06/15/2022
When Joseph had been through all his boyhood suffering, been sold into slavery, and had risen to power in Egypt, he was blessed with two sons. The first he named after God’s mercy for allowing him to forget those hardships, and the second he named for the blessings God poured out on him after his afflictions. We should take note that although we face trouble in our lives the Lord is merciful in them, and that blessings rise from their ashes. Do we look at our lives like a burning house, and forget this short lived suffering while seeing what our Father is preparing to build for us on that very spot?
“Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh. “For,” he said, “God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father’s house.” The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.””
Genesis 41:51-52 ESV
It was Christmas Eve, and I was a teenager. The weather was cold, but there was no snow on the ground, and the night was so clear that I could see every star, and a child eager for Christmas Day might catch a glimpse of a tiny sleigh making its way across the brilliant moon, but late that night this magnificent night would come to an end as tragedy unfolded. The house across the street would catch fire, and burn down.
I remember waking up to the sounds of wailing, a mother’s prayers, and shouts of children’s fearful distress, mixed in amongst the sirens and flashing lights of fire trucks, police cars, and ambulances, that were filling the night street; it was a horrific scene that lit up the night. This went on until morning, but we found out that the family that lived there was safe, and no one was hurt. They had bought their young children a puppy for Christmas and it had awakened the family when smoke began to fill their house… a miracle had risen up from within the tragedy.
Oh, the house was a total loss, but the family was taken in by friends, and new coats, and clothes were provided by the neighbors. Many cups of coffee would be taken to the workers, and although It took a few months, it wasn’t too awfully long before a new house stood where the old one once was,. An old house with its windows that needed caulking, trim that begged to be painted, and a fireplace whose chimney chase with its hidden gaps of missing mortar had nearly taken the lives of its inhabitants.
In the end, the family was blessed by not being harmed, the puppy was blessed to have a life of pampering for having saved the lives of the family, the friends were blessed by their own hospitality, the neighbors were blessed by providing the gifts of warm coats, shoes, socks, clothing, and other items the family needed, and ultimately the family received the biggest blessing of all… a beautiful new home in which you live. This is biblical in so many ways; a story of Christmas, gifts for children, miraculous deliverance, suffering, love, giving, and the provision of a new life. It is the ageless story of God revealing himself in our times of trouble, and Jesus rising from terrible suffering and death to give us new life.
The story of Joseph has many of these same attributes, and when we look at the names he gave his sons we see that the hand of God hadn’t escaped his notice. We see how the Lord is merciful to him by allowing the tribulations in his life to fade from memory… like ours are allowed to do. And, we see how he was given far more than he previously had once his trials were at an end… just like in the story of Job, and like we are blessed with when our storms come to an end.
“And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. And the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. And he called the name of the first daughter Jemimah, and the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-happuch.”
Job 42:10, 12, 14 ESV
Today I have told a story of Joseph, of neighbors facing tragedy, and of Job’s reward for his faithfulness. In each of these there was a blessing, and the reward of receiving far more than these characters had before their stormy days of suffering. So now I ask that we each consider our own lives, and how we face our personal losses, and tragedies. Do we look for the hand of God in them? Do we let Jesus comfort us amidst them? Are we provided the opportunity to help our friends and neighbors? And do we ultimately find that we have received something of value when the storm clouds part… like patience, faith, belief, children, fortune, wisdom or some other blessing?
“Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.”
1 Corinthians 3:12-15 ESV
Prayer:
Father, thank you for each lesson, and opportunity we have to serve you in the midst of our trials, tribulations, and the needs of others. Help us Lord to remain vigilant as we look for you in everything, and find you in every nook and cranny of our lives, even in those that cause us to suffer. Help us to see you, and glorify you, without consideration of reward beyond your love. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who gives to us by grace, and far more than we deserve. Praised be your name for every hardship we endure, and for allowing us to bring you glory through them. Praised be your name for the lessons you teach, and the gifts you give us. Yet despite your giving nature help us to realize that the greatest of these is to simply serve you, and to receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Only through Christ can we come to know you… help us Father in our unbelief, and every wayward thought. Wash us in the blood of Jesus, and cleanse us of all our sin. See only Jesus in us as we stand before you, and pronounce us worthy as He is worthy. Seat us at your table Holy Father to sit in your presence forevermore.
Rich Forbes