The Dream

Josiah “Jo” Perez always saw further than his role allowed.

While others focused on quarterly goals and safe decisions, Jo talked vision. Expansion. Innovation. Systems that could actually work.

But vision can threaten people who are comfortable.

In team meetings, his ideas were quietly dismissed. In private threads, his name was questioned.

“He thinks he’s better than us,” someone said.
“He needs to stay in his lane,” another replied.

Jo didn’t know it yet, but the same people who heard his dream were already planning his exit.

The Pit

The email came without warning.

“We’ve decided to move forward without you.”

No explanation. No meeting. Just removal.

Slack access revoked. Projects reassigned. His name erased like it never mattered.

Betrayed by people he trusted. Undercut by those who smiled in his face.

Jo sat in his car afterward, staring at the steering wheel, asking the question we all ask when the fall makes no sense:

“God… why?”

The pit is rarely dramatic.
Sometimes it’s just sudden silence where favor used to be.

The Prison

Jo landed another role quickly. Different company. Lower visibility. Same integrity.

He showed up early. Stayed late. Helped everyone.

And then it happened.

A false HR complaint.

Accusations twisted. Context ignored. Reputation questioned.

Once again, Jo found himself confined not by bars, but by suspicion.

But here’s what prison seasons reveal:
Character doesn’t disappear when platforms do.

Jo kept serving with excellence. He trained new hires. Solved problems quietly. Refused to grow bitter.

While others counted him out, heaven was counting him faithful.

The Testing of the Word

Scripture says of Joseph:

“Until the time that his word came to pass,
the word of the Lord tested him.”
— Psalm 105:19

Delay wasn’t punishment.

It was preparation.

God wasn’t just shaping Jo’s skills.
He was strengthening his soul.

The Platform

Then crisis hit.

The company faced a problem no one could solve. Systems failing. Money leaking. Leadership scrambling.

Someone remembered Jo.

“Didn’t he work on something like this before?”

Jo was called into a meeting he never expected to attend.

He listened. He analyzed. He spoke with clarity and calm.

And just like that, the solution emerged.

What others overlooked, Jo understood.
What others feared, Jo navigated.

By the end of the week, he wasn’t just thanked.

He was promoted.

Seated at the head table.
Trusted with authority.
Placed over decisions that affected everyone including those who once doubted him.

God doesn’t promote loudly.
He promotes undeniably.

The Lesson

Jo’s story isn’t rare. It’s repeated.

God often moves His people through three rooms:

• The pit where vision is misunderstood

• The prison where integrity is tested

• The platform where purpose is revealed

Promotion doesn’t come from proximity.
It comes from process.

And the ones who stay faithful in unfair rooms are the ones God trusts in visible ones.

Reflection

Can you remain faithful when:

• You’re blamed for what you didn’t do?

• You’re overlooked while others advance?

• The room feels stacked against you?

God sees what people miss.

And He remembers what injustice tries to erase.

Scripture

Genesis 37; 39–41
Psalm 105:19

Waiting seasons test more than patience. They test perspective.

If you’re in a pit or a prison season right now, praise will keep your heart aligned while God prepares your promotion.

I created a free 7-day devotional ebook called Praise Before Prayer to help you shift from striving to worship and build a lifestyle of surrender. 

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Redeemed by Grace. Rooted in Faith. Living on Purpose.
Redeemed and Rooted
— S. A. Briddell