Midweek Echo
Midweek Echo is a simple reminder of Sunday’s message—something to help you recall what you heard, reflect on what it means, and live it out through the week. It’s a way to stay rooted in God’s Word, remembering that “faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.” (Romans 10:17 NIV).
Am I in God’s Place?
In 2003, Elizabeth Holmes founded Theranos with the promise that a single drop of blood could run hundreds of medical tests quickly and cheaply. The vision attracted massive investment and partnerships, and at one point the company was valued at $9 billion. But investigative reporting eventually revealed the technology did not work as claimed. By 2018 the company collapsed, and in 2022 Holmes was convicted of fraud.
​
That story reflects something deeper than a failed business. It reveals a shadow side of human nature: when personal vision, confidence, and self-authority eclipse truth and accountability. Scripture affirms human agency as God’s gift, yet when autonomy becomes ultimacy (when the self becomes the final authority) we subtly try to take God’s place.
​
Proverbs 3:5-6 reminds us: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
​
Joseph (one of the least bitter and most tender and peaceful figures in all of the bible) models this posture in Genesis 50. After Jacob died, Joseph’s brothers feared revenge for having sold him into slavery years earlier. Yet Joseph asked a profound question: “Am I in the place of God?” Though he had power to punish, he refused to assume ultimate authority. Instead, he said, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good.”
​
Joseph didn’t deny the wrong done to him, but he trusted God’s providence more than his own right to control outcomes. He recognized that judgment, identity, meaning, and the future ultimately belong to God.
We face Joseph’s question daily (Am I god?). It appears when we insist on having the last word, when we cling to bitterness, when we define truth solely by personal preference, or when we carry guilt as though God’s mercy were insufficient. Peace comes not from controlling everything but from remembering who sits on the throne.
​
Joseph wanted the best for his family and he knew that came from acknowledging that God is God, and God is good.
​
Prayer: Almighty God, remind us that you alone are God and that we are not. Help us to find peace, perspective and tenderness from your gracious providence and authority today. In Jesus Name, Amen
​
- Pastor Steve Johnson, February 11, 2026