Running with the Giants · Genesis 37–50
In week two of Running with the Giants at Christian Life Church in Bensalem, PA, guest speaker Tom Ree, a friend from our district, walks through the life of Joseph. His big idea: God often does His greatest work in us before He does His greatest work through us. We celebrate palaces, but God develops people in the pits.
Key Highlights
What to Remember
God often does His greatest work in us before He does His greatest work through us.
Don’t despise hidden growth. Roots always grow before fruit.
I cannot. God can.
People may write chapters of your story, but only God writes the ending.
Hebrews 12:1–2
Run with Endurance
Tom once set out to run alongside his daughter while she trained for a marathon. He stretched like he was headed to Boston, matched her stride beautifully, and made it to the end of the block. It’s not how you start the race that matters, but how you finish. We start diets, resolutions, businesses, ministries, and marriages, but not everyone finishes.
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”
Hebrews 12:1–2
The question isn’t how fast you run.
The question is: will you still be running years from now?
Genesis 37 · Psalm 105:17–19
When Dreams Become Nightmares
At 17, Joseph received two dreams from God and shared them with his family. His brothers resented him. “Here comes that dreamer!” they said (Genesis 37:19). They threw him into a pit, sold him to slave traders, and showed their father a robe covered in animal blood. In one moment, everything was gone.
Joseph was obedient, but obedience sometimes leads straight into hardship. Many of us know that feeling: I did the right thing, so why this outcome? God, why am I in this hospital room? Why did my marriage end? Why has my child walked away from the faith?
Tom recently took a hard fall while hiking on the Appalachian Trail and needed stitches near his eye. The cut healed, but bruises remained where no one could see them. Most wounds don’t show up in photographs. People carry heartbreak, betrayal, disappointment, and grief.
“He sent a man before them — Joseph, sold as a slave. They bruised his feet with shackles, his neck was put in irons, till what he foretold came to pass, till the word of the Lord proved him true.”
Psalm 105:17–19
Joseph wasn’t just waiting. God was proving him.
The dream wasn’t only about where Joseph was going, but who he was becoming.
Genesis 39
The Lord Was with Joseph
In Egypt, Joseph was alone. He didn’t speak the language, his family had betrayed him, and he seemed to have no friends and no future. Yet Genesis 39 repeats it again and again: “The Lord was with Joseph” (verses 2, 3, 21, and 23).
- In the dialysis chair and the hospital room
- In the empty nest and the lonely apartment
- In a difficult marriage
- In a cubicle at a job you can’t stand
- In the unemployment office
Where is God? Right where He’s always been.
“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Matthew 28:20
Genesis 39–40
Faithful in the Hidden Places
As a slave, Joseph served so faithfully that he was put in charge of Potiphar’s household. He never demanded recognition. He simply served. Jesus said, “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much” (Luke 16:10). Are you waiting for a better opportunity, or being faithful with today’s?
Joseph also had integrity in the hidden places. Potiphar’s wife pursued him day after day, and when she grabbed his cloak, he ran.
“How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?”
Genesis 39:9
Integrity is living as though God is present, because He is.
Plant bamboo, and for a long time it looks dead. But underground, the roots are growing. Then suddenly it shoots up, some species as much as three feet in a single day.
It didn’t grow overnight. It was growing all along. Roots always grow before fruit.
Joseph did the right thing and still landed in prison. There, he cared for other prisoners and was put in charge again. He didn’t wait for life to get better before serving.
Faithfulness doesn’t exempt us from suffering.
And suffering doesn’t exempt us from faithfulness.
Maybe your greatest ministry isn’t after your trial, but in the middle of it. Preparation is never wasted. If God placed a calling on your life long ago and you haven’t stepped into it, it may be time to step out.
Genesis 40–41
I Cannot. God Can.
In prison, Joseph interpreted the dreams of Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker. When the cupbearer was restored, Joseph asked, “Remember me.” He forgot for two full years (Genesis 41:1). Waiting is hard. Then one day, Pharaoh had a dream no one could explain, the cupbearer remembered, and Joseph was cleaned up and brought before the king. Joseph didn’t force the door open. God opened it.
“I cannot do it,” Joseph replied to Pharaoh, “but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.”
Genesis 41:16
Prison had produced humility. Success didn’t make Joseph bigger. It made God bigger. Joseph interpreted the seven years of plenty and seven years of famine, advised storing up grain, and was made second in command over all of Egypt.
The greatest test may not be the pit or the prison. It may be success, and what you do when you have the power to get even.
Genesis 50:20
God Meant It for Good
Years later, famine drove Joseph’s brothers to Egypt for food. They didn’t recognize him, but he recognized them. He had the power to take revenge, and he chose to forgive. The prison had prepared him to forgive.
“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
Genesis 50:20
People may weave together harm in our lives, but God weaves every thread together for His good purposes.
- His brothers wrote one: they sold him
- God wrote another: He sent him (Psalm 105:17)
People may write chapters of your story, but only God writes the ending.
Whatever you’ve been through, God can use it to send you to someone else who needs to know how much He loves them.
The Invitation
Joseph Points to Jesus
While getting his stitches removed, Tom talked with a medical resident from a Muslim background who also knew and admired the story of Joseph. Reflecting later, Tom realized the story points to something even greater.
- Both were loved by their father
- Both were rejected by their own
- Both were sold for silver
- Both were falsely accused
- Both suffered
- Both forgave: “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34)
Joseph inspires.
Jesus saves.
For the joy set before Him, Jesus endured the cross so we could have new life. If you’ve been running in your own direction, today you can put a stake in the ground and turn toward Jesus. And you won’t run alone.
- God knows your name and your address
- He knows every tear you’ve cried
- He knows every prayer you’ve whispered
- He knows every act of obedience no one else has seen
If you’re in a hidden season, ask Him for strength to keep running.
Questions About This Message
The Life of Joseph Explained
What is the main lesson from the life of Joseph?
God often does His greatest work in us before He does His greatest work through us. Joseph’s years as a slave and prisoner shaped his character, humility, and faith so he was ready to lead Egypt and save many lives.
What does “the Lord was with Joseph” mean in Genesis 39?
Even when Joseph was betrayed, enslaved, and imprisoned, God never left him. Genesis 39 repeats this truth four times, reminding believers that God is present in every hard and hidden place.
Why did Joseph refuse Potiphar’s wife?
Joseph said, “How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:9). He lived with integrity even in private, because he knew God was present.
What does Genesis 50:20 mean?
Joseph told his brothers, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good.” People may plan harm, but God can weave even betrayal and suffering into His good purposes, like saving many lives.
How does Joseph point to Jesus?
Both were loved by their father, rejected by their own, sold for silver, falsely accused, suffered, and forgave those who wronged them. Joseph’s story inspires, but Jesus is the One who saves.
Stay faithful.
Keep running.
Fix your eyes on Jesus.
Don’t drop the baton.
Life Group Discussion
Reflect and Respond
Use these questions to continue the conversation, reflect honestly, and let the message move beyond information into transformation.
They sold him.
But God sent him.
