When You Wish Upon A Star!

As Joseph looked about and saw his brother Benjamin, his own mother's son, he asked, "Is this your youngest brother, the one you told me about?" And he said, "God be gracious to you, my son." Deeply moved at the sight of his brother, Joseph hurried out and looked for a place to weep. He went into his private room and wept there. After he had washed his face, he came out and, controlling himself, said, "Serve the food." …and they looked at each other in astonishment. When portions were served to them from Joseph's table, Benjamin's portion was five times as much as anyone else's. So they feasted and drank freely with him. (Genesis 43:29-34)


My daughter’s dream has always been to go to Disneyland. Rebecca fancies fiction and fantasy, so she naturally favors the Mouse. She also cut her teeth on Disney treasures like Pinocchio and Pocahontas, Beauty and the Beast and Lady and the Tramp. Consequently, it was well known in our home that Becca desperately desired to vacation in the Magic Kingdom as her 16th birthday present. Now, when the girl is five, such wishing upon a star holds promise but when you’re fifteen and living in eastern Kentucky with few spare dimes the dream gets dusty. To Becca’s credit, she never stopped envisioning her party with Pluto.

As for Joseph, he had wished upon an entirely different star. He longed to see his blood brother Benjamin and reunite with his father (Hebrew family ties weave tight). Life, however, had packed a cruel punch for this desert dreamer. Buried by his brothers, maligned by his master, imprisoned under false charges and destined to dwell far from home, Joseph’s magic kingdom was littered by injustice, insolence and insult. And now, as he looked deep into his brother Ben’s eyes, the pain of his past was seated all around his supper table. It was a wonderful recipe for revenge upon which many a family has feasted and found regret. Of course, the brothers had no idea who Joseph really was. The bomb was clearly in his court and Joseph deftly decided to diffuse it with a single statement to Benjamin: “God be gracious to you, my son.”

Don’t miss the significance of this single statement. Instead of hate, Joseph pronounced hope. He blessed rather than cursed, anointed rather than avenged, healed rather than hurt. The release of grace drove Joseph to tears. He didn’t weep for all his brothers, as only one “deeply moved” him. He didn’t cry because he couldn’t pull the trigger of revenge. I think Joseph wept because he finally understood God’s plan. In the eyes of Benjamin he saw his past and their future, his pain and their promise, his need for vengeance and their opportunity for victory. Without Joseph, this nomad family had no life. Joseph’s Disney dreams truly had tails. His influence and power in Egypt allowed a bunch of outsiders an inside track that would produce a great nation.

Maybe that’s why Ben got a heaping helping of hash. Grace has a way of healing both the giver and taker. Grace reveals hope. Grace makes all things new. Grace is forgiveness and fortune wrapped in one. It’s not just escaping the fire, its also enjoying the favor. Because of Ben, the other brothers were also blessed. Because of Joseph, a reckless band of ranchers--flat broke and starving--would one day produce a Messiah. Grace changes everything.

It’s the way we feel whenever we reflect on Becca’s 16th birthday. You see, she did go to Disneyland (and we did, too) within mere days of her sweet sixteen, but not on our own nickel. Because of grace, a church financed the whole family to come to southern California. In exchange for fees to train their youth workers, my family feasted for four days on California dreams. We splashed in the surf, dined on fine food and stayed in a private million-dollar villa. Though we couldn’t afford it, we also promised Becca her day at Disneyland (it was a sacrifice we had to make!). But as grace often works, a member of the congregation learned of our dream day and paid for all four tickets to the Magic Kingdom.

But that’s grace. You can’t afford it. You can’t earn it. You can’t steal it. It’s a grand gift. It’s a bounteous blessing. It’s a magic moment. It’s the beauty in the beast; for when you wish upon a star, dreams can come true. So what’s your Disney dream? What star are you hitching your wagon to? What moment of grace do you hunger to enjoy?

If you could ask Benjamin, he’d tell you how a one plate of plenty in famine forever changed his family’s fortune. Or you could just ask Becca. She’s still smiling and humming “it’s a small world after all!”


NOTABLE QUOTABLES ON GRACE:

The greatest expression of God's grace in a person's life is not its demonstration toward others, but its response to God and His cause. (Scott Hafemann)

The higher a man is in grace. The lower he will be in his own esteem. (C.H. Spurgeon)

Grace is not simply leniency when we have sinned. Grace is the enabling gift of God not to sin. Grace is power, not just pardon. (John Piper)

Anything this side of hell is pure grace. (Unknown)

Father, I thank You for Grace. The incredible, unbelievable, unimaginable, fantastic and fortuitous favor that You shower upon my life never ceases to amaze. Your Gifts are always grand, whether it’s the blazing of a summer sunset or the special design of a snowflake. So help me this day to always see Your Grace, always live Your Grace and, if possible, always reveal Your Grace to those I meet. Amen.