Used of God, but Forgotten. Fruitful through affliction.

Genesis 40:23
“the chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him”.

In Chapter 40 of Genesis, the king’s chief cupbearer and chief baker were thrown into the same prison as Joseph for what could have been a possible assassination attempt on the king (40:1-3). They thus came under Joseph’s influence (vs 4). Sometime later, they both had dreams and when they were troubled over the dreams, Joseph interpreted them accurately (vs 4-19). The end result was that the chief cupbearer was restored back to his position, while the chief baker was executed, exactly as Joseph predicted (vs 20-22). In verses 14-15, we find Joseph pleading with the chief cupbearer to speak to the king on his behalf, once he is released, stating his innocence to the accusation brought against him.
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Sadly, verse 23 tells us, “the chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him”. In fact, his forgetfulness lasted 2 long years! However, Joseph was learning to be fruitful through the affliction of being forgotten.

What about you? Have your efforts and your hard work or a promise made, been forgotten, maybe by your boss or some members in your family? Maybe a close friend. Maybe your labor in the ministry seems to have been forgotten by others. Do you feel that maybe the Lord has forgotten you? Be patient and keep trusting the Lord and He will lift you up at the right time. He will never forget you!
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Thankfully, when Pharaoh had a couple of bad dreams two years later and none of his wise men could interpret the dreams (41:1-8), the chief cupbearer’s memory came alive again (41:9-13). This resulted in him recommending Joseph’s ability to interpret dreams to the king, and the rest is history. While most people search for the ‘right contacts’ at Conferences, Seminars and other events, it is significant, as a man of God said, that Joseph found his contact inside a prison!! God may do the same for you in unexpected ways and places! After interpreting the king’s dreams accurately, Joseph was released from prison and promoted to the second highest position in Egypt, at the age of 30 (41:46). He was also assigned the huge task of saving the nation of Egypt and the surrounding world from the famine that was about to break out (41:37-40). Joseph handled the task to perfection (41:56-57). In the process, he was used by God to bring restoration to his family and to also save the nation of Israel.

Joseph’s status had changed once again from being ‘favorite son’ to ‘favorite slave’, to favorite Executive’, to ‘favorite prisoner’, to now being ‘favorite Diplomat’! If the link below does not show up click here to listen: 

ACTION STEP: ​Don't give up on your dream. Hold onto the promises of God. No weapon formed against you will prosper. F. B. Meyer wrote, “You who have been misunderstood, who have sown seeds of holiness and love to reap nothing but disappointment, loss, suffering, and hate—you know something of what Joseph felt in that wretched dungeon hole.”