by Margaret Curran
Recently I started watercolour painting lessons. One day I was outlining some work with Indian ink and accidentally dropped a blob of it right in the middle of the sky. “I’ve made a mistake,” I squealed to my teacher as I began mopping it up and trying to get rid of the stain.
“Never say that,” she replied, “We will turn it into a bird, or a cloud. You can always make some good use of it, and it often turns out better.”
Sometimes our lives are a bit of a blob, or we may even feel we ourselves are a blot on the face of the earth, but the divine Master Painter can turn us and our lives into a thing of beauty.
Centuries ago a devout young Hebrew lad named Joseph was sold as a slave by his jealous brothers, to an important Egyptian man. Joseph served his master so well, he put him in charge of all he possessed. One exception, of course, was his wife, who unfortunately took a fancy to Joseph and tried to persuade him to be her lover. When Joseph refused she lied about him to her husband, and claimed he had sexually assaulted her. His boss put him in prison. Joseph must surely have felt God had let him down badly. He had lived a life of integrity and yet he ended up in prison. Like our exit lane it seemed to be the wrong direction, but it was part of the plan.
In prison Joseph was put in charge again, which shows what a trustworthy man he was. Two other prisoners had dreams which Joseph interpreted correctly. Later one of them was returned to his job at the king’s palace. One day the king had a dream which greatly troubled him, and his servant remembered Joseph and told the king about him. The king sent for Joseph who explained that the dream meant a great famine was coming, and God was warning the king to prepare for it. The king responded by putting him in charge of the whole country. Joseph supervised the preparations for the famine, and it came about that he was also able to save his own family from starvation, even though they lived in another country. Through the descendants of this family God sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, into this world to save us all from spiritual starvation and death. Through all the long years of misunderstanding, rejection and suffering, God was preparing Joseph for a mighty purpose. It was all under His control even though Joseph had no idea how important his role was in God’s great plan for mankind. You can read the full account of Joesph’s amazing life in the Bible, in the book of Genesis, continuing from chapter 37 to the end.
Eventually the Saviour of all mankind was born in Bethlehem in Judea. He lived a perfect life and spent it showing people what God is like, and how He wants us to live. He became so popular that the leaders of his people had the government that ruled their country put Him to death. We know now that this was no mistake either, because He was the Son of God and died in our place so we could be forgiven. Nothing we do can earn God’s forgiveness, but God could accept His perfect Son’s offer to die in our place. Now we can live both sides of death in fellowship with God, even though we still have to experience leaving our bodies down here.
In Romans chapter 8 verse 28, it says: “We know that in everything God works for good with those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.” It goes on to explain that God’s purpose for those who love Him is to be like His Son Jesus Christ.
The blots and mistakes and suffering can all be used to achieve a better result, and fulfil a higher purpose. Joseph’s life was part of the plan to bring the saviour of mankind into the world, and Jesus, of course was the Saviour. But it did not end there. Our lives can still be a part of God’s great plan by accepting Jesus, and living for Him in our day and age. Whether you already know Christ, or are just learning about Him, give Him all the blots and mistakes, and detours of your life, and you will be amazed at what He can and will do with them. Just trust Him.