The Optimist (Abilene, Tex.), Vol. 68, No. 4, Ed. 1, Friday, September 26, 1980 Page: 5 of 27
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- It's possible to reach the top despite a life of downers f
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ByTOMOLBRICHT
ACU Bible Professor
Is it possible to arrive at the top by going
down? Joseph did so perhaps we can also.
Sometimes others have the illusion we are
going down when actually we are going up.
Last summer we crossed the Allegheny
Mountains in central
Pennsylvania. In one
stretch we traveled
through a valley beside a
mountain stream. I asked
Dorothy and Erica our 9-year-old
whether we were
going down or up. They
both said down.
When I assured them I was certain we were
going up they immediately questioned my
sanity. But I knew we were going up even
though it looked down to me also. The reason I
knew we were going up was because we were
pulling a thirty-one-foot travel trailer. The
motor made it very clear that the grade was
up regardless of how it looked.
Those who observed Joseph favorite son of
Jacob obviously thought that because of the
turn of events in his life he was headed down
and would never arrive at the top. But it was a
false illusion. What they failed to realize was
that Joseph trusted God and it only appeared
he was headed downward.
Joseph's problems started when his father
gave him a long robe with sleeves. The robe
made obvious his father's partiality and his
brothers' hated him (Gen. 37:4). Some time
later Joseph had a dream in which his
brothers bowed down to him.
That made them hate him even more and
they conspired'to kill him. But rather than kill
him they sold him to a caravan of Ishmaelites.
When these Ishmaelites reached Egypt they
sold Joseph to Potiphar an officer of Pharaoh
(Gen. 37:36).
We do not know exactly how Joseph took this
turn of events but he obviously served
Potiphar faithfully and cheerfully. Because
"the Lord was with Joseph" Potiphar's af-
fairs went very well and the officer was
pleased (Gen. 39:2).
Joseph was God's man and where there is a
man or woman of God there the blessings of
God follow.
Soon Joseph found himself even lower in
fact wasting in prison. Potiphar's wife had
developed a yen for this handsome young man
and asked him to lie with her. Joseph was
caught between his master and mistress. Most
people under those circumstances would not
know which way to turn. But Joseph knew
what was right both toward his master and
before God (Gen. 39:9). He refused and the
wife told lies about him.
So he ended up in prison. For some that
means the end of the line. What hope can there
be for one incarcerated? But even there it
went well with Joseph and the prison itself was
blessed. "But the Lord vas with Joseph and
showed him steadfast love and gave him
favor in the sight of the keeper of- the prison"
(Gen.39:21). The care of all the prisoners was
turned over to him.
At long last Joseph came to the attention of
the Pharaoh when he interpreted a dream
about seven years of abundant crops to be
followed by seven years of drought. As a
result Pharaoh placed Joseph in charge of all
the granaries of Egypt and he became the
second most powerful man in the land .
It seems that Joseph arrived at the top by
going down but that is an illusion. Often this is
the manner in which those who trust the Lord
make it. Persons of the world just don't un-
derstand the ways of God. He always seems to
be doing things upside down and backwards.
Later in his life Joseph realized he had been
going up all the time. "As for you you meant
evil against me; but God meant it for good to
bring it about that many people should be kept
alive as they are today" (Gen. 50:20).
So don't worry about appearances. Simply
trust in the Lord and do right by his com-
mands. Your way will be up also even though
to others it may seem down.
Is it possible to arrive at the top by going
down? The life of Joseph the man of God
answers with a resounding yes !
Churches to sponsor meetings
11th and Willis
llth and Willis Church of Christ will host
a Papua New Guinea workshop Friday
6:30 p.m. -9 p.m. and Saturday 8:30 a.m. -A
p m. Joe Cannon missionary from New
Guinea will be keynote speaker.
The workshop is designed to gain sup-
port for the field and coordinate existing
efforts.
5th and Grape
North 5th and Grape Church of Christ
will conduct a gospel meeting beginning
Sunday and lasting through Thursday.
Johnny Ramsey will be the speaker
Services will begin at 7:30 p.m. each
evening.
Woodlawn
Woodlawn Church of Christ 3185 N. 10th
St. is in need of college student volunteers
to assist in their Bible Call telephone
ministry.
Bible Call is a program designed to
teach the gospel to large numbers of
people on a personal basis through the use
of recorded discussions of common
religious problems and questions which
are played over the phone upon request.
Student workers are needed from 8 to 10
p.m. Monday through Friday and
Saturday and Sunday afternoons.
Callers ask for a specific topic and the
tape on that topic is played back over the
telephone.
Those interested in working with Bible
Call can receive further information by
contacting the church at 676-1671 or 673-
6776. '
Minter Lane
Minter Lane Church of Christ is con-
tinuing to show the James Dobson "Focus
on the Family" film series on Sunday
evenings at 6 and 8.
Sunday the film "Preparing for
Adolescence: Origin of Self-doubt" will be
shown. The series will continue with
"Preparing for Adolescence: Peer
Pressure and Sexuality" on Oct. 5 "What
Wives Wish Their Husbands Knew About
Women the Lonely Housewife" on Oct.
12 and "What Wives Wish Their Husbands
Knew About Women Money Sex and
Children" on Oct. 19.
Hillcrest
The "Victory in Jesus" Rally will begin
Friday at 7 p.m. in Moody Coliseum and
will continue through Saturday. Sponsored
by the Hillcrest Church of Christ with
other Abilene congregations the event will
feature five speakers.
Doug Kostowski Miami Fla will speak
on "Claiming the Victory" on Friday at 7
p.m. Kostowski is a graduate of Freed-
Hardeman College and now attends
Harding Graduate School of Religion.
Jack Evans president of Southwest
Christian College in Terrell will present
"A Faith Without Fear"on Friday at 8:15
p.m.
Saturday at 9:30 a.m. Kostowski again
will address the assembly on "Being on
Track with Jesus "
Charles Hodge minister at Rosemont
Church in Fort Worth will speak on "Kept
by the Power of God." A staff writer for
20th Century Christian and Restoration
Quarterly Hodge has written six books.
At 1:30 p.m. Jack Paul of Tyler will
speak on "Victory Through Faith Love
and Prayer." Paul is a businessman and
has preached in Tyler Sherman Dallas
and Overland Park Kan.
Glenn Owen an elder at Highland
Church of Christ will speak at 3 p.m. on
"A Fire in My Bones." He is an ACU
graduate and was a missionary in Brazil.
The Burning
Issues of Today:
Christians In Politics
Who are they? .What are their
goals? Are they destroying the
"Wall of Separation?"
4 See these and other questions answered.
God Caesar
and
Priority Living
Friday Sept. 26 ;;
6:30-7 p.m.
KTAB-TV Channel 32 (10 Cable)
Panelists will be:
Dr. Virginia Armstrong Dept. of Political Science Hardin Simmons
Univ. Abilene Tx.
Frank Cha ez News Dept. KTAB-TV Abilene TX.
Dr. William Marshner Department of Theology Christendom College
Front Royal VA.
Dr. I'alge Patterson President Criswell Institute for Biblical Studies
Dallas TX.
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The Optimist (Abilene, Tex.), Vol. 68, No. 4, Ed. 1, Friday, September 26, 1980, newspaper, September 26, 1980; Abilene, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth92002/m1/5/?rotate=270: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Abilene Christian University Library.