GOD’S MAKING OF A GREAT LEADER

It’s time for a new series of posts on this blog. We’ve covered the Christmas and Easter events in a fictionalizing manner while devotionalizing them, too. We then went through the Bible and looked at the widows and orphans God showcased in His story of mankind. After that we found the teenagers, then senior citizens, in the Bible.

As we followed the teens I spent an inordinate amount of time on the young life of David. I was intrigued by how God prepared him to be the greatest king Israel ever had. There was a stark contrast between him and his predecessor Saul, who had no training for that important position.

I came up with over a dozen steps God used in his life to condition him for leadership. I could have continued but I felt compelled to move on since we’d gone well past his teenage years. We’ll come back to some of the steps involved in his leadership building process.

I plan on spending the next several weeks observing the life of the other great leader in Israel’s history. Many of you are thinking about Moses right now. No, this man influenced Moses in ways most of us can’t even comprehend.

This man was so prominent in God’s story his dad made sure he received a double inheritance when the promised land was doled out by God through Joshua.

The man I’m thinking about was so unimportant to those around him they rumored him to be dead. Yet, he proved to be their savior during their life.

I’ll stop the riddle to tell you we’re going to look at the life of Joseph and how God prepared him to be the second-in-command in the most powerful nation of the world at that time, Egypt.

Great leaders aren’t born, they’re made. God brings influences into their life that set them apart from the ordinary people of the world. The process isn’t easy or simple, but it is effective.

Times of great pain and isolation are the tools God uses to form a great man.

Joseph experienced both in his young life. His actions would save many lives during his life. His echo is still heard today in our lives.

Many Bible scholars consider Joseph to be an Old Testament “prototype” of Jesus. The boy had no clue he was destined for such accolades. He simply lived his life one step at a time like we all do.

I’m looking forward with excitement as I come to know this man in better detail over the next several weeks. The process I use to write these posts is quite intense and impactful.

I leave my Bible open on the diningroom table during the week because I re-read the same passage as I eat breakfast each day. By doing that I ask questions as things surface in my mind. By the time I write the scene I’ve been reading I “know” these people so much better than I ever did before.

This first became evident as I read the Christmas story that way a few years ago. The person I grew to know the best was the other Joseph in the Bible, the husband of Mary the mother of Jesus. I “saw” ways he had to step up during their journey of parenting the Messiah. I didn’t think the Bible had much to say about the man until I read it that way. He was a man’s man in my humble opinion.

Nobody gets to choose their parents, nor when they’re born. Their station in life begins at birth. Joseph’s family lived nomadic while he was with them. Both parents were schemers. We’ll see God step in to keep Joseph’s focus on Him.

Dreams come in many forms. Joseph’s were real in more ways than one.

The guiding hand of a dedicated father is crucial in building the proper character in a boy. Israel did his best with his favorite son.

Sibling rivalry was as rampant in his day as it is in ours. God was able to use that, too.

The school of hard knocks is God’s best classroom. Joseph was knocked around more than his fair share.

Some people’s God-given gifts aren’t known until they’re called upon to use them. Joseph learned that lesson well.

Waiting is never fun, but necessary in God’s economy. Joseph spent many months in suspense.

What do you do when someone lets you down? Joseph crossed that bridge more than once.

We’ll see God working behind the scenes in these situations and more in the coming months. Perhaps you’ll see parallels in your life and begin to wonder if God has great plans for you.

I hope that possibility opens up because God isn’t finished building great leaders.

I’ll see you later.   Wade

By wadewebster

I'm a truck driver turned writer. My writing drives people to Jesus. I love sunsets/sunrises, dark chocolate, coffee, cats and dogs (as long as their owners pick up after them) and solitude. My relationship with God through Jesus Christ is most important to me, not a religion. This writing gig is all God's idea. I only wish to bring more attention to Jesus with it.

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