Genesis 41:15-16 “I dreamed a dream,” Pharaoh told Joseph. “Nobody can interpret it. But I’ve heard that just by hearing a dream you can interpret it.” Joseph answered, “Not I, but God. God will set Pharaoh’s mind at ease.”

In the Bible, God often speaks through dreams. Here, God even spoke to the pharaoh. God was working toward a long-term plan not only to release Joseph from prison but also to establish him as Egypt’s second-in-command.

Just as my dreams often don’t make sense, the pharaoh’s dreams didn’t make sense to him either. He dreamt of seven skinny cows eating seven fat cows and seven thin ears of corn devouring seven fat ears of corn.

The pharaoh asked his wise men to tell him the story behind the dreams, but they didn’t have the faintest idea. He was quite disappointed and asked around if there wasn’t someone who could help. Then the chief cupbearer remembered Joseph and introduced him to the pharaoh.

And wow, Joseph got it right. God was warning the pharaoh of a severe seven-year famine on the way. They had to fill the country’s food stores in the good years preceding the famine, so they could survive the lean years.

The pharaoh was obviously very pleased with Joseph’s ability to interpret dreams. But then followed the lesson we all need to learn about intimacy with God: intimacy humbles you, because you realise it’s not you.

According to Joseph, intimacy is born by living close to God. It’s in closeness that you hear God’s heart, and here you see God’s bigger plan, not just for you, but also for the people around you.

In this intimacy, you know it’s not you, but God who is at work. That’s why you can’t take the credit. Joseph took no credit, choosing instead to remain behind the curtain on the stage of life.

God wants to make an impact on the people around you. God wants to speak to people through you. But if we don’t want to talk our own nonsense, we, like Joseph, must live close to God, so that we can hear His words and make a difference in other people’s lives.

Prayer
Father, I desire to be so close to You, to live so close to You, that I can hear Your heart and communicate it to the people around me to truly make a difference in their lives …

Questions
Do I seek glory for myself when things work out right?
Do I live close enough to God to hear His heart?
Are my words filled with my own opinions or with God’s wisdom?

Do this now
Pause for five minutes today before making an important decision or giving advice.
Ask for God’s wisdom and read a short passage from the Bible.
When someone asks you something today, answer calmly and wisely rather than hastily.