Ministry training is necessary and important.  God's people ought to serve with excellence.  We should resolve to be life-long learners who "get all we can, and 'can' all we get."  But we must also recognize that God also has a school that He puts His servants through.

God's Seminary is not restricted to semesters, schedules, and classrooms.  His curriculum is ordained from the womb (Jeremiah 1:5).  His training is preparatory and relevant (Ezekiel 3:8-9).  God's training is often an unwelcome series of life-circumstances which are divinely ordered to prepare us for His plan for our lives (Proverbs 16:9).  This preparation may take many years beyond our chosen formal training.  God’s training is unique to each of us as it applies to our part in His work (e.g., Moses and Paul).

Joseph is an example of one who found himself in a thirteen-year seminary enrolled by God Himself.  Joseph’s “education” included the evil actions of his own brothers, his slavery, and his unjust imprisonment in Egypt.  Who among us would sign on for physical abuse (Psalm 105:18), slavery, and imprisonment as the career path to be the second ruler in the world’s most powerful nation?  I think if we were writing the program, we would suggest Yale or Harvard and maybe a short stint as a CEO of a major corporation.  We would go for something short and sweet.  But God wisely works His will in His own way.

When we examine Joseph’s training in light of the position God put him in, we conclude that God’s training was deliberate, relevant, adequate, and timely.  Joseph’s resident curriculum included Egyptian culture, language, customs, politics, and economics.  It contained an understanding of three different levels of Egyptian society.

Recognizing that we are students in God’s seminary makes all the difference in our ability to respond to God’s sovereign hand in our lives.  Had Joseph not recognized God’s hand in his circumstances, he would doubtless have “thrown in the towel” in his tenacious pursuit of righteousness throughout his despairing circumstances.  The absence of bitterness and vindictiveness in Joseph’s heart even though he had the power and position to pay his brothers back for their sin is proof-positive that Joseph had long-recognized God’s hand ruling over his brothers harm (Genesis 45:5 and 7).  Joseph was keenly aware of two realities: indeed, his brothers were selling, but God was sending.  It was the latter of these two which sustained him (and will sustain us).    

His promotion from prison to palace was nothing short of miraculous (Joseph was a foreigner!).  Who gets pulled out of prison and promoted like this?  God had allowed the last human hope that Joseph had for a pardon to die out as two years had passed since Pharaoh’s cupbearer was released from prison.  God alone would take the credit for Joseph’s promotion.  It was God who gave Pharaoh his sleep-ridden dream.  Pharaoh recognized God’s hand on Joseph’s life.  God also gave Joseph a wife the same day.  Joseph was God’s advance man who would bring the rest of the Israelites into Egypt.  For Joseph, this was a permanent move.  He would need a culturally appropriate wife to assist him in his strategic post in the palace.  God took care of the details!

Can you imagine Joseph sitting down to reflect after the ceremonial smoke had cleared from  these stunning events?  All he could do was laugh and shout, “Only God, only God could do this!”  He knew that God was putting him in position to care for his own people, the Egyptians, and the world.  But how God accomplished this was absolutely awesome!  Man would have never thought of it.  Man could have never pulled it off.  And if given the choice, man would have never agreed to it.  And yet, we all join Joseph in praising God for His manifold wisdom in working in our lives for His glory and our good (Romans 8:28).