GENESIS 49
I love the title of this blog. It makes it sound as though God has read Emily Post and knows which gifts to give for which wedding anniversary. Obviously, however, I’ve got something a little different in mind.
God roots for the underdog.
GENESIS 48
So, we come to the story of Jacob blessing the sons of Joseph, Manasseh and Ephraim. And as he goes to bless the grandkids, Joseph gets upset because his right hand (apparently the hand of "greatest blessings") is on the wrong boy’s head. He is getting ready to give Ephraim (the younger and, consequently, the lesser) the better blessing.
God is not greedy.
GENESIS 47
So, what do we do when confronted with the reality that we are "not our own"? We were created by a God who rules over the entire universe. Everything came from Him, and everything belongs to Him... even our very lives. Every breath we take is a gracious gift from His hand. Without Him, nothing would be. That can be a somewhat daunting reality, huh?
God is like no other.
GENESIS 46
Perhaps a short one, but a good one, for today. There is no other god like God. Of course, the further you read the Scripture, the more declarations you find to that effect. But this is something we can learn about God without reading the declarations. Genesis 46 is a good example. First, God calls to Jacob in the night, telling him not to be afraid to go down to Egypt. God renews His promise to make Jacob (Israel) into a great nation there.
God transforms suffering.
GENESIS 45
What a remarkable chapter! Joseph finally has a reunion with his long-lost brothers. He reveals to them that he is Joseph, and it’s pretty apparent that he doesn’t harbor any grudges against them for what they have done. He embraces and kisses each one of them, eagerly telling them how wonderful everything will be for them when they move to Egypt.
A Quatern on the Deluge {gn7:19-20}
Photo © Unsplash/Eutah Mizushima
the rain has been falling how long i don't know
the last time i saw land was so long ago
the trees have all drowned and the mountains are gone
the water obscures every trace of the dawn
within me the rivers of doubt overflow
the rain has been falling how long i don't know
alone on this ocean i bobble afloat
i must have been crazy to get in this boat
it would have been better to die with the world
and not have to see what's familiar unfurled
the rain has been falling how long i don't know
i wonder how far down the flood waters go
this sea-weary vessel will anchor at last
but life as i've known it will be in the past
until then i'll wonder what's lurking below
the rain has been falling how long i don't know
Quatern: A sixteen-line French form composed of four quatrains, with a refrain that is in a different place in each quatrain. The first line of stanza one is the second line of stanza two, third line of stanza three, and fourth line of stanza four.
God mediates... to us.
GENESIS 44
One of the central tenets of Christianity is that Jesus is the mediator between God and man. Since the root of "mediator" is "media," we can see that there is an element of communication involved in such a role. But often, Christianity gets confused about what Jesus is communicating and to whom. So why does Jesus play the role of mediator? And what the heck does any of this have to do with Genesis 44?
God gives tears for fears.
GENESIS 43
One of the things this chapter does so well is draw a big distinction between the way our mind works and the way God’s mind works. I see an awful lot of God in Joseph, particularly in this point in the story. He knows now that his older brothers and father are still alive. He’s not so sure about his younger brother. Certainly, he hasn’t forgotten about being sold into slavery. Yet, Joseph never harbors any ill will toward his brothers for what they have done to him. He treats them kindly, though he must wonder if they have tried to get rid of Benjamin (Rachel’s other child) as they had gotten rid of him.
God takes the blame.
GENESIS 42
Chapter 42 of Genesis is illuminating in what it tells us about how people in Joseph’s day perceived God. In verse 25, it says, "Joseph gave orders to fill [his brothers'] bags with grain, to put each man’s silver back in his sack, and to give them provisions for the journey." So, Joseph basically gave his brothers grain for free by putting their payments back in their sacks.
God knows what He's doing.
GENESIS 41
Well, it was only a matter of time before this was the blog title! It’s difficult to read Genesis 41 and not just see God in charge all over the place! He’s sending dreams to Pharaoh. He’s got His ready-made interpreter (Joseph) in place. He’s gearing up to save the whole world from a terrible famine, and He knows just how to do it.
God is not a hoarder.
GENESIS 40
How should we expect an all-knowing, all-powerful Deity to act? As a dictator? A celebrity? A self-absorbed ruler? No matter what we expect, God blows the expectations out of the water time and time again. In this chapter of Genesis, what I see is a God who is more concerned with making His creatures look good, a God who shares His honor with His subordinates.
God works unhindered.
GENESIS 39
There is something so beautiful and almost funny about the straightforward relating of events in Genesis 39. First, Joseph is taken into Potiphar’s house. And the Bible says that the Lord was with Joseph, so both Joseph and Potiphar prospered while Joseph was in charge of things. Potiphar didn’t have to worry about anything because “the Lord gave [Joseph] success in everything he did.” (vs 3)
Eight {gn6:5-6}
Photo © Unsplash/Tim Marshall
There was no ark
to save God's heart
when grief crashed in like a flood.
when
regret raindrops
became
pain puddles
that joined up into
remorse rivers
that pooled into
lament lakes
that merged into
sorrow seas
and eventually yielded a
deep blue deluge
over our terminal condition
No—
there was no ark
to save God's heart
when grief crashed in like a flood:
the grief of knowing
the ark he would send us
required room
for no more than
eight.
God doesn't "stack" the family deck.
GENESIS 38
When you do genealogy, sometimes you uncover family "secrets" you wish you had left buried. Without the benefit of being able to ask questions, sometimes we’re left to our own speculation. For instance, I have my own genealogy "mystery" waiting to be revealed some hundreds of years down the line. I recently had my most special Bible rebound in leather (because it was starting to fall apart), and when I did, I had my name engraved on the front. Of course, it’s my married name, yet the handwritten inscription from my father in the front of the Bible is dated 2002. Anybody who has access to my marriage license will know that I wasn’t a Lorencin in 2002. Let the speculation begin.
God is never caught off guard.
GENESIS 37
And so now we come to the story of Joseph, the son whom Jacob loved more than all the others, the son who began having dreams. Joseph and his brothers had grown up in an environment where they were exposed to jealousy and rivalry, so it’s no surprise that Joseph’s brothers don’t much like the dreams he tells them about. Even Jacob takes a little offense: "Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?" (vs 10)
God fulfills promises creatively.
GENESIS 36
The land of Canaan had been promised to Jacob and the future Israelites. It was the Promised Land, the land that God planned to give to the descendants of Abraham. However, the rivalry between Jacob and Esau could have put a wrench in things. Instead of trusting God to fulfill His promises in His own time, Jacob devised a way to get what he thought was rightfully his (the birthright and his father’s blessing). Esau was initially jealous and angry and even sought to kill his brother.
God remembers.
God's discipline is the best kind.
God heals hearts.
Noah {gen5:29}
Photo © CreationSwap/Pierce Brantley
Narrowest passage
Of humanity's river.
Ark of the
Human race.