JOSEPH: FRUITFUL TO FORGET

Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh was the firstborn. Genesis 48:14

REFERENCE
Genesis 41:50-52 & 48:8-19

Manasseh and Ephraim were Joseph’s sons born to him in the land of his affliction – Egypt; so he named them according to his experiences. He named his first, son ‘Manasseh’ which is interpreted to mean, ‘God has made me forget all my toil’ and the second he named, ‘Ephraim’ – ‘God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.’ But when Joseph brought his sons to be blessed by his father, his father prophetically reversed the order of their birth. He crossed his hands and blessed them, placed his right hand on Ephraim’s head, thus making Ephraim the firstborn.

By his actions, Jacob placed fruitfulness before forgetfulness, because no matter what you go through in life, if your story doesn’t change, you will always remember your pain and may be bitter. If Joseph hadn’t come to a point in his life experience, where he moved from rejection, betrayal and abandonment, to the ‘throne of Egypt’, it would have been difficult for him to forget all that he went through in Egypt. If he was still in the pit of despair, every day would have been to him, a reminder of his desolation. So, there must be fruitfulness for there to be forgetfulness, not the other way round.

When you are fruitful in your career you will forget all the years of joblessness and the pain that came with it. Fruitfulness in your finances will make you forget the years you struggled to survive, living from hand to mouth. It will cause you to forget the years you trekked long distances or hopped from one rickety taxi to another because you couldn’t afford to buy a car. It will even make you forget the years of squatting in people’s houses or hiding from your landlord/landlady when you were late with your rent. Fruitfulness will make you forget every year of barrenness in life.

So, don’t focus on the pain of drawbacks and delays in certain areas of your life – relationships, career, finances, health, family, etc. keep your eyes on the promise of God and on your dream. I guarantee you, as we see with Joseph, that God will cause you to forget how bad things are now, by how good He will make them. YOUR FRUITFULNESS IS HERE! Enjoy it, in Jesus name.

SCRIPTURE PHOTO

ADDITIONAL STUDY
Joel 2:19-26 & Luke 1:5-25.

PRAYER
Lord, for every pain I have gone through, I pray You “CAUSE ME TO FORGET BY FRUITFULNESS.” Be my God of Ephraim! Let me prosper in my land of affliction. Whatever I had thought I will not see, because of past failures and experiences, because of lost opportunities, DO THEM AND EXCEED THEM, IN JESUS NAME! GIVE THE STORY OF MY LIFE A HAPPY ENDING!