You know that part in the story of Joseph where he faces his brothers for the first time since they sold him into slavery years before? Can you imagine what it would feel like to be in his position? Imagine your siblings who wronged you years before now bowing before you for a request. Imagine what emotions would be going through your head, circling in a never-ending kaleidoscope of uncertainty and emotion.
I will always hold Joseph to a high regard for reacting the way he did. I recently came face to face with someone that wronged me in the past. I remember having those initial feelings of hurt and pain, and as time passed by I sometimes imagined what I would say, what I would do or how I would react when I saw that person again. I remember asking God to grant me peace about it, and to a degree I believed I had it. But it’s funny because as much as I thought I was over it, it didn’t really hit me just what the peace of the Lord truly means until I actually saw that person again. I imagined all the things I would say and how I would react, but when God suppresses all that into a reaction of peace and humbleness, you get this overwhelming comfort that God has everything under control. All of a sudden what I thought would happen under my terms didn’t happen at all, because I let God handle my reactions.
I could say this is how Joseph felt. He could have sought out revenge for what his brothers did to him, but what changed his heart at that moment and the result of years of God’s work in his life was one thing: love. The same thing that started this whole thing called life in the first place. God’s genuine love can tame the fiercest of tongues and deadliest of thoughts. It came with the highest price, and can never be made void.
Next time you run across this situation, make sure love runs the show to turn over a new leaf. You’ll be surprised just how much you’ll grow in that very moment.
