This week, Michael writes: As Children of God, we need good answers to valid
questions. Why are we going through this present pandemic? What is God teaching
us through this time of shared tribulation and adversity? What gives us patience,
endurance, and hope through the crisis and the pestilence?
One type of prayer is supplication, a specific request for God’s help and intervention when we realize we can’t make it on our own. An Elder in an old southern church opened his prayer with, “Lord I hate buttermilk, lard and dry flour.” The pastor started to panic. He had never before heard such an opening to a prayer. Then the Elder continued, “However, when they’re mixed together and baked in an oven, I love old time southern biscuits. Sometimes Lord, I don’t understand the ingredients you’re putting into our lives. But when you’re through baking us in the oven, I love the results. You make all things good. Our ways are not your ways and our thoughts are not our thoughts.”
Romans 8 says that God works all things together for good to those who love God and are called according to his purpose. God is a God of plan and purpose. Unbelievers look at things as coincidences. Believers look at things as God incidences. My times are in thy hands. They that wait upon the Lord will renew their strength. They shall mount up on wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint.
God will teach us important life-lessons through times of trial. He works behind the scenes to mold us and make us after His will. God works in mysterious ways to show us that all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to his purpose.
The story of Joseph in the book of Genesis chapters 39-50 is a story of God’s deliverance and the purpose for His providence. Joseph was Jacob’s favorite of his 12 sons. God was preparing Joseph’s sons to become the patriarchs of the twelve tribes of the house of Israel. Even though Joseph was the youngest son, His father had given him a special “coat of many colors” as a sign that he was especially loved. Joseph had described a dream to his brothers. In his dream there were sheaves of wheat, one for each brother. Their sheaves bowed down to his sheaf. They thought, why should we bow down to our little brother? His brothers were jealous and plotted to get rid of him. While they were watching their father’s flocks, Jacob sent Joseph to find them and report back on how they were doing. As Joseph approached they said among themselves, “Here comes the dreamer. Let’s kill him and tell our father that he was killed by wild animals.” When a trading caravan came by, they decided to sell Joseph to the traders. They dipped his coat of many colors in the blood of a kid goat. When they returned to their father they said, we found his coat drenched with blood but we didn’t find Joseph. He must have been eaten by a wild animal. Jacob’s heart was broken because Joseph was his beloved wife Rachel’s only son.
Joseph was sold in Egypt to Potiphar, Pharaoh’s high ranking security officer. Potiphar trusted Joseph in all his dealings since everything that Joseph did prospered. Potiphar made Joseph manager and steward over all of his responsibilities and he was the administrator over everything Potiphar owned. Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce Joseph but Joseph said, “how can I betray my master when he’s entrusted everything to me except for you.” She grabbed his coat as he fled from her. Then she accused him of attempted rape and had him thrown into prison.
The prison keeper realized that Joseph had an excellent spirit so he placed him in charge of the other prisoners. After several years two prisoners who had worked for the Pharaoh had disturbing dreams.. One was the pharaoh’s butler and the other was his baker. Joseph said that he could interpret their dreams by God’s revelation. The butler dreamed of a vine with three branches. On each vine was a cluster of grapes that he picked and squeezed into the pharaoh’s cup. Joseph told the butler that the three branches represented three days. In three days, he would be restored to his old position in Pharaoh’s palace and pour wine into Pharaoh’s cup. Joseph said to the butler, speak favorably of me when you are restored to your position. However, the butler forgot to tell Pharaoh that Joseph had interpreted his dream.
Two years later Pharaoh had two dreams that troubled him. In one dream, there were seven well nourished plump cows that came out of the river. Then seven starving emaciated cows came out of the river and devoured the seven plump cows. In his other dream there were seven full ripe ears of corn, then came up seven scrawny ears of corn that were shriveled and “blasted by the east wind.” The seven scrawny ears consumed the seven full ears of corn. The pharaoh told this dream to his wise men but no one could interpret it. Finally the butler told pharaoh that there was a Hebrew, a servant of the prison guard who interpreted his dream when he was in prison and the interpretation came true.
Pharaoh summoned Joseph. When Pharaoh told is dreams to Joseph, he said to the king, I will tell you the meaning of the dream but only the true God can reveal its true meaning. He said, the meaning of the two dreams is the same. The seven fat cows and the seven full ears of corn mean that there will be seven years of plenty in Egypt. The seven thin cows and the seven withered ears of corn represent the next seven years of famine. The seven thin cows eating the seven fat cows and the seven scrawny ears consuming the seven full ears of corn means that you should store up food from the seven years of plenty to hold during the seven years of famine.
Joseph said, you should store up one fifth of the harvest from the seven years of plenty. You should find a wise man to oversee the operation to build storehouses and appoint administrators to gather in the grain. Pharaoh said to his advisors, there is no one in Egypt wiser than Joseph. The Pharaoh appointed Joseph to be his prime minister. Except for Pharaoh himself, there was no one in Egypt with more power and authority than Joseph.
One type of prayer is supplication, a specific request for God’s help and intervention when we realize we can’t make it on our own. An Elder in an old southern church opened his prayer with, “Lord I hate buttermilk, lard and dry flour.” The pastor started to panic. He had never before heard such an opening to a prayer. Then the Elder continued, “However, when they’re mixed together and baked in an oven, I love old time southern biscuits. Sometimes Lord, I don’t understand the ingredients you’re putting into our lives. But when you’re through baking us in the oven, I love the results. You make all things good. Our ways are not your ways and our thoughts are not our thoughts.”
Romans 8 says that God works all things together for good to those who love God and are called according to his purpose. God is a God of plan and purpose. Unbelievers look at things as coincidences. Believers look at things as God incidences. My times are in thy hands. They that wait upon the Lord will renew their strength. They shall mount up on wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint.
God will teach us important life-lessons through times of trial. He works behind the scenes to mold us and make us after His will. God works in mysterious ways to show us that all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to his purpose.
The story of Joseph in the book of Genesis chapters 39-50 is a story of God’s deliverance and the purpose for His providence. Joseph was Jacob’s favorite of his 12 sons. God was preparing Joseph’s sons to become the patriarchs of the twelve tribes of the house of Israel. Even though Joseph was the youngest son, His father had given him a special “coat of many colors” as a sign that he was especially loved. Joseph had described a dream to his brothers. In his dream there were sheaves of wheat, one for each brother. Their sheaves bowed down to his sheaf. They thought, why should we bow down to our little brother? His brothers were jealous and plotted to get rid of him. While they were watching their father’s flocks, Jacob sent Joseph to find them and report back on how they were doing. As Joseph approached they said among themselves, “Here comes the dreamer. Let’s kill him and tell our father that he was killed by wild animals.” When a trading caravan came by, they decided to sell Joseph to the traders. They dipped his coat of many colors in the blood of a kid goat. When they returned to their father they said, we found his coat drenched with blood but we didn’t find Joseph. He must have been eaten by a wild animal. Jacob’s heart was broken because Joseph was his beloved wife Rachel’s only son.
Joseph was sold in Egypt to Potiphar, Pharaoh’s high ranking security officer. Potiphar trusted Joseph in all his dealings since everything that Joseph did prospered. Potiphar made Joseph manager and steward over all of his responsibilities and he was the administrator over everything Potiphar owned. Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce Joseph but Joseph said, “how can I betray my master when he’s entrusted everything to me except for you.” She grabbed his coat as he fled from her. Then she accused him of attempted rape and had him thrown into prison.
The prison keeper realized that Joseph had an excellent spirit so he placed him in charge of the other prisoners. After several years two prisoners who had worked for the Pharaoh had disturbing dreams.. One was the pharaoh’s butler and the other was his baker. Joseph said that he could interpret their dreams by God’s revelation. The butler dreamed of a vine with three branches. On each vine was a cluster of grapes that he picked and squeezed into the pharaoh’s cup. Joseph told the butler that the three branches represented three days. In three days, he would be restored to his old position in Pharaoh’s palace and pour wine into Pharaoh’s cup. Joseph said to the butler, speak favorably of me when you are restored to your position. However, the butler forgot to tell Pharaoh that Joseph had interpreted his dream.
Two years later Pharaoh had two dreams that troubled him. In one dream, there were seven well nourished plump cows that came out of the river. Then seven starving emaciated cows came out of the river and devoured the seven plump cows. In his other dream there were seven full ripe ears of corn, then came up seven scrawny ears of corn that were shriveled and “blasted by the east wind.” The seven scrawny ears consumed the seven full ears of corn. The pharaoh told this dream to his wise men but no one could interpret it. Finally the butler told pharaoh that there was a Hebrew, a servant of the prison guard who interpreted his dream when he was in prison and the interpretation came true.
Pharaoh summoned Joseph. When Pharaoh told is dreams to Joseph, he said to the king, I will tell you the meaning of the dream but only the true God can reveal its true meaning. He said, the meaning of the two dreams is the same. The seven fat cows and the seven full ears of corn mean that there will be seven years of plenty in Egypt. The seven thin cows and the seven withered ears of corn represent the next seven years of famine. The seven thin cows eating the seven fat cows and the seven scrawny ears consuming the seven full ears of corn means that you should store up food from the seven years of plenty to hold during the seven years of famine.
Joseph said, you should store up one fifth of the harvest from the seven years of plenty. You should find a wise man to oversee the operation to build storehouses and appoint administrators to gather in the grain. Pharaoh said to his advisors, there is no one in Egypt wiser than Joseph. The Pharaoh appointed Joseph to be his prime minister. Except for Pharaoh himself, there was no one in Egypt with more power and authority than Joseph.
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