Genesis 39:2 “And the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.”
What Is Success?
Who do you consider to be successful? Here is a little quiz: Name a successful pro football quarterback. Name a successful horse trainer. Name a successful composer. Name a successful novelist. Name a successful person in technology. Name a successful business CEO. Name a successful slave.
Wait! What? “People don’t become successful by being slaves!” you say. Really? What is success? The answer that question is vital to define because it will determine what you will be willing to sacrifice to be successful. If success is only determined by money, recognition, and power, you will fail in order to achieve it. Failure is succeeding at the wrong thing. Success may define you, but it may be the wrong thing.
The main attribute given to Joseph in the book of Genesis is prosperity. Joseph didn’t prosper when he got to the palace; Joseph prospered from day one. “And the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man . . . the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.” Joseph prospered in Potiphar’s house, in prison, and in the palace. He was forgotten, lied about, and mistreated, but “the LORD was with him.”
Success is a matter of Who you have, not what you have or where you are. Success is having God with you. If you lose God’s presence and power, but you gain everything else, you are a failure. For Joseph, being successful and having God’s presence meant slavery and a dirty prison cell!
Prosperity means doing right, not necessarily doing well. Remember the true definition of success today. So, are you successful?