9 so the chief cupbearer told his dream to joseph and said to
him, “in my dream there was a vine before me, 10 and on the vine
there were three branches. as soon as it budded, its blossoms
shot forth, and the clusters ripened into grapes. 11 pharaoh’s cup
was in my hand, and i took the grapes and pressed them into
pharaoh’s cup and placed the cup in pharaoh’s hand.” 12 then
joseph said to him, “this is its interpretation: the three branches
are three days. 13 in three days pharaoh will lift up your head
and restore you to your office, and you shall place pharaoh’s cup
in his hand as formerly, when you were his cupbearer. 14 only
remember me, when it is well with you, and please do me the
kindness to mention me to pharaoh, and so get me out of this
house. 15 for i was indeed stolen out of the land of the hebrews,
and here also i have done nothing that they should put me into
the pit.”. [genesis 40:9-15]
only remember me
these words of joseph resonate so strongly. we so desperately long to be remembered. we long to be
understood. we long to be known. joseph was an innocent man who had been wrongly imprisoned. but
he was also a man with a unique gift, a gift given to him by God which allowed him to interpret dreams. here he is pleading his case with someone who will soon be able to help him. as he interprets this dream for the cupbearer, he knows that the cupbearer will now be in a position to get him out of this wrongful imprisonment. all he has to do is wait. joseph places his trust in God, not the cupbearer, but he sees this is an opportunity to use his gift in
a way to finally have his story told. he will finally be heard and be known. yet we know, as did joseph, that he was never alone. I Corinthians 8:3 tells us “but if anyone loves God, he is known by God”.
even as joseph felt as though he had been forgotten and abandoned, God was with him, and working things together for good. just like joseph, we may find ourself in a time of waiting. but just like joseph, our stories are far from over.
~ jason soroski