YOU Podcast

Life is full of ups and downs. A basketball star shoots a game-winning three-pointer, and his name is all over the media. The following week, however, an injury brings his career to a shocking end. He goes from hero to zero. The opposite can also happen. A teenage girl living in poverty creates a YouTube® video, and it goes viral. Within days, she’s offered multiple opportunities to sing. Her sudden success inspires young musicians everywhere.

Sudden reversals can flip the script for all of us, creating a test of our faith and character. For many of us, the arrival of the pandemic in 2020 caused just such a sudden reversal.

His many years of suffering were finally repaid with a huge personal reward.”

In today’s study, we’ll see Joseph travel from the prison to the palace in a single day. His many years of suffering were finally repaid with a huge personal reward. Notice the way Joseph kept his eyes on God through the good times and the bad. While success can cause some to grow self-sufficient and self-absorbed, Joseph modeled for us what it means to remain faithful no matter how high or low life takes us.

In Rocky Balboa (2006), Rocky said, “It ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward.” While Joseph never had the chance to see a Rocky film, there’s a good chance he would have agreed with and felt that line. In today’s session, we will see how Joseph chose to press on, even through continued disappointment.

In Rocky Balboa (2006), Rocky said, “It ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward.”

Have you walked through a season when you couldn’t seem to catch a break? Did you ever wonder if good days would be a reality for you? Maybe you lost a job around the same time a loved one died during a global pandemic. Or you went through a painful divorce just as you received devastating news from the doctor. Life can throw many hard punches at us. We may even be tempted to let our hope in God fade.

As you read this part of Joseph’s story, be encouraged that the Lord will always see His children through. As Jesus said: “You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world” (John 16:33).

We see enticing objects, and we feel the urge to respond. A second helping of chocolate cake. An ad for an item we don’t need and can’t afford. A “click here to see more” online. Temptation lies around every corner.

We often resist temptation as long as someone is looking over our shoulder and says, “Don’t eat that” or “You really don’t need that.” Someone is watching over our shoulder at all times: God!

In today’s study, Joseph modeled what it means to live with that truth in mind: God is watching our every move. Joseph’s aim was to keep himself clean in the midst of a dirty culture. That is our challenge as well.

Many of us are tempted to love money; pursue a relationship that could destroy a marriage; envy a co-worker who is experiencing great success; seek the “likes” of other people more than the approval of God.

You may not be tempted in the same way Joseph was, but you will face temptation. We all do. Many of us are tempted to love money; pursue a relationship that could destroy a marriage; envy a co-worker who is experiencing great success; seek the “likes” of other people more than the approval of God. Joseph’s approach to temptation can help all of us.

Let’s be real. Life in this post-Christian world in which we live, but are not of, is filled with disappointments. Things don’t always turn out the way we think they will or should. In the Old Testament, Joseph was one of those rare people who learned the art of making the best of his circumstances, good or bad, and of refusing the temptation to be bitter. No matter what happened to him, he kept his eyes on the Lord and on the future which God revealed He had already planned.

No matter what happened to him, he kept his eyes on the Lord and on the future which God revealed He had already planned.

Trust is a priceless treasure, and it really hits hard when trust is deceived. Have you ever had a close friend turn on you? A brother or sister file a lawsuit against you? A parent disown you? The pain of betrayal can be soul crushing.

Kevin was a church planter. At age 25, he felt called to start a new church. He gathered a launch team and hosted meetings to determine interest. Knowing he wasn’t strong in organizational skills, Kevin wisely surrounded himself with a solid team of strategists. The church took off like a rocket.

But then the unthinkable happened. Behind the scenes, Kevin’s launch team he put in place held a series of secret meetings. They chose to search for a fresh leader with stronger administrative skills, and they fired Kevin from the church he was led to start.

Maybe you have a story like Kevin’s. Betrayal can be devastating and bitterness can consume us. We don’t have to face betrayal alone. God still works as we’ll see in the life of Joseph.

It was April 1963 in Birmingham, Alabama—a city some considered to be the most segregated city in the United States, and known for brutal violence toward African-Americans. Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and others worked for years with the local government to address issues of injustice to no avail. And so, after months of planning and strategizing, they began their nonviolent protests—much to the frustration of white pastors in the area who criticized Dr. King and accused him of acting in a way that was “unwise and untimely.”

Dr. King responded with his profound “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.” He boldly challenged the passivity, indifference, and self-preservation of the church leaders. He wisely reminded them that no one lives in a bubble: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”King, Martin L. Letter from the Birmingham Jail. San Francisco: Harper San Francisco, 1994.

The issues of passivity, indifference, and self preservation were the central topics the prophet Obadiah addressed in his message to the nation of Edom. Obadiah’s message is painful, but it has incredible application for us today.

Long before everyone had a camera on their phone, we had to buy film then pay someone to develop that film. The man who brought cameras into every household was George Eastman. The New York Times said of him, “He should be the most thanked man in the world,” not because of his camera and film, but because of his business practices.

Eastman reduced the work hours of his employees. His company had a medicaldepartment and a medical disability fund. He established a retirement plan and life insurance for his employees. He instituted a profit-sharing plan for employees. He hired women and the disabled.

Many companies offer benefits today, but when Eastman did it, it had never been done before. He cared for his employees.

George Eastman was a pioneer in caring for employees, but it pales in comparison to the care of Jesus. As our loving Shepherd, Jesus loves, leads, and cares for us.

George Eastman’s attitude toward others is commendable, but it pales in comparison to the care of Jesus. As our loving Shepherd, Jesus loves, leads, and cares for us.

One of my favorite parts of Christmas is all the lights. Lights on the tree. Lights on the house. Christmas lights throughout the city. My family loves checking out lights in parks and neighborhoods all over our city. Something about lights adds to the celebration of the Christmas season.

But then January arrives, and the lights come down. In my part of the country, that leaves us with the cold, dreary climate of winter. It may be a new year, but we drift back to our old ways and habits. We are reminded that darkness defines the world in which we live.

To whatever you may be anticipating in 2022, add this: let the love of God and the light of Christ shine in your life.

We may have taken down all the Christmas lights, but the light of Christ is not gone. Christ came into the world to be the light we need. Light shines brightest in the darkness, and Christ shines brilliantly into our lives, revealing God’s glory and love for us. To whatever you may be anticipating in 2022, add this: let the love of God and the light of Christ shine in your life. And may that light be what others seeso they will want to shine too.

Albert Einstein did not pass his college entrance exam the first time he took it. When he graduated he did not easily find work because he did not want to follow the status quo. It must’ve been a surprise when he earned a Nobel prize in physics.

Abraham Lincoln was another man most people didn’t expect to succeed. After all, he failed in several business ventures, and during his service in the military, Lincoln went from being a captain to a private!

The work of Jesus far exceeded anything people were expecting from the Messiah; although they had expected a warrior, Jesus came to do far more than they could’ve imagined.

The work of Jesus far exceeded anything people were expecting from the Messiah; although they had expected a warrior, Jesus came to do far more than they could’ve imagined. Those who watched Jesus grow up like any other Jewish child and become a carpenter were likely surprised by His work as an itinerant rabbi. Even to those who knew the angelic announcement of His arrival, His ministry and work on our behalf far exceeded anything they expected. Jesus became King of kings and Lord of lords— titles He holds now and forever.

Life is filled with decisions that can impact the rest of our lives, such as a job change or a move to another city. After serving one church for many years, my family and I answered God’s call on our lives to plant a church in another city. We struggled leaving a place where God had blessed our lives with an incredible church family, friends, ministry, and life. Leaving all this was hard.

Even as we answered God’s call, a pastor friend reached out to me. The Lord had called him years before to leave his hometown to plant a church. He told me how he had battled with the decision to move, but then he also shared an amazing perspective. God called his entire family, not just him. Years later, all his kids know Jesus and are now serving Jesus in that city. I, too, can now say I have also seen my kids come to faith in Christ in our new city.

Life is filled with decisions that can impact the rest of our lives, such as a job change or a move to another city. Jesus made a move too. He moved from heaven to earth, coming to us as a baby. His decision impacts all of us—for eternity!

Jesus made a move too. He moved from heaven to earth, coming to us as a baby. His decision impacts all of us—for eternity!

Have you ever tried to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night with no light on? A couple of mornings each week, I have to get up earlier than usual for a meeting. In the winter, that means getting up before the sun does. My wife, on the other hand, does not need to get up as early as I do. Being the good husband that I am, I don’t turn on a light, and I try to be quiet and careful not to wake her.

One morning as I tried to leave the dark bedroom for my early morning meeting, my big toe collided with the edge of our big dresser— hard. Has this ever happened to you? By some miracle, I was able to cry quietly with tears in my eyes and successfully limp out of the room without waking my wife. I sure could have useda light in that dark room.

The light of Christ will always break through our sin-filled world. Jesus is the light that Isaiah promised us centuries before His birth.

Even more importantly, we need a light in the dark culture in which we live. Thankfully, we have that in Jesus. We should be encouraged. The light of Christ will always break through our sin-filled world. Jesus is the light that Isaiah promised us centuries before His birth.