Genesis 37:5-8
5 Now Joseph had a dream, and he told itto his brothers; and they hated him even more. 6 So he said to them, “Please hear this dream which I have dreamed: 7 There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf.”
8 And his brothers said to him, “Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.
Look at what favoritism in the home can breed. While Joseph’s dream is God-given, one can’t help but see the turmoil in this family and how telling his dream magnified the conflict. For young Joseph, favoritism has made life and home an unhealthy place. Jacob’s issues are replaying themselves in his children’s generation.
No matter how you interpret Joseph’s behavior or view the animosity developing in his brothers’ hearts, you can’t miss that all of this starts with Jacob and the unhealthy patterns he learned in his childhood. Sadly, many men repeat their own unhealthy experiences as they tried to lead their families. They inadvertently replay their own hurts, failing to realize that the ways of their parents are their “default setting.” In other words, unless they are intentional in making better choices, they will naturally slide back into the unhealthy patterns they know best.
We can understand Jacob’s attachment to Joseph. He’s Rachel’s son and Jacob would naturally feel great affection for him. And we can feel justified in our choices too, but instead we must choose to be different if we want a different future. No matter the childhood pain, it can be overcome if we will choose to act differently and hold ourselves to a better standard than those before us have known.
– Dr. Mike Clarensau serves as Senior Director of the Healthy Church Network of the Assemblies of God.
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