Interpretations Belong to God

FAITH IN ACTION:
LIVING AS FAITHFUL PEOPLE
God's Protection
Joseph Finds Favor

Genesis 40:1-8

The Message

 ^1-4 As time went on, it happened that the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt crossed their master, the king of Egypt. Pharaoh was furious with his two officials, the head cupbearer and the head baker, and put them in custody under the captain of the guard; it was the same jail where Joseph was held. The captain of the guard assigned Joseph to see to their needs. ^4-7 After they had been in custody for a while, the king's cupbearer and baker, while being held in the jail, both had a dream on the same night, each dream having its own meaning. When Joseph arrived in the morning, he noticed that they were feeling low. So he asked them, the two officials of Pharaoh who had been thrown into jail with him, "What's wrong? Why the long faces?"
 ⁸ They said, "We dreamed dreams and there's no one to interpret them."
   Joseph said, "Don't interpretations come from God? Tell me the dreams."

For Reflection
Are our dreams the stuff of our own making or are they messages from God?  God appeared in dreams many times to people of the old and new testaments.  Does He appear to us today in dreams?

Who, today, interprets dreams from a God-centered perspective?  Google Christian dream interpretation and you will discover that much time and effort has been given to this endeavor.

If we focus on dream interpretation, however, we may miss an important point.  Joseph said interpretations come from God.  It is the fact that God provided a spiritual gift the influence of which the Pharaoh could not avoid.  This was not Joseph's doing but God's.  Want to know what dreams mean?  Ask God.


Pray
thanking God for His constant protection.  Pray that you will respond to God when he calls you to action.  Pray so that you will hear God's will.