PARTICIPANT GUIDE
What we do with what is already in our hands matters to God. In Entrusted — Part 4: Entrusted with Responsibility, we’ll follow Joseph from Potiphar’s house to the prison and eventually to Pharaoh’s palace, discovering how faithfulness in small things prepares us for greater responsibility. God may be using today’s ordinary assignments to prepare us for opportunities we cannot yet see.
ICE BREAKER
- What was one of the first responsibilities someone trusted you with as a child or teenager?
- What is something you own that you would only loan to someone you really trust? Why?
- Who is one of the most dependable people you know? What makes that person trustworthy?
SCRIPTURAL REFERENCES
Genesis 39:2–6
Genesis 39:21–23
Genesis 40:6–8
Genesis 41:39–41
Luke 16:10–12
Genesis 39:21–23
Genesis 40:6–8
Genesis 41:39–41
Luke 16:10–12
BIG IDEA
God often prepares us for greater responsibility by watching how we handle the responsibility already in our hands.
SERMON SUMMARY
Joseph’s life teaches us that responsibility matters to God. Most of what Joseph managed did not actually belong to him. Potiphar’s house was not his. The prison was not his. Pharaoh’s resources were not his. Yet Joseph treated every assignment as though it mattered to God.
Step 1: Be faithful with what is in your hands. Faithfulness begins with what God has already entrusted to you not what you hope to have someday.
Step 2: Faithfulness in small things creates capacity for greater things. Joseph moved from managing a household, to responsibilities in prison, and eventually to leading Egypt. God used each assignment to develop him. Responsibility prepares us for opportunity.
Step 3: Take responsibility even when it isn’t your dream. Joseph spent years serving other people before seeing his own dream fulfilled. Sometimes following Jesus means faithfully helping someone else succeed.
Whatever God has placed in your hands your family, work, ministry, finances, relationships, or opportunities can become an act of worship when you faithfully steward it for Him.
Step 1: Be faithful with what is in your hands. Faithfulness begins with what God has already entrusted to you not what you hope to have someday.
Step 2: Faithfulness in small things creates capacity for greater things. Joseph moved from managing a household, to responsibilities in prison, and eventually to leading Egypt. God used each assignment to develop him. Responsibility prepares us for opportunity.
Step 3: Take responsibility even when it isn’t your dream. Joseph spent years serving other people before seeing his own dream fulfilled. Sometimes following Jesus means faithfully helping someone else succeed.
Whatever God has placed in your hands your family, work, ministry, finances, relationships, or opportunities can become an act of worship when you faithfully steward it for Him.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
- What has God entrusted to your care right now?
- What makes it difficult to stay faithful in responsibilities that seem small?
- How might your current season be preparing you for something in the future?
- What would it look like for you to approach your work “as working for the Lord”?
- Who could you intentionally help or serve this week without needing recognition?
PRACTICAL APPLICATION
(Live It Out)
Identify one responsibility already in your hands and take one specific step this week to handle it more faithfully.
PRAYER FOCUS
- Ask God to help you become more faithful with what He has already given you.
- Pray for a servant’s heart that is willing to help others succeed.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to use today’s responsibilities to prepare you for His purposes.
DEVOTIONAL PLAN
Memory Verse of the Week
Luke 16:10
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Luke 16:10
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Day 1 — What's in Your Hands?
Memory Verse of the Week:
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Scripture: Genesis 39:2–4
“The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered… Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned.”
Devotional Thought:
Joseph’s life had taken a turn he never would have chosen. He was far from home, separated from his family, and serving in a household that did not belong to him. Yet Joseph made a decision that would mark the rest of his life: he would faithfully handle whatever was placed in his hands.
Potiphar began giving Joseph responsibility, and Joseph proved trustworthy. Eventually, Scripture says Potiphar “entrusted to his care everything he owned.”
That is a powerful picture of stewardship.
Stewardship is not ownership. It is faithfully caring for something that has been entrusted to us. Joseph did not own the house, but he treated his responsibility as though it mattered deeply.
The same is true for us.
God has placed something in your hands today. Maybe it is your family, your job, your education, your finances, your ministry, your health, or an opportunity to influence someone. It may not be the assignment you dreamed about. It may not even feel very significant. But if God has allowed it to be placed in your care, it matters.
Faithfulness does not begin someday when you have more. Faithfulness begins today with what you already have.
The Holy Spirit can help us see ordinary responsibilities differently. Instead of asking, “When will something better come along?” we can ask, “Lord, how can I honor You with what You have entrusted to me today?”
Joseph could not control where he was, but he could control how faithfully he served there.
So can you.
Look again at what is in your hands.
It may be more important than you realize.
Reflection Questions:
- What responsibilities has God placed in your hands during this season?
- Is there an area you have been tempted to treat casually because it does not feel important?
- What would greater faithfulness look like for you today?
Suggested Reading: Genesis 39:1–6
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, help me recognize what You have entrusted to my care. Give me the desire and strength to handle today’s responsibilities faithfully and to honor Jesus in everything I do. Amen.
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Scripture: Genesis 39:2–4
“The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered… Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned.”
Devotional Thought:
Joseph’s life had taken a turn he never would have chosen. He was far from home, separated from his family, and serving in a household that did not belong to him. Yet Joseph made a decision that would mark the rest of his life: he would faithfully handle whatever was placed in his hands.
Potiphar began giving Joseph responsibility, and Joseph proved trustworthy. Eventually, Scripture says Potiphar “entrusted to his care everything he owned.”
That is a powerful picture of stewardship.
Stewardship is not ownership. It is faithfully caring for something that has been entrusted to us. Joseph did not own the house, but he treated his responsibility as though it mattered deeply.
The same is true for us.
God has placed something in your hands today. Maybe it is your family, your job, your education, your finances, your ministry, your health, or an opportunity to influence someone. It may not be the assignment you dreamed about. It may not even feel very significant. But if God has allowed it to be placed in your care, it matters.
Faithfulness does not begin someday when you have more. Faithfulness begins today with what you already have.
The Holy Spirit can help us see ordinary responsibilities differently. Instead of asking, “When will something better come along?” we can ask, “Lord, how can I honor You with what You have entrusted to me today?”
Joseph could not control where he was, but he could control how faithfully he served there.
So can you.
Look again at what is in your hands.
It may be more important than you realize.
Reflection Questions:
- What responsibilities has God placed in your hands during this season?
- Is there an area you have been tempted to treat casually because it does not feel important?
- What would greater faithfulness look like for you today?
Suggested Reading: Genesis 39:1–6
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, help me recognize what You have entrusted to my care. Give me the desire and strength to handle today’s responsibilities faithfully and to honor Jesus in everything I do. Amen.
Day 2 — It Matters Even When It Isn't Yours
Memory Verse of the Week:
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Scripture: Colossians 3:23
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.”
Devotional Thought:
One of the most impressive things about Joseph is how well he cared for things that belonged to someone else.
Potiphar’s house was not Joseph’s house. The resources were not Joseph’s resources. The success of the household would primarily benefit Potiphar, not Joseph.
Joseph could easily have thought, “Why should I care? None of this belongs to me.”
Instead, Joseph lived by a different principle:
Just because it isn’t mine doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter.
That attitude should distinguish followers of Jesus.
Paul told believers, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.” That changes our perspective. Our ultimate audience is not simply an employer, supervisor, teacher, customer, pastor, or parent. Our ultimate audience is Jesus.
That means we can serve faithfully even when nobody is watching.
We can take care of someone else’s equipment.
We can respect someone else’s time.
We can protect someone else’s resources.
We can support someone else’s vision.
We can do excellent work even when our name will never receive the credit.
Why?
Because ultimately we are serving Christ.
Imagine what would happen if followers of Jesus became known as the most dependable people in every workplace, classroom, neighborhood, ministry, and organization.
People should be able to say of us, “If I put something in their hands, I know they will take care of it.”
Faithfulness is a spiritual issue.
Today, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any area where you have treated someone else’s resources, time, or responsibilities too casually. Then decide that whatever passes through your hands will be handled in a way that honors Jesus.
Reflection Questions:
- How do you normally respond when you are responsible for something that belongs to someone else?
- Where could your faith become more visible through your work ethic or dependability?
- What would it mean for you to work “as working for the Lord” today?
Suggested Reading: Colossians 3:22–24
Prayer:
Jesus, remind me that ultimately I am serving You. Help me be trustworthy, dependable, and careful with everything placed in my hands, whether it belongs to me or someone else. Amen.
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Scripture: Colossians 3:23
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.”
Devotional Thought:
One of the most impressive things about Joseph is how well he cared for things that belonged to someone else.
Potiphar’s house was not Joseph’s house. The resources were not Joseph’s resources. The success of the household would primarily benefit Potiphar, not Joseph.
Joseph could easily have thought, “Why should I care? None of this belongs to me.”
Instead, Joseph lived by a different principle:
Just because it isn’t mine doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter.
That attitude should distinguish followers of Jesus.
Paul told believers, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.” That changes our perspective. Our ultimate audience is not simply an employer, supervisor, teacher, customer, pastor, or parent. Our ultimate audience is Jesus.
That means we can serve faithfully even when nobody is watching.
We can take care of someone else’s equipment.
We can respect someone else’s time.
We can protect someone else’s resources.
We can support someone else’s vision.
We can do excellent work even when our name will never receive the credit.
Why?
Because ultimately we are serving Christ.
Imagine what would happen if followers of Jesus became known as the most dependable people in every workplace, classroom, neighborhood, ministry, and organization.
People should be able to say of us, “If I put something in their hands, I know they will take care of it.”
Faithfulness is a spiritual issue.
Today, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any area where you have treated someone else’s resources, time, or responsibilities too casually. Then decide that whatever passes through your hands will be handled in a way that honors Jesus.
Reflection Questions:
- How do you normally respond when you are responsible for something that belongs to someone else?
- Where could your faith become more visible through your work ethic or dependability?
- What would it mean for you to work “as working for the Lord” today?
Suggested Reading: Colossians 3:22–24
Prayer:
Jesus, remind me that ultimately I am serving You. Help me be trustworthy, dependable, and careful with everything placed in my hands, whether it belongs to me or someone else. Amen.
Day 3 — Small Things are Developing Something
Memory Verse of the Week:
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Scripture: Genesis 39:21–23
“The Lord was with him… 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.”
Devotional Thought:
Joseph’s surroundings changed dramatically, but Joseph did not. In Potiphar’s house, he was entrusted with responsibility. Then, through no fault of his own, Joseph found himself in prison. You might expect Joseph to give up. Instead, the same pattern appears again. The prison warden sees something in Joseph and begins giving him responsibility. Before long, Joseph is overseeing what happens inside the prison.
A house. Then a prison. Eventually, a nation. Joseph could not see it yet, but God was developing capacity through every assignment.
We often underestimate small responsibilities because we cannot see where they are leading. We want the bigger opportunity, greater influence, or more meaningful assignment. But God frequently develops what we will need tomorrow through responsibilities that seem ordinary today.
The place you are serving right now may be teaching you patience. The job you have today may be developing discipline. The person you are helping may be teaching you leadership. The responsibility that feels repetitive may be strengthening your character. None of it has to be wasted.
Joseph did not suddenly become capable when he arrived at Pharaoh’s palace. Years of faithfulness had already shaped him. The same Holy Spirit who prepares opportunities also prepares people.
So do not despise the season you are in. Ask God what He is developing in you through it. Your responsibility today may look small, but the work God is doing inside you is not small.
Responsibility prepares you for opportunity.
Be faithful where you are. God sees the whole story even when you only see today’s assignment.
Reflection Questions:
- What responsibility in your life currently feels small or repetitive?
- What might God be developing in you through this season?
- How could viewing today as preparation change your attitude toward your responsibilities?
Suggested Reading: Luke 16:10–12
Prayer:
Father, help me not to despise small assignments. Use every responsibility in my life to develop the character, wisdom, and capacity I will need for whatever You have ahead. Amen.
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Scripture: Genesis 39:21–23
“The Lord was with him… 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.”
Devotional Thought:
Joseph’s surroundings changed dramatically, but Joseph did not. In Potiphar’s house, he was entrusted with responsibility. Then, through no fault of his own, Joseph found himself in prison. You might expect Joseph to give up. Instead, the same pattern appears again. The prison warden sees something in Joseph and begins giving him responsibility. Before long, Joseph is overseeing what happens inside the prison.
A house. Then a prison. Eventually, a nation. Joseph could not see it yet, but God was developing capacity through every assignment.
We often underestimate small responsibilities because we cannot see where they are leading. We want the bigger opportunity, greater influence, or more meaningful assignment. But God frequently develops what we will need tomorrow through responsibilities that seem ordinary today.
The place you are serving right now may be teaching you patience. The job you have today may be developing discipline. The person you are helping may be teaching you leadership. The responsibility that feels repetitive may be strengthening your character. None of it has to be wasted.
Joseph did not suddenly become capable when he arrived at Pharaoh’s palace. Years of faithfulness had already shaped him. The same Holy Spirit who prepares opportunities also prepares people.
So do not despise the season you are in. Ask God what He is developing in you through it. Your responsibility today may look small, but the work God is doing inside you is not small.
Responsibility prepares you for opportunity.
Be faithful where you are. God sees the whole story even when you only see today’s assignment.
Reflection Questions:
- What responsibility in your life currently feels small or repetitive?
- What might God be developing in you through this season?
- How could viewing today as preparation change your attitude toward your responsibilities?
Suggested Reading: Luke 16:10–12
Prayer:
Father, help me not to despise small assignments. Use every responsibility in my life to develop the character, wisdom, and capacity I will need for whatever You have ahead. Amen.
Day 4 — Prepared Before the Opportunity
Memory Verse of the Week:
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Scripture: Genesis 41:41
“So Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.’”
Devotional Thought:
Joseph’s opportunity seemed to arrive overnight. One day he was in prison. Then Pharaoh called for him. Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, developed a strategy for surviving the coming famine, and suddenly Pharaoh placed him over Egypt. It looks sudden. But Joseph’s preparation was anything but sudden.
Joseph had spent years learning how to handle responsibility. He had managed Potiphar’s household. He had overseen responsibilities in the prison. He had learned to work under authority. He had learned to manage resources. He had learned to solve problems. He had learned to lead when he was not the owner. So when the opportunity came, Joseph was ready.
Here is an important truth: The opportunity may arrive suddenly, but the capacity to carry it is usually developed slowly.
Sometimes we pray for opportunities without realizing that God may already be answering our prayer by developing us. We ask God for influence, and He gives us someone to serve. We ask God for greater responsibility, and He gives us a small assignment. We ask God to use us, and He puts us somewhere that requires consistency.
Do not confuse preparation with delay.
The Holy Spirit is interested not only in opening doors for you but also in forming Christlike character within you so you can faithfully walk through those doors.
Whatever God has next for your life, you can trust Him with the timing. Your responsibility is to remain faithful today.
Joseph did not begin with Egypt. He began with what was placed in his hands.
So rather than constantly asking, “When will my opportunity come?” try asking, “Lord, what are You preparing in me right now?”
Reflection Questions:
- Where are you currently asking God for a new or greater opportunity?
- How might your present responsibilities be preparing you for something ahead?
- What character quality does God want to strengthen in you during this season?
Suggested Reading: Genesis 41:33–41
Prayer:
Lord, prepare me before You promote me. Develop wisdom, character, humility, and faithfulness in me so I can carry whatever responsibility You choose to entrust to me. Amen.
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Scripture: Genesis 41:41
“So Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.’”
Devotional Thought:
Joseph’s opportunity seemed to arrive overnight. One day he was in prison. Then Pharaoh called for him. Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, developed a strategy for surviving the coming famine, and suddenly Pharaoh placed him over Egypt. It looks sudden. But Joseph’s preparation was anything but sudden.
Joseph had spent years learning how to handle responsibility. He had managed Potiphar’s household. He had overseen responsibilities in the prison. He had learned to work under authority. He had learned to manage resources. He had learned to solve problems. He had learned to lead when he was not the owner. So when the opportunity came, Joseph was ready.
Here is an important truth: The opportunity may arrive suddenly, but the capacity to carry it is usually developed slowly.
Sometimes we pray for opportunities without realizing that God may already be answering our prayer by developing us. We ask God for influence, and He gives us someone to serve. We ask God for greater responsibility, and He gives us a small assignment. We ask God to use us, and He puts us somewhere that requires consistency.
Do not confuse preparation with delay.
The Holy Spirit is interested not only in opening doors for you but also in forming Christlike character within you so you can faithfully walk through those doors.
Whatever God has next for your life, you can trust Him with the timing. Your responsibility is to remain faithful today.
Joseph did not begin with Egypt. He began with what was placed in his hands.
So rather than constantly asking, “When will my opportunity come?” try asking, “Lord, what are You preparing in me right now?”
Reflection Questions:
- Where are you currently asking God for a new or greater opportunity?
- How might your present responsibilities be preparing you for something ahead?
- What character quality does God want to strengthen in you during this season?
Suggested Reading: Genesis 41:33–41
Prayer:
Lord, prepare me before You promote me. Develop wisdom, character, humility, and faithfulness in me so I can carry whatever responsibility You choose to entrust to me. Amen.
Day 5 — Serve Someone Else's Dream
Memory Verse of the Week:
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Scripture: Genesis 40:6–8
“When Joseph came to them the next morning, he saw that they were dejected. So he asked Pharaoh’s officials… ‘Why do you look so sad today?’ ‘We both had dreams,’ they answered… Then Joseph said to them, ‘Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.’”
Devotional Thought:
Joseph had a dream of his own. But while Joseph waited for that dream to be fulfilled, God repeatedly gave him opportunities to serve other people.
In prison, Joseph noticed that Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker were discouraged. Joseph had plenty of reasons to focus only on himself. He had been mistreated, falsely accused, forgotten, and imprisoned. But Joseph still noticed someone else.
“Why do you look so sad today?”
Then something remarkable happened. The man waiting for his own dream to be fulfilled helped someone else understand theirs. Later, Joseph did the same thing for Pharaoh.
This teaches us something important about responsibility: Sometimes faithfulness means carrying an assignment that does not have your name on it.
Our culture often tells us to chase our own dreams, build our own platform, and make sure our own work gets noticed. Joseph shows us another way.
Serve. Help someone else succeed. Support someone else’s vision. Be faithful even when someone else gets the credit.
Jesus said that faithfulness with what belongs to another person matters to God.
That does not mean serving others guarantees that every personal dream will come true exactly as we imagine. But it does mean service is never wasted when it is offered faithfully to God.
The Kingdom of God works differently from the kingdom of self-promotion. Faithfulness before visibility. Service before significance. Responsibility before opportunity.
Ask the Holy Spirit today: “Whose assignment can I help carry? Who can I encourage? Who can I help succeed?”
Sometimes one of the greatest ways we steward our own lives is by faithfully helping someone else with theirs.
Reflection Questions:
- How easy or difficult is it for you to serve when someone else receives the recognition?
- Who has God given you an opportunity to help succeed right now?
- What would serving someone else’s assignment faithfully look like this week?
Suggested Reading: Luke 16:10–12
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, free me from the need to always be noticed or recognized. Give me the heart of Jesus—a heart willing to serve, encourage, and help others succeed for Your glory. Amen.
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Scripture: Genesis 40:6–8
“When Joseph came to them the next morning, he saw that they were dejected. So he asked Pharaoh’s officials… ‘Why do you look so sad today?’ ‘We both had dreams,’ they answered… Then Joseph said to them, ‘Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.’”
Devotional Thought:
Joseph had a dream of his own. But while Joseph waited for that dream to be fulfilled, God repeatedly gave him opportunities to serve other people.
In prison, Joseph noticed that Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker were discouraged. Joseph had plenty of reasons to focus only on himself. He had been mistreated, falsely accused, forgotten, and imprisoned. But Joseph still noticed someone else.
“Why do you look so sad today?”
Then something remarkable happened. The man waiting for his own dream to be fulfilled helped someone else understand theirs. Later, Joseph did the same thing for Pharaoh.
This teaches us something important about responsibility: Sometimes faithfulness means carrying an assignment that does not have your name on it.
Our culture often tells us to chase our own dreams, build our own platform, and make sure our own work gets noticed. Joseph shows us another way.
Serve. Help someone else succeed. Support someone else’s vision. Be faithful even when someone else gets the credit.
Jesus said that faithfulness with what belongs to another person matters to God.
That does not mean serving others guarantees that every personal dream will come true exactly as we imagine. But it does mean service is never wasted when it is offered faithfully to God.
The Kingdom of God works differently from the kingdom of self-promotion. Faithfulness before visibility. Service before significance. Responsibility before opportunity.
Ask the Holy Spirit today: “Whose assignment can I help carry? Who can I encourage? Who can I help succeed?”
Sometimes one of the greatest ways we steward our own lives is by faithfully helping someone else with theirs.
Reflection Questions:
- How easy or difficult is it for you to serve when someone else receives the recognition?
- Who has God given you an opportunity to help succeed right now?
- What would serving someone else’s assignment faithfully look like this week?
Suggested Reading: Luke 16:10–12
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, free me from the need to always be noticed or recognized. Give me the heart of Jesus—a heart willing to serve, encourage, and help others succeed for Your glory. Amen.