His Life... for mine.
This morning I am curious and thoughtful on how
Joseph worked through his grief and anger.
In Gen 45:16 Pharaoh finds out Joseph's brothers have come
and Pharaoh is pleased...
Obviously Joseph never told them about the family betrayal....
Prior to that Joseph has 2 children while being the 2nd in command of all Egypt.
Their names are an interesting indication of the turmoil going on in his heart....
Manasseh = Make Forget
- God has made me Forget all my trouble and my family.
Ephraim = Make Fruitful
- God has made me Fruitful in the land of my suffering
See Gen 41:51-52
How did Joseph process this?
How did he keep inside the thing which could eat him alive?
There are only 2 ways I know of doing that well...
- Forgiveness
- Trust in God
Release anger and rights of self for 'justice'
Lean into God and His plans for me, no matter what comes....
Wow.
Choosing release
Choosing each day to reach out to God
For Him - not to punish the other party....
but have His way with me.
...the other option...
Bitterness and anger
- will destroy me
and
impact the redemption plans that God has....
Hmm...
Lord,
Thank You for teaching me again
that Life with You is the moment by moment
Dieing to self
releasing my agenda
and by doing so
finding the Life You have for me....
You said that if I cling to Life
I will lose it.
If I lose it... for Your sake
I will gain it.... Matt 16:24-26
Thank You Jesus for your example...
not easy...
But Simple.
Yeah.
PJ