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Joseph Honored the Creator, February 18
The king ... made him master of his household, ruler over all he possessed, to
discipline his princes as he pleased and teach his elders wisdom.
Psalm
105:20-22
, NIV.
From the dungeon Joseph was exalted to be ruler over all the land of Egypt. It
was a position of high honor, yet it was beset with difficulty and peril. One cannot
stand upon a lofty height without danger. As the tempest leaves unharmed the lowly
flower of the valley, while it uproots the stately tree upon the mountaintop, so those
who have maintained their integrity in humble life may be dragged down to the pit
by the temptations that assail worldly success and honor. But Joseph’s character
bore the test alike of adversity and prosperity. The same fidelity to God was manifest
when he stood in the palace of the Pharaohs as when in a prisoner’s cell. He was
still a stranger in a heathen land, separated from his kindred, the worshipers of God;
but he fully believed that the divine hand had directed his steps, and in constant
reliance upon God he faithfully discharged the duties of his position....
In his early years he had consulted duty rather than inclination; and the integrity,
the simple trust, the noble nature, of the youth bore fruit in the deeds of the man.
A pure and simple life had favored the vigorous development of both physical and
intellectual powers. Communion with God through His works and the contemplation
of the grand truths entrusted to the inheritors of faith had elevated and ennobled
his spiritual nature, broadening and strengthening the mind as no other study could
do. Faithful attention to duty in every station, from the lowliest to the most exalted,
had been training every power for its highest service. He who lives in accordance
with the Creator’s will is securing to himself the truest and noblest development of
character....
There are few who realize the influence of the little things of life upon the
development of character. Nothing with which we have to do is really small. The
varied circumstances that we meet day by day are designed to test our faithfulness
and to qualify us for greater trusts. By adherence to principle in the transactions of
ordinary life, the mind becomes accustomed to hold the claims of duty above those
of pleasure and inclination (
Patriarchs and Prophets, 222, 223
).
As a shield from temptation and an inspiration to purity and truth, no other
influence can equal the sense of God’s presence. “All things are naked and opened
unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.” He is “of purer eyes than to behold
evil, and canst not look on iniquity.” This thought was Joseph’s shield amidst the
corruptions of Egypt. To the allurements of temptation his answer was steadfast:
“How ... can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” Such a shield, faith,
if cherished, will bring to every soul (
Education, 255
).
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