“Wax On, Wax Off”

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“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” — Hebrews 12:11

The story of Joseph in the Old Testament is one of jealousy and betrayal—and the goodness and sovereignty of God. At age seventeen, Joseph’s brothers sell him to Midianite merchants who take him to Egypt where he is then sold to Potiphar, one of Pharoah’s officials. Because of a false accusation by Potiphar’s wife, Joseph is put into prison. In Genesis 39:20b-22 Scripture records, “But while Joseph was there in the prison, the LORD was with him; He showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there.”

Through the providence of God, Pharaoh releases Joseph from prison after many years of confinement and puts him in charge of the whole land of Egypt. (This is just a brief summary of a great story–please read it!) Because of Joseph’s Spirit-led wisdom and discernment, at age thirty he is able to lead Egypt to prepare during times of abundant harvest for a coming time of famine. This widespread famine eventually forces Joseph’s brothers to travel from Canaan in order to buy food—not realizing that the high-ranking official they meet in Egypt is their brother Joseph, whom they had sold into slavery. Perhaps you know how the story unfolds. . . .with the Israelites moving to Egypt and eventually returning to their promised land in the book of Exodus, led by Moses.

What did Joseph learn during his time in prison as someone unjustly accused? What must have seemed to me like frustration and loneliness really was a school for patience, leadership skills, business principles, perspective, peace, mercy, endurance, perseverance, self-control, and forgiveness. In other words, character. At the end of Genesis, we hear Joseph speak to his brothers the great words, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” (Genesis 50:20) What grace!

I recently watched the 1980s movie “The Karate Kid” and was impressed by the period of training that the aspiring young man, Daniel, went through with Mr. Miyagi. If you have seen the movie, you know that Mr. Miyagi promises to teach Daniel karate, and in turn Daniel promises to do what Mr. Miyagi says—no questions. Then begins a strenuous time for Daniel of polishing Mr. Miyagi’s cars (“wax on, wax off”), sanding his deck flooring (“sand the floor”), painting the fenced-in perimeter of his yard (“up. . . down”) and painting his house (“side to side”). What seems to Daniel to be just manual labor is really a time of training his muscles for the elements of karate—but he does not see it as that. In one particular scene, Daniel erupts in anger accusing Mr. Miyagi of just getting his property improved through his hard work. Mr. Miyagi immediately puts him through the first paces of “putting it all together”—revealing to Daniel that he has been learning the hand movements of karate all along, without realizing it. Fast forward to the end of the movie (after much more training) and Daniel wins the karate tournament, earning the respect of those who had originally tried to harm him.

What is God training you for during this deployment? Does it feel like loneliness and frustration? Does it feel like so much “wax on, wax off”(mission preparations?). . . . . “sand the floor” (take care of the kids?). . . . “up, down” (pay the bills?). . . . “side to side” (month after month?). . . .and in the midst of all of that you cannot see what God is doing? Is it only when it is over that you can look back and see how God is putting it all together—and you have learned patience, grace, wisdom, discernment, perspective, endurance, self-control, perhaps forgiveness . . . in other words, character?

And is it possible to have hope for the future because of the opportunity you’ve been given to grow in character—if you can understand and have “eyes to see”? Paul writes in Romans 5:3-5: “we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.”

I heard an Air Force fighter pilot once speak on the similarities between military training and spiritual training. His three points were: 1) they both require discipline and focus; 2) they both require repetition and practice; 3) they both are a “race” and not a “sprint.”

What this military pilot knew, what Mr. Miyagi taught Daniel, and what Joseph learned in prison was that focus. . . that faith-perspective which gives us hope in the midst of the “training” God is putting us through. . . is key to endurance. The great warrior-king David wrote in Psalm 141, “My eyes are fixed on you, O Sovereign LORD.” May we all have thankful eyes to see what God is doing in our lives, even now. What looks like months of painful testing during deployment may actually bring a harvest of righteousness if we allow ourselves to be “trained by it.”

Questions to share:

1. During this deployment, can you see God working in you to develop new character traits?

2. What every-day training is He using to cause you to endure?