The God of the Disaster

Let us review the life of Joseph.  My father had some alliterative device to remember the stages of Joseph's life, but unfortunately, I don't remember all the words.  I do remember the basics of the story.  Here is a guy whose own brothers put him into a pit to pretend he was dead.  He was later thrown into prison, despite being blameless.  Yet that was the precise plan God used to grown him and promote him to the point where he made a difference as an authority.

Personally, it is a favorite story of mine, as I am able to see the work of God through the running commentary of scripture to accomplish something that is just humanly impossible.  We hear a story like that and we don't believe someone can make it through all he went through to accomplish all he accomplished.  I guess we like to put finite limitations on things.  Occasionally, however, we get to see the tremendous happen in our lives.

In my own life, there are 2-3 things that I felt were disastrous at the time that I have since been able to apply Genesis 50:20 to.  Needless to say, I would not be where I am, as a church-goer, as a Christian, as a husband, as a father, as a ministry-leader, or one of many other categories, had I not experienced things that, at the time, seemed disastrous.  This is why I am glad that I worship the God of the disaster.

We do not serve a reactionary God who is constantly changing tact to overcome the schemes of His enemies.  We serve a God who uses the painful, the unforeseen, and the disastrous to bring about His plans.  While I do not always know how it will end, I do know the God who controls what happens at the end, and I can place my faith there.  I know some people are experiencing difficult things—people who are struggling to see how God can work in their specific situation.

This week, I had the opportunity to visit the site of such an event that happened last year.  I still am not sure how it will all work together, and sometimes I fret.  What I do know, however, is that I worship the God of the disaster.  I worship the One who controls the disasters.  The one who can take the actions of others that are intended to be exactly contrary to His purposes and use them for their ultimate benefit.  This is why I am excited to worship the God of the disaster!