperity and pleasure, and never dream of trouble."
In other words, Joseph dreamt about the great things that that were coming for him but not necessarily about the hardships and difficulties that would go along with them. You see, it’s great to have big dreams about the places that you’re going to go and the things that you’re going to do in life. But remember that big dreams often bring big challenges- and for Joseph, there would be many difficult times ahead before his dreams became an actual reality.
Don’t lose sight of the fact that there are often a lot of trials, hardships, difficulties, and potential mistakes involved in achieving everything that God has for you. The Bible talks about this balance in the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes when it says...
"It is a wonderful thing to be alive! If a person lives to be very old, let him rejoice in every day of life, but let him also remember that eternity is far longer and that everything down here is futile in comparison.
Young man, it's wonderful to be young! Enjoy every minute of it! Do all you want to; take in everything, but realize that you must account to God for everything you do. So banish grief and pain, but remember that youth, with a whole life before it, can make serious mistakes." (Ecclesiastes 11:7-10 TLB).
Remember that big dreams often bring big challenges- and it pays to be ready for both.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptural references taken from The
Living Bible, © 1971, Tyndale House Publishers Back
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