PART ONE
Everybody is born with an indwelling dream or vision – we all want to achieve something or be someone. Dreams and visions are God’s strategy for embedding a specific portion of his eternal plans and purposes into the heart of man so that the recipient of that specific dream or vision becomes the vehicle for fulfilling that dream.
Dreams and visions are the guiding light of a man’s life – they give meaning to life. Have you ever seen a person who lacks vision? Confusion and lack of focus surround their lives. Indeed, one of the most undesirable and disheartening experiences in life is to live with an unfulfilled dream.
The lingering question to which this generation must find an answer is what causes people to abort their dreams and visions and how can we prevent this from happening?. The answer to this question and the strategy for preventing an abortion of dreams and visions lies in the individual’s ability to access the wisdom of God. Scripture clearly states people perish because they lack knowledge. ( Hos 4:6 ). It is not the bodies of the people that perish, it is their dreams and visions that perish and eventually lead to a disintegration of the society. ( Prov 29:18)
Joseph had a dream, yet he lacked the wisdom to actualize that dream. His inability to handle his dreams with wisdom and discernment almost got him killed. Beloved, it is not enough to have a dream or vision. What matters is the wisdom to nurture those dreams until the season for due manifestation.
Indeed, Joseph represents a generation blessed with destiny changing dreams and visions whose dreams and visions stand the risk of being aborted. Just as Joseph’s dream was rescued and preserved by God until the time for manifestation, God will rescue the dreams and visions of this generation by the operation of divine wisdom- all we to do is ask for wisdom ( Prov 16:16, Prov 4:6-7 ).
Joseph had an incredible life from which we can glean some nuggets of divine wisdom on how we can stop aborting our dreams and visions.
1. Get a clear understanding of your dream or vision – is it possible to safely drive a car without learning how to drive? I guess not. The same rule applies to our dreams and visions – they come with their specific operation manual. We cannot use them until we are fully acquainted with the manual. It is wise to seek clarity about a dream or vision before you act on it.
Many people kill their dreams because they do not pray for clarity or a deeper understanding of that dream or vision. Sometimes we inadvertently kill the dreams and visions of people around us because we don’t discern the true meaning of their dreams or why they are in our lives.
Joseph did not understand his dream. His father and his brothers did not understand the dream. They all saw Joseph as the focal point of the dream. But the focal point of the dream was not Joseph, but the fulfilment of God’s plan to preserve the nation of Israel.
Perhaps the reaction of Joseph’s family would have been different if they had discerned the true meaning of the dream. Can you imagine that Joseph’s brothers almost killed their saviour!!!!!. What would have been the faith of the nation of Israel if Joseph had died in that pit?
When Joseph told his father about the dream, His father observed the dream. ( Gen 37:11). The word observe is from the Hebrew word *Shamar* which mean to guard or protect. We must follow the example of Jacob, we must protect our dreams and visions by gaining divine clarity
Take time out to pray for clarity concerning your dreams and visions. Don’t pray once, pray twice, three times. Pray until you hear from the throne room of heaven, destines depend on it.
2. How you share your dream matter- All dreams have a deeper meaning embedded in God’s eternal purposes. Our dreams and visions are for the fulfilment of God’s agenda and we must share it from that point of view. When we share our dreams from our point of view rather than the point of view of God’s plan, we create confusion.
Joseph placed himself and not God’s plan at the centre of the dream when he shared his dream with his family. How Joseph shared his dream stirred up envy in the heart of his brothers and a rebuke from his father.
Beloved, allow the Holy Spirit to show how to share the dream and with whom you must share it. Allow the Holy Spirit to show you the proper timing. Remember how you share your dream matters.
3. Maintain healthy relationships- Joseph could not fulfil his dreams without the involvement of his family. The preservation of family was the reason for the dream.
We must understand that the dreams and visions we carry in our spirit are never about us, it is about the people around us and the generations to come.
We are called to be a blessing to our generation. But how can we manifest this blessing when our actions create so much hostility between us and the recipients of our blessings ?. Joseph had the habit of reporting the misdeeds of his brothers to their father (). This likely caused a lot of friction between the father and his sons.
This may have been the reason why his brothers hated him. But someone why might ask, was it wrong for Joseph to report the misconduct of his brothers? Should Joseph be hated for doing what was right?. To such people, I would humbly direct them to learn wisdom from the interaction between Nathan and David when Nathan confronted David about his affair with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband ( 2 Sam 12). Matt 18:15-17 also gives us the strategy for dealing with offences.
Every time I read about Joseph, am not surprised that God carried him into Egypt. How could he possibly carry out the responsibility of preserving his family in such an atmosphere of hostility? His leadership would be misunderstood and rejected in such an atmosphere. The people who were supposed to be blessed by his vision would kill it. So God had to give a time out by causing a separation. Am sure that separation gave Joseph’s brothers the time to work on their relationship with their father which had possibly been damaged and also reflects on their relationship with Joseph. Joseph also learnt how to serve and care for other people besides himself.
Regardless of the shortcomings of his brothers, they were destined to be the foundation upon which the nation of Israel would be built. Joseph needed to have a good relationship with them if God’s agenda was to succeed.
We must learn to cultivate healthy relationships with people who are recipients of our visions and dreams. We cannot fulfil God’s agenda without men. A man of God once said that we live in a world dominated by men, even God will not bless or prosper us without the involvement of men.
