Issue #214, August 23, 2017
Josephs’ dream was born when he was a young man, 17 years old. Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. He said to them, "Listen to this dream I had: We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it." His brothers said to him, "Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?" And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said. (Genesis 37:5-8).
Joseph, like every leader, had a dream about the future; he could see what was going to happen. He may have thought I’ll be someone great. I’m going to be a leader and people will follow me! A dream was born and he was excited! But when he shared it with his brothers and later a second dream with his father it did not go well. Joseph believed that communicating his dream would help others to follow but at this point in his leadership he had many things to learn.
Communicating the dream requires the right heart.
It appears at this point that Joseph’s dream was all about himself. He could only see his brothers bowing down to him. His dream was about himself. His heart and motives were not yet right. Many leaders have a dream but it is all about themselves and how they will benefit from the dream. Servant leaders learn that God’s dreams are always about blessing others and accomplishing His purposes in their world. This happened much later for Joseph when he realized that God’s purpose for the dream was not to make him great, but to save his family (Genesis 45:5).
Communicating the dream requires the right hearers.
Joseph’s dream involved his brothers and father so he assumed that they were the people who needed to know. He believed others would share his enthusiasm for his vision of the future. But Joseph’s brothers already hated him and they could not accept the dream. Servant leaders carefully consider who should hear the dream. They are careful not to share their dream with persons who will kill it but those who will prayerfully help shape it. Servant leaders often choose to share their dream privately with a few before sharing it with others. Servant leaders focus on relationships before they share their dream.
Communicating the dream requires the right hour.
Joseph had a dream and shared it quickly with his brothers but the time was not yet right. Joseph shared his dream before he had time to understand the meaning or purpose of the dream. He had not taken time to search his heart for hidden motives or to consider the impact of his dream on others. He shared the dream at a time that family relationships were already difficult and the dream made things worse. Like many leaders he learned that dreams which are shared too quickly often fail to get support from those who will follow. Servant leaders choose to wait for the right time to share the dream. They prayerfully seek God’s timing and often need to wait for the right time to communicate their vision.
Joseph’s dream was accurate and it was from God but he didn’t do well in communicating it to others. Fortunately for him and for us God would keep working with him until the dream came to pass!
Until next time, yours on the journey,
Jon Byler
For further reflection and discussion:
- What is the purpose of my dream? Have I seen my dream in light of what it will do for me or how I can serve others through it?
- If I have not yet shared this dream with others, who are the persons with whom I should share first? Who should I not share with now?
- When is the right time to share my dream? Do I have the level of relationships established with others that can support the dream? If not, what can I do to strengthen those relationships?
- Have I had an experience where I shared a dream but it was not well received by others? What can I learn from Joseph’s experience that can help me in the future?
- Joseph made mistakes but God continued working with him. How does this encourage me to keep moving forward and growing?
In the next issue, we’ll examine the death of Joseph’s dream.
Copyright, Jon Byler 2017.