Genesis 37:24 “Then they took him and cast him into a pit. And the pit was empty; there was no water in it.”

The Bible describes the encounter with his brothers as hostile.  It does not tell us if Joseph realized how hate filled his brothers had become towards him, but Joseph was made fully aware and found himself in a life changing situation. I believe life is often like this for us. We do not realize what is about to happen to us and in a life changing moment, we find ourself in a waterless pit. A couple of points to consider in this moment.

• Joseph was most likely scared, especially if he heard them discussing his death.  Some of us do not have to have a vivid imagination to understand what it is like to be facing death without the ability to deliver ourselves from our pits.  Fear clouds our ability to think and hinders our faith in God.  The solution is to turn to God and ask for God to increase our faith in His protection.
• Even in the midst of Joseph’s pit, God had a plan.  It may not seem like it at the moment, but God is with us, the waterless pit was only absent of tangible water, but the Living Water was present with Joseph and He is present with us in out pits. God has a plan and purpose for our pit experiences. While it may seem unfair or unfathomable that God could use our seasons of pain and hopelessness, that is His purpose for our life.
• Our example is Jesus, who endured pain, suffering, betrayal, and death for a greater purpose: Our salvation.  Trust me, if God cares about our lives enough to send us Son to die to pay the penalty for our sin, He is not overlooking our momentary struggles.

Years later and through many more pits of life, Joseph states in Genesis 50:20 “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”

Be encouraged, God is at work even if we cannot see it because of the darkness of our current pit.

Phil