Digital Only: Come, Follow Me
When Doing the Right Thing Seems to Make Your Life Harder
Here’s a lesson from Joseph in the Old Testament about how to keep doing the right thing even when it seems to set you back.
Things looked pretty bleak for Joseph when he was sold into slavery by his brothers and taken to Egypt. But the Lord was with him, and after a time the Lord blessed him to become the most trusted servant in the house of his master, Potiphar. So Joseph was doing relatively well after that—until he was forced to make a decision.
One day, Potiphar’s wife told Joseph she wanted to have sexual relations with him (see Genesis 39:7). Joseph said no. He reminded her of the position of trust he had; he didn’t want to break that trust. But more important, he told her the crucial reason he could not do this: “How … can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:9).
Joseph stayed true to his commitment to obey God’s commandments. He did the right thing.
But Potiphar’s wife apparently would not take no for an answer. She kept asking for the same thing day after day. Joseph wouldn’t do it. He tried to avoid her. Again, he did the right thing.
Then one day she grabbed him by a piece of his clothing and made the same demand. Joseph slipped out of that garment and fled. Again, he did the right thing.
Well, that just made her angry and resentful. She lied about Joseph and said that he had forced himself upon her. She used the piece of clothing to prove her false accusation.
Potiphar believed his wife, and Joseph was thrown into prison. All because he insisted on doing the right thing.
The Right Thing Is Always Right
You’d think that after a while Joseph would have started to question whether doing the right thing is really always the right thing to do. It seemed to just get him into more trouble. But he continued to trust God and keep His commandments.
There may be times in your own life when doing the right thing seems to put you at a disadvantage. For example, you might wonder:
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“It sometimes seems like everyone’s cheating in school except me. Is being honest putting me behind?”
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“Refusing to drink coffee, tea, or alcohol makes some people think I’m weird. Is keeping the Word of Wisdom worth the social isolation?”
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“Because I pay tithing, I sometimes can’t afford things I want. Do I really need to pay tithing?”
But doing the right thing is always worth it. Obeying Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ is always worth it. Just remember Joseph. Yes, he suffered some consequences for doing the right thing—pretty serious ones. But in the end, staying true to God turned out to be a huge blessing for him—and everyone else.
Because Joseph stayed faithful, he was eventually in a position to become the most trusted person in Pharaoh’s court. Through the power of God, he was able to foresee a seven-year famine, and he encouraged Pharaoh to store enough food to survive it. This meant that Egypt was also able to help other lands affected by the famine.
Joseph’s own brothers even came to Egypt to get food for their family, and Joseph eventually made himself known to them. They were sorry for what they’d done to him, but Joseph said, “Be not grieved, … for God did send me before you to preserve life” (Genesis 45:5).
Joseph had learned that “all things work together for good to them that love God” (Romans 8:28). He knew that doing the right thing is always the right thing—even if it seems to make things worse for now.
You won’t always see the benefits of doing right immediately. Sometimes you may not see temporal benefits at all in this life. But as you continue to love God and trust and stay faithful to Him, He will always bless you spiritually and support you in your trials (see Alma 36:3).