An Act of Preparing

By Fabiano Altamura

Joseph’s journey fascinates me, did the guy ever get a break? I’ve meditated on Joseph my entire walk and I’m blown away by his story and character. Joseph knew he was called to greatness, he’d been dreaming about his destiny way long before his dreams in Genesis 37. I want you to listen to this, what we meditate on is what we become. His dreams were a manifestation of his internal world, but what happened when he shared his dreams with his family? Did they all celebrate? No of course not. Genesis 37:11 says this, “His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept this saying in mind.” This started a series of challenging events that would prepare Joseph for the most radical journey of his life to become the governor of Egypt. There was the pit, there was Potiphar, there was the prison, and eventually the palace.

Everything changed for me when my dad took me to see the movie “Big” with Tom Hanks. That’s when I got the desire to act, but when I shared it with my family I didn’t have one yes for over five years from anyone, my parents, relatives or even friends. They all said it wasn’t realistic and it was a very precarious industry to go into. Everyone’s no is not God’s no, someone’s no isn’t failure. Success is your yes in the midst of adversity. Like Joseph he never took his eyes off what God had called him to, and your yes to His yes, is success. Failure only happens when you say no to His yes for you. Everyone’s no in my life made me even more hungry to pursue acting. I wasn’t surrounded by actors, it was completely out of left field for my family, but my dad’s no was not a no of defeat. It was a no of challenge to see if I was hungry, if what I was desiring wasn’t just a fad. So I went away to University and studied law and business for three months, and it wasn’t until after me quitting that my dad then said what do you want to do. I said “Dad I want to act, I’ve only ever wanted to act.” and he said, “Okay son, now I will support you one hundred percent.”

I believe in this time God was refining and preparing my yes. Nowadays we are faced with so many options, we have a fear of commitment hangover. I narrowed down my options, to become a laser and not a shotgun, I wanted focus and not dispersion. So I want to pray for you right now, Father give us the courage to step into our desires that you have birthed in us. I pray for strength and wisdom in this time of preparation. Have a blessed day.