God doesn’t always work the way we think He should. Sometimes the things that we think are tragedies turn out to be blessings. In the Bible, Joseph serves as the perfect example of tragedy-turned-blessing. When Joseph received a dream foreshadowing his role to reign over his brothers, his brothers grew angry and sold him into slavery. When Joseph was later falsely accused of a crime and thrown into prison, it seemed that his dream would never come true.

But the Lord proved faithful and present. “The Lord was with Joseph and extended kindness to him” (Genesis 39:21). While in prison, Joseph attracted attention with his God-given ability to interpret dreams. He was soon given the opportunity to interpret Pharaoh’s dream. Through that interpretation, he was able to give Pharaoh the advice he needed to save his people from years of famine. As a result, Pharaoh put Joseph in charge of the whole land of Egypt. Joseph went from being a slave to being the ruler of Egypt. Talk about a tragedy being turned into a blessing! And it wasn’t just Joseph who was blessed—all of Egypt was spared from a famine in the process.

Often, God takes everything away to show that He has so much more in store for us if we will only have patience and faith. After we have endured a trial, it’s easy to look back and see how God was working in and through us. But it is when we are in the middle of it—day by day—that it seems interminable and hopeless. That is where patience and faith come in. We must believe that God is still with us as He promises and that He will bring us through into something better—His ultimate blessing.