Genesis. So much about this story rivets me. Joseph is betrayed by his brothers, blessed by God in Potiphar's house, betrayed by Potiphar's wife and blessed by God in prison. After all that, he is forgotten by one of Pharaoh's servants. All that pain! Yet, God always has a purpose.
By the way, did you notice in Chapter 40 that Joseph's prison was in the palace of the captain of the guard and that it was the captain of the guard who assigned the butler and baker to Joseph? Go back to the beginning of Chapter 39 and you will find the name of the captain of the guard. Fascinating!
What do you think of this story so far?
Matthew. To me, Jesus' answer when his mother and brothers came to see Him is one of His most mysterious sayings. What does it say to you? Following that event, He teaches through parables. These word stories paint powerful mental pictures and help us remember truth.
I find today's Psalm powerful and challenging.
Proverbs today is 3 verses that each contrast the lives of the righteous and the wicked. I was moved to prayer today as I recalled a loved one who is clearly a mocker. I am crying out for my loved one's salvation.
What are you learning? What leaves you "scratching your head"? What just really bugs you?
By the way, did you notice in Chapter 40 that Joseph's prison was in the palace of the captain of the guard and that it was the captain of the guard who assigned the butler and baker to Joseph? Go back to the beginning of Chapter 39 and you will find the name of the captain of the guard. Fascinating!
What do you think of this story so far?
Matthew. To me, Jesus' answer when his mother and brothers came to see Him is one of His most mysterious sayings. What does it say to you? Following that event, He teaches through parables. These word stories paint powerful mental pictures and help us remember truth.
I find today's Psalm powerful and challenging.
Proverbs today is 3 verses that each contrast the lives of the righteous and the wicked. I was moved to prayer today as I recalled a loved one who is clearly a mocker. I am crying out for my loved one's salvation.
What are you learning? What leaves you "scratching your head"? What just really bugs you?
I had never noticed Potipher's later connection! I've always wondered if P doubted his wife's story at all, especially given Joseph's reputation.
ReplyDelete(had to move to the PC so I could actually type)
ReplyDeleteI just realized something about the parable on the sower... I've always had trouble remembering all 4 places the soil fell and would often mix up the shallow soil and the thorny soil, but this time it sunk in.
In the shallow soil, the heat of the sun (persecution) caused the plant to wilt because it didn't have deep roots. The people represented here don't have things like 'the pursuit of wealth' to distract them, they just have problems that wilt them before they can grow deep roots.
In the thorny soil, the "worries of this life and the lure of wealth" crowd and prevent them from producing fruit.
I think I've been trying to grow deeper roots thinking it will help my life produce more fruit. But, honestly, I have deep roots. I was raised in the church and have a lifetime of roots. Every time problems arise I fall to my knees because that's what we do when we have big problems. In fact, I sometimes wonder if Satan keeps my life pretty cheery knowing struggles send me closer to God...
Instead of constantly/solely focusing on growing deeper roots, I need to weed the garden and pull out the worry/wealth thorn bushes. For me, the worry/wealth bushes seem to lead me to pursue "good" things- but Jesus said they crowd out the message, leaving little room in my life. The thorn bushes leave me spending my time pursuing blessings instead of following God's lead and believing/trusting he will bless me.
I can almost visualize before and after photos. In the before photo I see a garden, overrun with weeds, wild, in and disarray... too many plants competing with each other for space. The thistles are growing tall, looming over other plants, splashing the garden with beautiful purple blooms, but worthlessly producing no fruit.
In the after photo there's just a few small, fruit producing plants. They are sparse and malnourished, having just been uncovered, but now they have light, their roots do not have to complete with the thistles for nutrients, and their leaves have room to stretch and grow. The after photo is mostly brown due to all the blank space, but I need that space- that down time- to submit myself to God and listen for his voice.
Wow, that's rich, Julie. Thanks for challenging us!
ReplyDelete