Excerpt from Genesis 40:6-8

"When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they were troubled.  So he asked Pharaoh's officers, who were with him in custody in his master's house, 'Why are your faces downcast today?'  They said to him, 'We have had dreams, and there is no one to interpret them.'  And Joseph said to them, 'Do not interpretations belong to God?'"

Reflection by Kenneth L. Samuel

In one of my favorite scenes from "The Pink Panther," Inspector Clouseau (a fictional French police detective) interrogates a woman suspected of perjury in a previous testimony.  "Madame" the Inspector says, "this time I want nothing but the truth.  Don't confuse me with the facts."

This rather humorous statement reminds us of something that we sometimes forget.  Knowledge of the facts does not always translate into an understanding of the truth.
 
While serving time in an Egyptian prison, Joseph, son of the Hebrew patriarch Jacob, encounters two fellow prisoners who have facts but who lack understanding.  These two former attendants of the Pharaoh have no problem recalling the facts of their dreams to Joseph.  The details are all recollected and communicated.  These two men knew the facts, but they didn't know how to draw meaning from the facts.

A pastor asked a group of laypersons to talk about what really motivated each of them to attend church.  One young man stated: "My life is full of so many questions.  I come to church because I need some answers."  A woman added this: "I've got lots of questions in my life as well.  But I don’t necessarily come to church for answers.  I know life is not that simple.  I come to church to gain understanding.  I can deal with the unanswered questions and the problems in my life as long as my understanding is increasing."

Sometimes we need an understanding of why it is that we don't  grasp the meaning of some things in our lives.  Joseph's reply to his fellow prisoners' quest for meaning was that the interpretation of the facts of life belongs to God.  We may have all the facts, but God has the truth that gives our lives meaning, purpose and value.  It's enough to motivate us not only to go to church, but to seek God in all our ways.

Prayer

Dear God, as we encounter the facts of life today, please give us guidance, give us wisdom and give us understanding.  Amen.

About the Author Kenneth L. Samuel is Pastor of Victory for the World Church, Stone Mountain, Georgia.

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