What I've learned from Joseph.

Yes, Joseph "and the coat of many colors" from the Bible.

If you don't know the story, it is found in the latter part of Genesis.

Basically, Joseph's brothers threw him in a pit (thought about killing him) and then decided to sell him into slavery instead. Years later, Joseph is on top of the world and is second in command in Egypt, only below the Pharaoh. When Joseph's brothers come to Egypt for food because of a famine, they do not recognize him. After a while, Joseph revealed who he really was to his brothers. He tells them "You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people. No, don’t be afraid." - Gen. 50:20-21a

A lot of things have happened in my life in the past month. My life and plans have been totally changed from what they were at the very beginning of 2011. For those of you that don't know: My husband and I both lost our jobs, we are selling our home, and we will hopefully be getting an apartment for a couple months until Corey gets his B.A. in Journalism in Dec. 2011 and I will be getting my Associates degree (also Dec.). Then, in December right after all of this happens... we will be moving to Portland, Oregon.

What the enemy meant for harm with us losing our jobs... we have just clung to Jesus and each other all the more. Our trust in Jesus has become so much more solid and deeper. Our love for each other is absolutely flourishing and we are so excited for the future like we never have been before. Life is so unpredictable and so wonderful!

With us losing our jobs, we have seen God step into our lives in such a profound way; He is meeting all of our needs and I will continue to believe that He will meet all of our future needs as well. For several months, even before we lost our jobs, we felt God nudging us towards Portland. We have received confirmation after confirmation that Oregon is where he wants us -- for what reason I have no idea. We will most likely have no jobs when first arriving in Portland unless we can find one while still living in Kentucky. Again... in comes the trust in Jesus and we will be relying on Him for our needs. I know that with Corey's Journalism degree there will be a lot more opportunities for him in the Portland area than there will be here in Kentucky.

So what I've learned from Joseph boils down to this: Don't ever think that Jesus cannot use something for His good and His plans. He always can, regardless of your situation, regardless of if you can see it now or not, He can and He will use your situation to bring Him glory if you allow Him to and be open to His plans for your life. Learn to let go of the steering wheel and let Jesus take you to where He wants because I promise, it will be far greater than any plans you can make for yourself.

"I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for." - Jeremiah 29:11 (MSG)