The Bible is full of stories about heroes and heroines. But one story amazes me every time as if I had never heard of it before. I believe that the story of Joseph is, simply put, fruitful. He was a young man who bloomed where he was planted. Let’s quickly skim through his story. Joseph was born into a wealthy family and was highly favored in the eyes of his parents, but disliked by his siblings. His brothers’ dislike grew into passionate jealousy until they couldn’t tolerate it anymore. So they made up their minds to do something about it and sold him as a slave in a foreign country. By this time, Joseph would approximately be age 17. Afterwards, we see that he gains favor at his master’s house, which also brought up some other undesired effects. He was thrown into jail and after a very long story, he ends up ruling the country he was enslaved and incarcerated at.

He was originally from a wealthy family when all of a sudden his life changed drastically. He became a slave! That’s like being inaugurated as a president on Monday, then by Wednesday, trashed out. Who could bear that? Yet, he remained who he was and was found to be faithful at his work. So much so that he was actually promoted. Just when he thought life was getting better, he was falsely accused and thrown into jail. First a favored son, then a slave and now, an inmate. Could life get any more discouraging? Here is what gets me even more amazed; when all this was happening, he was in the age of 17-21. As we all know, when a person is young, there are syndromes: the now-or-never attitude. But it seems like he was entirely insensitive to that. No matter where he went, he used what was around him to bring out the best in him. In his parent’s home, he was the favorite; while he was a slave, he was found to be the best at it and when he was in a jail cell, he had proven to be the most responsible that he was even appointed by the warden. He bloomed where he was planted. As a result, the favor of God showered down on him. I don’t know about you but I want that shower so bad, the double-dose version, thick and heavy.

One day, I was conversing with a notable person and he asked me what I was planning for college and my life in general. My answer was, “Well, ezi-hager (in this country) things are Armageddon, it’s so bad that so and so did such and such, and this and that happened, and on top of that, his little cousin became this and his dog got chopped…blah…blah…blah.” Then he challenged me with a question, “Have you been your best at what you call ezi-hager?” He told me how influential personalities in Ethiopia, who now live blockbuster lives, were at first. That made me realize how most of us young people neglect what we have in our hands, be it the country we live in, the school we go to or the people around us.Maybe we should stop complaining and make the most of what we do have. Imagine if Ferricio Lamborghini never made the choices he made, we would never have an Avantodor.

What I have learned is that life is full of mysteries. The thing about mystery is that you’ll have to wait until the ending to figure it out. So until the very end, we ought to wait with a fruitful life like Joseph. Wait with hope. Hope can be simply put as a happy anticipation. Be filled with the expectation of what God is willing and able to do. The truth is, God put us in way that we don’t like waiting. No one likes waiting. I sure don’t. I want it fast and good! But patience is a virtue. Because if you want to live a life you will not regret for eternity, what it boils down to is discipline. Imagine standing at the courtroom in heaven and not regretting a thing! Do you want to live the life God has for you? Then, embrace discipline, which is all about the fear of God. It’s heaven’s culture. Live the best life you possibly could, bloom where you’re planted.