A couple years ago, I was blessed with the amazing opportunity to travel with Joel and Victoria and have a wonderful visit with Reverend Billy Graham. While we were visiting, we asked him to sign our Bibles. He gave us each a different Scripture and mine was Philippians 1:6 that says, "Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."

There is so much hope found in this verse, and it serves as a great reminder that God will fulfill His great plan in our lives. When we're en route or in transition from point A to point B, it's easy to feel forgotten, frustrated and in despair. But we can rest assured that God is there and knows all, sees all and will complete His good work in us.

One of the greatest examples to illustrate this is found in the life of Joseph. His story is found in Genesis 37. Joseph is a man that God used greatly. When he was only 17, God gave him two incredible dreams, one which revealed that one day his twelve brothers would bow down to him. When he shared his dream with them, not only were they jealous of it, they were jealous of their father's favoritism toward Joseph. His father even gave him a special coat, and his brothers hated him for it. So they decided they were going to take matters into their own hands and get revenge.

One day, they took off his coat and put him in a pit; but instead of leaving Joseph in the pit to die, they decided to sell him into slavery. Then they lied to their father and told him that a wild animal had killed him. But God's hand was upon Joseph, and he ended up in the house of a man named Potiphar. Potiphar was one of Pharaoh's officials, and he really liked Joseph because he could see the favor and blessing of God on his life. So he turned all of his affairs over to Joseph and let him manage his whole household.

Joseph did an excellent job, but he had one problem. He could manage everything but Potiphar's wife! She was a doozy! The Bible says that she cast longing eyes at Joseph. You see, Joseph was handsome and well built. One time she caught him by the coat and said, "Come to bed with me." But Joseph said, "How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" And he ran away from her. He refused to compromise in the face of temptation. But Potiphar's wife had his coat, and she told her husband that Joseph tried to rape her. And it only gets worse! Joseph ended up in Pharaoh's prison. But Joseph rose to the top again. God blessed him, and he was soon put in charge of the prison.

Like Joseph, you may feel situations pushing you down or even find yourself in unfair, unwanted circumstances, but God sees you and will help you always rise to the top. You see, things began to turn around for Joseph while he was in prison. Pharaoh had a dream that no one in the land could interpret. Two years prior to Pharoah's dream, Joseph interpreted dreams for Pharaoh's cupbearer and baker when they had both been in prison with him. It wasn't until two years later that the cupbearer remembered and decided to make mention of Joseph when Pharoah had a frightening dream that a famine was coming upon Egypt. So Pharaoh became curious and had Joseph released from prison to interpret his dream. Joseph brought great ease in his interpretation as he advised Pharaoh to choose a man to prepare for the coming famine so that there would be enough food.

Wouldn't you know that Pharaoh looked at Joseph and said, "You're the man." He said, "Since God has made this known to you, there is no one as wise and discerning as you." And that day, Pharaoh put Joseph in charge of his palace, and all of Egypt had to submit to him!

Pharaoh dressed Joseph in robes of fine linen, and he finally got a new coat! But this coat was different; it represented royalty and restoration because God always provides vindication for His children. With Him, there is full redemption!

Soon after, Joseph got married and had two sons and great joy in his life. Eventually, Joseph was reunited with his father and brothers again. They came to Egypt to buy food from Joseph during the famine. They didn't even notice that he was their brother, and they bowed down in his presence just like he saw in his dreams! He was walking in the fulfillment of the dreams God had given him.

Joseph went from the pit to the palace! He was forsaken, falsely accused and forgotten by people, but not by God. God showed him great favor. I am sure Joseph had to remind himself again and again, "It's not over; God will complete in me what He started. The dreams He gave me will come true." Many times, when we're in the so-called pit in our own lives, we have to do the same. We have to remind ourselves of God's faithful promises and always keep our trust and faith in Him because understand, without the pit, there is no palace. So whenever you find yourself in the pit, don't let it scare you; let it encourage you. You are on your way to the palace. There are so many things I learned in the pit that I couldn't learn anywhere else that are beneficial to what God has called me to do now. Whenever people are mistreating you or even falsely accusing you, don't worry, they may be directing your steps to the throne!

Remember, Joseph was in the pit, but he didn't let the pit get in him. He didn't develop a pit mentality. A pit mentality is when you say, "There is no hope for me because I'm in the pit. My mama was in the pit. I'll always be in the pit. Nobody loves me in the pit. Nobody can help me get out of the pit." But Joseph didn't define himself by what he went through. He knew that he was destined to reign. His attitude was, "It's not over!" And so you must say the same! That's what your attitude should be!

Joseph said it best, "What the enemy meant for evil, God meant for good." There is great confidence in knowing that God will take the very things that you are going through and turn them around for your good and for His purposes." (Romans 8:28).

Take comfort in what God says to you. Even if you feel like Joseph, forgotten, in the pit, alone, far off track and you feel like it's not your fault, take comfort from God's words found in Isaiah 46:9-11, "I am God, and there is no other. I am God, and there is none like Me. I make known the end from the beginning...I say: 'My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please…what I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned, that I will do.'"

You can't get any plainer than that! God is saying, "It's not over until I say it's over!" Trust God from the pit to the palace. Live a life of excellence and God will bring you through to a flourishing finish. God is faithful to His Word and He is faithful to you! He will bring to completion every good work He has started in your life!