When God Gives You the Dream but Not the Process: Lessons from Joseph

There are times when God gives us a glimpse of something He wants to do in our lives, but He does not show us everything that will happen between the promise and its fulfillment. We may see the destination, but we do not see the road that will take us there. That is where God’s process can become difficult to understand.

Joseph experienced this in a very powerful way.

In Genesis 37, Joseph had dreams that gave him a glimpse of his future. In those dreams, his brothers would bow down before him. Joseph did not know how those dreams would come to pass. He had no idea what was waiting for him on the other side of the dream.

He did not know that his brothers would betray him.

He did not know that he would become a servant in Potiphar’s house.

He did not know that Potiphar’s wife would falsely accuse him.

He did not know that he would end up in prison.

He did not know that he would spend years waiting for his circumstances to change.

And he certainly did not know that God would eventually position him as governor of Egypt.

Joseph knew the dream, but he did not know the process.

God’s Process Can Be Difficult

Joseph was 17 years old when his brothers sold him. Years later, at the age of 30, he became governor of Egypt. Then, during the famine, his brothers came to Egypt looking for food. Genesis 42 tells us that Joseph was the governor and that his brothers came and bowed down before him. Joseph recognized them, and the Scripture says that he remembered the dreams he had dreamed about them.

What God had shown Joseph as a young man was finally unfolding before his eyes.

But think about how long the journey had been.

From the time Joseph was sold at 17 until he became governor at 30, approximately 13 years had passed. Then there were seven years of abundance, followed by years of famine. By the time Joseph’s brothers came before him, Joseph was around 39 years old.

That means approximately 22 years had passed between the time Joseph was sold and the time his brothers bowed before him.

Joseph had the dream long before he saw the fulfillment.

That is God’s process.

And sometimes, that is where we struggle.

We want God to show us what He has planned, but we also want Him to give us the entire timeline. We want to know when it will happen, how it will happen, who will be involved, and what we will have to endure along the way.

But God did not give Joseph that information.

Joseph was not told, “Your brothers are going to sell you, you will become a servant, you will be falsely accused, you will go to prison, and eventually you will become governor.”

God showed him a glimpse of the future, but Joseph had to walk by faith through the process.

If you are going through a difficult season right now, I want to encourage you: do not give up because the process is hard.

Trusting God’s Process When You Cannot See the End

Joseph’s circumstances could have made him believe that the dream was never going to happen.

Imagine being Joseph.

You have had a dream about your future, and then your brothers throw you into a pit and sell you.

What would you think?

Then you become a servant in someone else’s house.

Then, just when things seem to be going well, you are falsely accused and sent to prison.

At some point, Joseph could have asked, “God, what happened to the dream You gave me?”

But the difficult circumstances did not cancel what God had shown him.

The process was simply part of getting him there.

Sometimes God’s process is not about God changing His mind. Sometimes it is about God preparing us for what He has already prepared for us.

In Joseph’s case, the position of governor already existed. Joseph simply had to go through the journey that would eventually bring him into that position.

Maybe you are in a difficult process right now.

Maybe you thought you would have arrived by now.

Maybe you are looking at your life and wondering why things are taking so long.

Don’t give up.

Your age does not disqualify you. The amount of time that has passed does not mean God has forgotten you. A difficult season does not mean the story is over.

God can take you through a process that you do not understand and still bring you exactly where He wants you to be.

You are going to make it, in Jesus’ name.

When You Have Arrived, Remember Why You Are There

There is another person I want to speak to: the person who has arrived.

You have finally gotten to the place God showed you a long time ago.

Maybe you prayed for that position. Maybe you waited for that opportunity. Maybe there was a time when you could only imagine being where you are now.

Now you are there.

Don’t forget God’s process.

Don’t forget where you came from.

And more importantly, don’t forget why you are there.

Joseph was not elevated simply so he could enjoy a position of authority. God had a purpose for putting him there.

Because of Joseph’s position, he was able to preserve the lives of many people during the famine, including his own family.

The same principle can be seen in Esther’s life. Esther became queen, but her position was not simply about status or beauty. God positioned her for a purpose.

Sometimes we think God has blessed us so that we can simply enjoy the blessing.

But what if the blessing is also an assignment?

What if the position is not just for you?

What if the opportunity God gave you is connected to someone else’s survival, encouragement, breakthrough, or future?

When God takes you to a place you once prayed for, stay humble.

Remember the process.

Remember the people who helped you along the way.

Remember that you still need God.

In fact, sometimes we need God even more when we arrive because success can create the illusion that we no longer need Him.

Joseph had authority, but he still needed God.

The higher God takes you, the more important it is to remain dependent on Him.

Consistency Matters in God’s Process

The third person I want to speak to is the person who struggles with consistency.

Consistency is important because it is very difficult to fulfill your purpose when you continually stop, start, become distracted, and lose focus.

You cannot build something meaningful if you keep abandoning it.

You cannot grow in your walk with God if you only seek Him when things are going wrong.

You cannot become the person God created you to be if you continually allow distractions to pull you away from what He has called you to do.

Joseph’s story reminds us of the importance of continuing to move forward even when the circumstances are not what we expected.

So, if consistency has been a struggle for you, sit down and honestly ask yourself: What is distracting me?

Write it down.

What keeps taking your attention away from your calling?

What keeps you from doing what you know you need to do?

Which distractions can you remove yourself?

Which ones require God’s help?

There are some things we can change through better decisions. There are other things we have to take to God.

For example, bitterness is not always something we can simply decide to stop feeling. Sometimes we need God to help us heal and release what has hurt us.

But we still have a part to play.

We can make better choices.

We can establish boundaries.

We can stop returning to things that continually distract us.

We can become more disciplined.

We can spend more time with God.

We can write down our goals and purpose and intentionally work toward them.

This is not about your age.

It is not about whether it is January or the middle of the year.

It is not about how much time you think you have left.

Start where you are.

GOD MAY SHOW YOU THE DESTINATION WITHOUT SHOWING YOU THE JOURNEY.

God Can Accelerate, But We Must Not Stop Ourselves

God can accelerate things.

God can open doors that we could never open ourselves.

God can change circumstances in a moment.

But sometimes we can also stop ourselves from becoming who God created us to be.

We can make choices that delay us.

We can allow distractions to consume our time.

We can remain stuck in bitterness.

We can refuse to forgive.

We can neglect our relationship with God.

We can start something and repeatedly quit.

That is why we need to examine ourselves.

Joseph could not control everything that happened to him, but he continued to move forward through each season.

The process was not wasted.

The pit was not wasted.

Potiphar’s house was not wasted.

The prison was not wasted.

God was working through every part of the journey.

And that is the encouragement I want to leave with you.

You may not understand God’s process, but you can trust God.

You may not know how everything will come together, but you can keep walking.

You may not see the fulfillment yet, but that does not mean God has forgotten what He showed you.

Sometimes God gives us the dream but keeps the process hidden.

Joseph had to walk through years he never knew were coming before he saw what God had shown him.

So if you are in the process, don’t give up.

If you have arrived, don’t forget your purpose.

And if you have struggled with consistency, don’t condemn yourself. Make better decisions, ask God for help, remove the distractions you can remove, and keep moving.

God is not finished.

And when you look back one day, you may realize that the very process you wanted to escape was preparing you for the place God was taking you.

God Speaks Through Dreams

God sometimes gives people glimpses, impressions, or dreams that point them toward something He is doing. If you would like to explore this subject further, read my article, [God Speaks through Dreams].

A Scripture to Remember

Genesis 42:6 is a powerful reminder of Joseph’s journey. It records the moment when Joseph’s brothers came before him and bowed down, and verse 9 tells us that Joseph remembered the dreams he had dreamed about them.

Read Genesis 42:1–9 on Bible Gateway: Genesis 42:1–9

The dream had not been forgotten.

The process had simply been longer than Joseph could have imagined.