And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. – Genesis 37: 5
Joseph would not have required a comeback if there had been no fight. There would not have been a fight if he had not had a dream. That is because, it was the dream which started the fight.
Yes, there had always been an undercurrent of animosity against him which ran in his brothers’ blood. Yes, his parents had always had suspicions that he was different and a little “special.” However, things were tolerable until he had a dream. That dream ignited the flames which started a family fire that burned for decades. What was it about Joseph’s dream that caused such a negative reaction?
1. His brothers were angry that he had a dream. Some people are satisfied with staying on the corner and get angry when you dream of traveling the world. Some people hate school and education and think you are trying to be uppity when you dream of going to college. Some people are comfortable in the projects and look at you as “thinking you are better than them” when you dream of owning your own house. There is a crowd who are stuck in the status quo and can’t stand the fact that, at least you, have the capacity to dream about a change.
2. His brothers were angry that he told the dream. Their attitude was: “If you are going to dream, fine. Keep it to yourself! We don’t want to hear about it. We don’t want to be involved in it. We don’t want regular updates on it. Keep that dream to yourself.” The more Joseph communicated his dream, the more it reminded his brothers that it was the capability to dream which separated them from Joseph and it was the dream itself which would determine how different each of their lives would be.
3. His brothers were angry about their role in the dream. Joseph’s brothers were upset at his capacity to dream. They were furious at his communication of the dream. However, it was the content of his dream that really sent them over the edge. Joseph said:
For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. – Genesis 37: 7
To make matters worse, he had another dream in which he said: “…the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.” – Genesis 37: 9. Joseph’s brothers were not dreamers, but they were also not dummies! They figured out right away that in Joseph’s dream, he literally was the center of the universe and their lot was to revolve around him. That was just not happening if they had anything to say about it. Thus, the fight was on!
The sad reality is that many of the fights you will experience in life will be the direct result of your courage to dream. Don’t be afraid of the dream or the fight because in the end the dream and the dreamer wins.