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Some of us have had the life sucked out of us by our circumstances. Maybe we’ve become the victims of some unfair and unjust mistreatment by life and others. We’ve been victimized by vicious rumors or false accusations. Abusers have exploited us; our own loved ones have rejected us. We’ve all been the targets of unfair and unjust treatment, haven’t we? As victims, we’ve become frozen and hard on the inside, and we desperately need for someone to bring us back to life—someone to wake us up.

It’s in this pit that we question God. "Where are you? Why me? I’m the innocent victim. Why don’t you save me? Why don’t you bring me to life? We cry out to God, "wake me up—save me". There is a character in the Old Testament—Joseph—who was victimized at home, work and jail. Over the next three weeks, you’re going to meet him in person and discover how he responded to all of life’s challenges.

Before we take a look at Joseph’s story, here is a key question that Joseph asked and we need to be asking when we are unfairly and unjustly mistreated. It’s a question that will lead you to the place God wants you to be. It’s a question that will lead you to a life of trusting your heavenly father even when He seems silent and distant from you.

Here’s the question: What would someone do in your circumstances if they were absolutely confident God was with them? Joseph was a victim of unimaginable, unfair mistreatment, but he did what anybody would do if they were absolutely confident God was with them. He trusted God and looked for God in the circumstances even when God seemed silent and distant.

First, Joseph was mistreated at home. Genesis 37:2–5 says, "When Joseph was seventeen years old, he often tended his father’s flocks. He worked for his half brothers… But Joseph reported to his father some of the bad things his brothers were doing. Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other children because Joseph had been born to him in his old age. So one day Jacob had a special gift made for Joseph—a beautiful robe. But his brothers hated Joseph because their father loved him more than the rest of them. They couldn’t say a kind word to him. One night Joseph had a dream, (how he would rule over them) and when he told his brothers about it, they hated him more than ever."

Clearly, this family defines the term "dysfunction". Joseph was a tattletale. Jacob was a passive father who played favorites. He didn’t even try to disguise his favoritism but gave Joseph an elaborate mink coat. No wonder Joseph’s brothers saw their jealousy turn into resentment and hatred—so much so that they couldn’t say one kind word to Joseph. Adding insult to insult, Joseph shared two dreams with his brothers about how he would one day be their master.

That broke the camel’s back, so Joseph’s brothers tossed him in a pit and then sold him as a slave to a band of traders who were heading to Egypt. Okay, Joseph wasn’t totally innocent in this—but the dreams did come from God, and the coat was a gift from Neiman Marcus—I mean Jacob. Lets take a time out. Why would God allow this to happen to someone he cares about? Joseph was the favored Son—the son of a patriarch—not a slave. He was born on the right side of the tracks. Obviously from the dreams, God had big plans for him—to rule over his family and Israel. But do you see anything redeeming about what’s happening to this kid? I don’t!

Can you relate to this on a personal level? When you are unfairly mistreated by life or others, don’t you start asking questions? "Why is this happening to me? I’ve done nothing wrong. Where are you God? Why me? I don’t deserve this. I’m the good guy. I go to church. I love my pastor when he wears plaid. Hello, God, is anyone home? Do you care? Do you even hear my cries for help?"

That’s our typical response, but Joseph responded differently. He asked the question, "what would someone do in my circumstances if he were absolutely confident that God was with him?" Although, God seemed absent and silent, Joseph believed God was not asleep at the wheel, but was in the middle of his mess. That’s the mystery of how God sometimes works when life makes no logical sense. Joseph just kept trusting and looking for God to show up in his circumstances.

Joseph was mistreated at home. Now we find him being mistreated at work in Egypt. Gen. 39:1 says, "When Joseph was taken to Egypt by the Ishmaelite traders, he was purchased by Potiphar, an Egyptian officer. Potiphar was captain of the guard for Pharaoh, the king of Egypt."

Now prepare yourself for the next phrase. It doesn’t fit in the story. Gen. 39:2 says, "The Lord was with Joseph."

Oh come on. The Lord wasn’t with Joseph. If the Lord were with Joseph he’d be at home with mom and dad and his cruel, rotten brothers would be in Egypt building pyramids with no change for the Dr. Pepper machine. If God were in charge, good things would be happening to Joseph and bad things to his brothers. The Lord was with Joseph? I don’t think so!

Do you ever feel that way? You’ve been faithful but someone or thing wins instead. It’s not fair. Good things shouldn’t happen to bad people. It’s not right. This stuff messes with your view of God, doesn’t it? It’s a mystery, isn’t it? But "the Lord was with Joseph."

Back to the story. Gen. 39:2–4: So Joseph succeeded in everything he did as he served in the home of his Egyptian master. Potiphar noticed this and realized that the Lord was with Joseph, giving him success in everything he did. This pleased Potiphar, so he soon made Joseph his personal attendant. He put him in charge of his entire household and everything he owned.

Did you catch that? Potiphar is clueless about Joseph’s one true God, but recognizes that Joseph’s God is something special and the secret to Joseph’s success. Here’s a lesson for us: When we respond to all our good or bad circumstances as if God is with us, other people take notice of you and God. Joseph was doing what anyone else would do if they were confident God was with them. He didn’t try to escape or sabotage his employer. He trusted God and served Potiphar faithfully and God blessed.

In your tough circumstances when you’re being mistreated or victimized by life or others, you have one assignment, do what someone would do if they were confident God was with them. Trust your heavenly father as your everywhere present God and look for him to be at work in your tough circumstances.

Don’t miss Gen. 39:5: "From the day Joseph was put in charge of his master’s household and property, the Lord began to bless Potiphar’s household for Joseph’s sake. All his household affairs ran smoothly, and his crops and livestock flourished." If I were Joseph I’d be asking God, "Could you bless me because of me? Why are you blessing my boss? Why can’t you bless me and send me back home so I can settle the score with my kindhearted brothers.

If this is not enough, God puts Joseph in a no-win situation at work. Gen. 39:6–9 says, "Joseph was a very handsome and well-built young man, and Potiphar’s wife soon began to look at him lustfully. ‘Come and sleep with me,’ she demanded. But Joseph refused… ‘How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God.’" ("…who hasn’t done much for me lately")

Joseph was completely innocent, but the circumstances were against him. Yet, he still declares his commitment to God when it appears God has let him down. Why? At age 20, Joseph had learned that his responsibility was not to sort it all out or re-engineer his circumstances but to do what somebody in these circumstances would do if they were confident God was with them. He refused to dishonor God and his boss, but confidently trusted in God’s everywhere presence.

Every day you and I have a choice. We can make a choice to abandon God based on our miserable circumstances because He has apparently abandoned us or we can choose to be faithful and confident in God’s presence as we walk through life’s dark valleys with Him. It’s your choice!

So Joseph refuses to dishonor his boss and remains faithful to God. As a result God rewards Joseph. Gen. 39:11 says, "One day, however, no one else was around when he went in to do his work. She came and grabbed him by his cloak, demanding, ‘Come on, sleep with me!’ Joseph tore himself away, but he left his cloak in her hand as he ran from the house.

Then Potiphar’s wife accuses him of rape, and Potiphar has Joseph thrown into prison where Joseph was mistreated again. Joseph gets punished for doing what is right—for being faithful to God. He might as well have had sex with her because he ended up in the same place. Maybe she was so ugly; he would rather do a life sentence than be with her. (Just kidding! Bad interpretation)

Get this. Joseph is scheduled for a lifetime of jail. Gen. 39:21 says, "But the Lord was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love. And the Lord made Joseph a favorite with the prison warden."

Okay, if I’m Joseph, I’m thinking—"God, don’t be with me anymore. Go be with someone else. Since you’ve been with me, I’ve been kidnapped, deported, enslaved, accused of rape, and jailed for life. I don’t want to be the warden’s favorite. You’re not just allowing this to happen to me, you’re a part of it. I need a break from you. Go be with my rotten brothers a lot." Yet Joseph did what he always did—he did what somebody would do if they were absolutely confident God was with them. He trusted God and looked for Him to show up in his situation.

If Joseph hadn’t had enough bad circumstances, he interprets a dream for a fellow cellmate who had been Pharaoh’s cupbearer. A cupbearer tasted the Pharaoh’s wine and food to see if it had been poisoned. Obviously, the cupbearer had done something naughty to land in prison.

Joseph’s interpretation of his dream promised that the cupbearer would be restored to his position in three days. Gen. 40:14 says, "And please remember me and do me a favor when things go well for you. Mention me to Pharaoh, so he might let me out of this place. Now look at vs. 23, "Pharaoh’s chief cupbearer, however, forgot all about Joseph, never giving him another thought."

For two more years Joseph was forgotten. From the ages of 17 to 28, it seemed as though God had forgotten Joseph—11 years of silence. Yet God was still there orchestrating his bigger plan through Joseph. So what does this mean to us? It comes down to a choice. Am I going to define God by my circumstances and bail out on him when I don’t see him or will I respond to his everywhere presence and wait for him to show me His mysterious plan for my life?

The late Admiral James Stockdale was captured by the enemy during the Vietnam War. He was "the highest-ranking United States military officer in the "Hanoi Hilton" prisoner-of-war camp…. He was tortured over 20 times during his eight-year imprisonment from 1965 to 1973.

Stockdale was once asked how he could deal with the uncertainty of his fate and the brutality of his captors when he did not know the end of the story. "I never lost faith in the end of the story," he said. "I never doubted—not only that I would get out, but also that I would prevail in the end and turn the experience into the defining event of my life, which, in retrospect, I would not trade."

"I never lost faith in the end of the story." Neither did Joseph. Joseph didn’t doubt that God was writing the end of his story—even though God seemed absent and his life circumstances made no logical sense. Stockdale goes on to say, "You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end—which you can never afford to lose—with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be."