The aforementioned
title is inspired by Zig Ziglar’s quote –
Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude. Attitude
has been defined as the ‘way we think of feel about something.’
The majority
of the people who will read this blog might be aware of the story of Joseph
(Yosef in Hebrew0 which means ‘increase’. This is the Joseph ( who would later
be called Zaphnath-Paaneah’ by the Pharaoh. He was son of Jacob (Israel) and
Rachel. He would later be father to Manasseh and Ephraim and he died in 1445
BCE. Joseph become Prime Minister of Egypt. This was after his older brothers,
being jealous of their father’s affections from Joseph, sold him off as a
slave. The whole story can be found in the book of Genesis Chapter 37 – 50.
There are many
lessons to learn from the story of Joseph. However, I will limit this blog to
his attitude to life situations and how it determined his altitude.
1.
Whereas Joseph’s
brothers were jealous of his father’s affections for him, and whereas they did
treat him badly, his attitude towards them did not seem to change. He loved
them all through and never sought to avenge himself after the demise of his
father. Interestingly, his brothers forgot that they were co-heirs in his father’s inheritance. They were all predestined/promised to Abraham (their
Great Grandfather) and most likely, they had already heard the story of how
their progenitor not only enjoyed an amazing relationship of promise with GOD. Unfortunately,
they ‘majored on the minors’ and allowed their hatred to consume them and blind
them from seeing the bigger picture. Such an attitude of ingratitude is wrong;
2.
In spite of
being in a disadvantaged position as a slave, Joseph continued to maintain an attitude of gratitude. He continued to
remain a diligent servant. In Chapter 39:2 -3
The Lord was with Joseph and he prospered and he
lived in the house of his Egyptian Master vs. 3 When his master saw that the
Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did
In essence, Joseph easily rose up in the ranks at
Potiphar’s house. He never took pity on himself but instead maintained an
attitude of excellence. He was soon in charge of both the slaves and other
employees in Potiphar’s house.
In chapter 39:6 we read
So he left in Joseph’s care everything he had; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he
ate.
Indeed, Joseph knew about his honour this and
testified in Vs.9
no one is greater in this house than I am.
However, he did not let this ‘promotion’ get into
his head, but maintained an attitude of humility. In Verse Vs. 9c
How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God
His attitude
was also one of gratitude –
My Master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his
wife
The above were the reasons as to why Joseph refused
to grant the persistent request of his master’s wife Zuleikha to have sex with her. He
paid dearly for this by having to be imprisoned
3.
In spite of
being a slave and prisoner, Joseph didn’t wallow in self-pity or self- neglect because
of his circumstances. He made the best of the circumstances and was once again ‘promoted’
by the prison warder
Chapter 39 vs.22 so the warden put Joseph in charge of
all those held in prison, and he was responsible for all that was done there. The
warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was
with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.
It is interesting to note that both Potiphar and the
Prison Warder noticed the favour of the Lord upon Joseph and acknowledged it.
His brother however did not do so. The above begs the question – What is our attitude
when we notice that the favour of the Lord is upon some one? Do we fight them
like Joseph’s brother did? Do we seek personal gain from them like Potiphar’s
wife tried to do? Or do we allow them to flourish like Potiphar, the prison
warden and Pharaoh did?
4.
Joseph maintained
an attitude of gladness in spite of
his circumstances. No one wants to be in prison and indeed Joseph tried to seek
help like any human being would.
In Chapter 40: 14 he said to the cupbearer
...but when all goes well with you, remember me
and show me kindness, mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. For I
was forcibly carried off from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have
done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon)
That said, even in his dire circumstances, Joseph
was still able to notice that those under his care were unwell (even if it was
a prison for the big shots in Pharaoh’s government). In Chapter 40 vs. 6, he
noticed that his fellow prisoners, the baker and butler were dejected. He even
asked ‘Why are your faces so sad today?’ Ideally one would expect prisoners to always
be sad. I guess this questions suggests that that they were normally enjoying
better prison services than those who were not in Pharaoh’s prison. His
attitude of gladness (or of hope) reminds me of the Stockdale Paradox as identified by Prof. Jim Collins
in his book Good to Great.
This Paradox is named after James Stockdale who
balanced realism (facing the brutal facts – and in the case of Joseph- being in
prison) with optimism (never losing hope of being released one day). Stockdale is quoted as saying that
“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.”
James Stockdale was one of the highest
ranking naval officers who was held captive for seven years during the Vietnam
War. It seems that Stockdale borrowed from biblical Joseph. Inspite of their circumstances, they never gave up hope, while at the same time faced the brutal
facts.
Due to a combination of God’s perfect timing, His
Will, and Joseph’s relationship with God and Joseph’s attitude, it was not long
before Joseph was summoned from prison and promoted to become the Prime Minister
of Egypt in one of the most rapid promotions ever recorded in human history.
ENDS -
ENDS -
