by Ruth Olsen
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
Buy us and our land in exchange for food, and we with our land shall be in bondage to Pharaoh (Genesis 47:19b).
Read Genesis 47:1–21
Drought and famine are a part of life in Australia. It’s a dry country. We need to be prepared and ready to deal with its effects. Of course, we don’t know when, where or how long – months or years. Wise stewardship of water and other resources can help; however, if proper care is not taken, we can end up in dire circumstances. Ignorance is not bliss!
The Lord had enabled Joseph to prepare well. I can imagine Joseph was receiving insight, understanding, vision and strategies for whatever was needed along the way, both for his blood relatives and the Egyptian people. That’s some assignment from the Lord. Even the current pharaoh wanted any of Joseph’s relatives with special ability to be put in charge of Pharaoh’s own livestock (47:6). No longer detestable? (See yesterday’s devotion.)
Soon, all the money of the Egyptian people was used to buy food from Joseph. The next year, they sold their livestock to him in exchange for food. I’d guess that livestock was moved to Goshen to thrive there. Then, the people sold themselves. They were famished. Desperate.
Was God being mean to the Egyptians? No, floods and famine were also part of the ‘broken’ world then. There are times when he lets us ‘come to the end of ourselves’, our abilities, before we finally wake up, recognise and acknowledge our need for him. In our fallen pride, we like to believe we can manage life perfectly okay ourselves. Humility asks for help, as 2 Chronicles 7:14 reminds us. A humble heart is teachable, not full of itself, but open, receptive and discerning. That’s not what our fallen nature wants, nor what Satan wants. But Jesus has overcome the power of the devil, the world and our fallen nature. Walking with him in his life, death and resurrection is available every day.
Holy Spirit, increase our discernment of God’s ways and our ways. Show us where we are famished and lead us into Jesus’ truth in that area of life so that we can flourish, to the Father’s glory!
Tough things happen in life for each of us at some stage. Currently, Ruth is on a health-issue journey with Jesus in a ‘winter season’. For helpful insights into seasons, she recommends Pastor Rolly Stahl’s teaching series, ‘Seasons of the Soul’, available on YouTube.
by Ruth Olsen
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
You should answer, ‘Your servants have tended livestock … all shepherds are detestable to the Egyptians’ (Genesis 46:34).
Read Genesis 46:1–7,28–34
Joseph’s brothers had been tending livestock since their boyhood (Genesis 37:16; 46:6). Israel (Jacob) now tells them what he will say to Pharaoh about their occupations. Goshen is a region east of the River Nile delta, very fertile and ideal for raising livestock. Along the way to Egypt, the entourage stopped at Beersheba, where Israel, like his father Isaac and grandfather Abraham, had worshipped the Lord (Genesis 21:33; 26:23–25). There, the Lord had appeared to them, giving reassurance and promise of blessing.
Earlier, in Genesis 43:31,32, when Joseph had a meal served to his brothers, we are told: ‘They served him by himself, the brothers by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with them by themselves, because Egyptians could not eat with Hebrews for that is detestable to Egyptians.’
The taboo was probably based on ritual or religious reasons (Exodus 8:26); however, the Egyptian refusal to associate with shepherds was likely based on social custom.
Do you stop to think about what you do, when you do it, why you do it that way and its purpose? Sometimes, our customs are full of rich meaning. Other times, they may be hollow and empty. Perhaps the Lord is calling us to change our thinking, desiring to lead us to rest beside still waters for a time. Others may not understand and even ridicule us. But, here, being detested became a huge blessing of abundance from God’s provision for the Hebrews, where they could flourish and thrive.
Something may be happening in your current circumstances, causing people to turn away from you. That happens. Yet do you ask the Lord to enable you to see that situation from his perspective? Perhaps he is trying to prepare you to work with him to bring his love, life and forgiveness into that very situation. Talking with him over time, listening to the Spirit’s leading and holding onto his word as our anchor will likewise enable us to grow where he has planted us for now.
Lord Jesus, you didn’t do your own thing, neither does your Spirit. Teach us to walk with you in the Father’s ways, by your Spirit’s power, even if it means we are detestable to some people. Amen.
Tough things happen in life for each of us at some stage. Currently, Ruth is on a health-issue journey with Jesus in a ‘winter season’. For helpful insights into seasons, she recommends Pastor Rolly Stahl’s teaching series, ‘Seasons of the Soul’, available on YouTube.
by Ruth Olsen
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
Then he sent his brothers away … [saying] ‘Don’t quarrel on the way!’ (Genesis 45:24)
Read Genesis 45:16–28
As Joseph’s story continues, his brothers were generously welcomed by Pharaoh and his officials to move their families to Egypt. Abundant provisions were made for them to take back to their father, Israel (Jacob), and their community. Grace upon grace, given freely to them. Overflowing.
So why would Joseph say, ‘Now don’t quarrel on the way’? What do we do when we experience guilt, shame, or feel backed into a corner or confronted with something we do not want to acknowledge?
We instinctively blame others! Unless we have painfully learned to humble ourselves and acknowledge our culpability. Only when we finally accept our responsibility, repent and ask for help from the Lord does the truth of forgiveness dawn on us. We discover what Jesus meant when he said, ‘the truth will set you free'. So, if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed’ (John 8:32,36). That truth is liberating! The load is lifted and gone. Amazing!
Pride was Satan’s downfall. The Book of Proverbs often speaks of pride:
- ‘When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom’ (Proverbs 11:2).
- ‘Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice’ (Proverbs 13:10).
- ‘Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold, for wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her. I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence, and I possess knowledge and discretion. To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behaviour and perverse speech’ (Proverbs 8:10–13).
Father, surely you desire truth in the inner parts; by your Spirit, you teach me wisdom in the inmost place. Thank you for welcoming a broken and repentant heart and enabling us to come to you in and through Jesus at any time (Psalm 51:6,17). We bless you! Amen.
Tough things happen in life for each of us at some stage. Currently, Ruth is on a health-issue journey with Jesus in a ‘winter season’. For helpful insights into seasons, she recommends Pastor Rolly Stahl’s teaching series, ‘Seasons of the Soul’, available on YouTube.
by Ruth Olsen
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
[Joseph] wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it (Genesis 45:2).
Read Genesis 45:1–15
Imagine yourself in Joseph’s sandals. Sold into slavery, taken against your will to a foreign country and culture, tested and found to be trustworthy, yet falsely accused and imprisoned for something you didn’t do. How would you deal with all of that?
Thirteen years of captivity (or slavery) is a long time! Some of us prefer to avoid or deny facing reality, blaming others and trying to blot out our pain. For some, it’s a much longer, painful process. Do we remember to cry to the Lord for help? Do we react (feelings), or do we respond with faith?
Going deeper and wider: Are we willing to learn to see from God’s perspective, to recognise our ‘tough times’ as ‘seasons of training’ for something the Lord is trying to help prepare us so that we are more ready to trust him, to work with him, when that ‘season’ comes about?
As the previous chapters in Genesis tell us, on recognising his brothers, Joseph wisely needed to test them to discern and discover their current attitudes. Had they changed at all? Could they be trusted?
Have you considered whether God can actually trust you with greater responsibility to be his person in a situation? Are you available to him? That kind of learning does not happen overnight! He chips away, builds up, strengthens, encourages and expands (if we are willing to work with him).
I recall being in a couple of situations of devastation where my loud cries were heard from further away than I realised. It was like a dam wall had burst. Joseph could no longer constrain himself. And now he works hard to convince his guilty, stunned brothers that he actually is their brother Joseph but was sent by the Lord ahead of them to provide for them in their time of need. The Lord went ahead of them, in and through Joseph, to provide for their good.
Father, increase your Spirit of wisdom and revelation in us so that we may know you better. Teach us your ways and the difference from our own – for Jesus’ sake.
Tough things happen in life for each of us at some stage. Currently, Ruth is on a health-issue journey with Jesus in a ‘winter season’. For helpful insights into seasons, she recommends Pastor Rolly Stahl’s teaching series, ‘Seasons of the Soul’, available on YouTube.
by Ruth Olsen
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he’, and will deceive many (Mark 13:6).
Read Mark 13:1–8
Have you ever been deceived? It is not pleasant, is it? No matter how it happened, there’s betrayal and undermining of trust. We tend to believe what we see, the outer appearance. Like the disciples standing around Jesus being impressed with the magnificent buildings and massive stones, or whatever advert tickles our ears, eyes or feelings, we often do not discern what is being offered. But, as Samuel learned when sent by God to the family of Jesse at Bethlehem to anoint the one God had chosen to replace King Saul, God looks on the heart, our attitudes and motivations (1 Samuel 16:7).
The reality is that if we think we cannot be deceived, we actually are deceived. We are depending on ourselves. We don’t recognise our blind spots, hard hearts, deaf ears, self-pride. We need the Holy Spirit to give us soft, repentant, tender and teachable hearts, willing to humble ourselves, to pray, and to seek the Lord’s face.
There will be strife, wars, nations rising against nations, earthquakes and famines. Jesus describes these as the beginning of birth pains, perhaps to move us to a deeper, wider perspective of what is truly happening. To awaken us to our need of him? Be on your guard because unpleasant things will happen in this broken world! But he doesn’t abandon us. The Counsellor, the Holy Spirit whom the Father has sent in Jesus’ name, will teach us all things and remind us of what Jesus has said. Over time, he draws us into a deeper relationship if we are willing, bringing God’s word increasingly alive to us, enabling us to learn to walk in Jesus’ peace (John 14:26,27). To recognise, discern and yield to God’s ways instead of the ways of our fallen nature.
Holy Spirit, Spirit of Truth, teach and train us to discern the difference between truth and deception. Open the eyes of our hearts to Jesus with us to the deeper things of life, day by day. Amen.
Tough things happen in life for each of us at some stage. Currently, Ruth is on a health-issue journey with Jesus in a ‘winter season’. For helpful insights into seasons, she recommends Pastor Rolly Stahl’s teaching series, ‘Seasons of the Soul’, available on YouTube.
by Pastor Mark Gierus
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge (Psalm 16:1).
Read Psalm 16
Have you ever received produce in a preserving jar? Perhaps you have relatives who preserve the wonderful fruits and vegetables from their harvest, or maybe you preserve them yourself. If you are familiar with preserves, you’ll notice that they often don’t have a true expiration date, as preserved items are typically safe to eat for a long time.
The first verse of Psalm 16 finds David asking God to preserve his life or to keep him safe. David writes this psalm, perhaps generally asking God for ongoing preservation from enemies and that which would attack his life, as there is no imminent threat mentioned.
It is the same for us when we hear the words of Psalm 16. We, too, call out to God, asking to be preserved and kept safe in his name because we put our hope in him. We can trust in his promises that his love never fails nor ends. By his love, God sent his only Son, Jesus, to suffer and die for our sins so that in his name, we are assured of forgiveness, life and salvation. In all things, we, by faith, take refuge in the living God, knowing that we are his children, and he will keep us safe.
Although the preserved produce mentioned earlier does, of course, finally stop being preserved, we, in God’s care, are preserved, protected and kept – always. We are protected and kept safe from all danger, evil, or lack of food, clothing, family or work – the things that Martin Luther reminded us of when we pray, ‘Give us today our daily bread’. We are loved, cared for, made new in Jesus daily and safe in his loving arms.
Lord, my safety and protection, preserve and keep me this day as I put my trust in you that nothing I will face today will be without you. Please remind me that I am always in your care. Let me see with eyes of faith that I am in the safest place with you. Open my heart to hear your word daily so I may grow in you and know you will never let me go. All this I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Pastor Mark Gierus currently serves as a Lutheran pastor in Redland Bay, Alberton and Woongoolba in Queensland. He has three beautiful girls aged 8, 11 and 21, and he enjoys hiking with them, going to the beach, singing and jamming, looking after their pets as a family and going on road trips. Mark prays that God will continue to bless you as you grow in him and come to know him more and more through his life-giving eternal word.
by Pastor Mark Gierus
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord’s slave in place of the boy, and let the boy return with his brothers. How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? No! Do not let me see the misery that would come on my father (Genesis 44:33,34).
Read Genesis 44:18–34
Judah comes to talk to Joseph and tells the story so far. He speaks about how the brothers answered truthfully when asked about their father and brother. He reminded Joseph of the request to bring the youngest brother (Benjamin) back, or Joseph would not see them. Judah spoke of how much hurt and suffering his father would face losing his youngest son. ‘Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord’s slave in place of the boy’, he says.
What a change of heart we can hear in the words spoken by Judah. Especially now, to the point of not wanting to return to his father without Benjamin. The desperation in his voice. ‘How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? No! Do not let me see the misery that would come on my father.’
How good is our God? The brothers who laughed at Joseph’s dream and were jealous of him, selling him into a life of slavery, have changed. When they got rid of Joseph and told Jacob he had been killed by animals, their hearts were far from loving Joseph or their father. They didn’t even think of the suffering this lie would cause. Now, through the circumstances that have unfolded, things have changed. Judah now showed a deep love for his father, not wanting him to suffer. All this is under God’s plan and provision.
In all things, God is working in us, too. In all situations, he shapes our hearts and teaches us his way so that we may walk in his truth. Because God loves us and cares, he doesn’t want to destroy us; instead, he wants to rescue us. He has done this already by sending his only Son, Jesus, to suffer and die in our place so that we might live.
God is always changing our hearts through his word and what we face each day so that we are more and more like Jesus with a heart to love, serve and obey.
Gracious God, teach me your way by your word, so I may always walk in your truth. Teach me to love others and put the needs of others first. Shape my soul each day in your word and through the lessons you provide in my daily life so that I may love others and serve them for your glory. Amen.
Pastor Mark Gierus currently serves as a Lutheran pastor in Redland Bay, Alberton and Woongoolba in Queensland. He has three beautiful girls aged 8, 11 and 21, and he enjoys hiking with them, going to the beach, singing and jamming, looking after their pets as a family and going on road trips. Mark prays that God will continue to bless you as you grow in him and come to know him more and more through his life-giving eternal word.
by Pastor Mark Gierus
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
But Joseph said, ‘Far be it from me to do such a thing! Only the man who was found to have the cup will become my slave. The rest of you, go back to your father in peace’ (Genesis 44:17).
Read Genesis 44:1–17
Joseph’s brothers have now bought grain for a second time and are returning to the land of Canaan to provide for their families. They have safely taken Benjamin with them and have also been given back their other brother, Simeon, who was left with Joseph after the first visit to Egypt for grain. They were on the way home, all accounted for, but Joseph had put a plan in place.
Joseph had instructed the steward of his house: ‘Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry and put each man’s silver in the mouth of his sack. Then put my cup, the silver one, in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the silver for his grain.’
Soon after the brothers had left, Joseph sent his steward after them, accusing them of stealing, including the silver cup of Joseph. The brothers are bewildered, and the silver cup is found in Benjamin’s sack. The brothers are now to be slaves of Joseph, but he says that only the one found with the cup must stay, and the rest must return to their father in peace.
Joseph lives by faith – faith in God – and knows what he will do. He is not planning to punish his brothers for what they had done, but rather in faith to be a servant of the living God who will show his glory and purpose to them all as the story unfolds.
When you have been wrongly accused, fix your eyes on God in faith, and you will see the promises in his word that he is with you always and will never leave nor forsake you. Wait on him, trusting that he always has a plan to bless you and shape you for his purpose and, in the end, to show you and those around you that he is a loving and forgiving God who cares.
O God, when I find myself wrongly accused, help me to turn to you. Please help me to call on your name and trust you. You will always do more for me than I can imagine because you love me. You defend me because I am yours. You have called me by name, and you will keep me safe. Amen.
Pastor Mark Gierus currently serves as a Lutheran pastor in Redland Bay, Alberton and Woongoolba in Queensland. He has three beautiful girls aged 8, 11 and 21, and he enjoys hiking with them, going to the beach, singing and jamming, looking after their pets as a family and going on road trips. Mark prays that God will continue to bless you as you grow in him and come to know him more and more through his life-giving eternal word.
by Pastor Mark Gierus
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
‘We have also brought additional silver with us to buy food. We don’t know who put our silver in our sacks.’ ‘It’s all right,’ he said. ‘Don’t be afraid. Your God, the God of your father, has given you treasure in your sacks; I received your silver.’ Then he brought Simeon out to them (Genesis 43:22,23).
Read Genesis 43:16–34
As we continue our Joseph story, we find the brothers back in Egypt with their sacks of silver returned to them, along with more silver to buy grain. We are told that when Joseph sees his brother Benjamin with his other brothers, he asks his servants to prepare a feast. This instils fear in the brothers’ hearts, thinking the worst, perhaps out of the guilt that remains from the sale of Joseph as a slave years before.
The brothers quickly set about explaining what happened on their last trip. They stopped on the way back from Egypt and found the silver they had brought to buy grain was somehow back in their sacks. Joseph had arranged this, and the brothers were afraid. They said they didn’t know who put the silver in their sacks.
Joseph’s steward brings some comfort with encouraging words, but perhaps they remain unconvinced. ‘Peace be to you, for God, your God, has given you hidden treasure in your sacks, and your silver had been received for payment before.’ The servant brings out Simeon, the brother who had stayed in Egypt held by Joseph.
It is God who provided this. How much comfort do we take when we know it is our God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ? It is God who provides for us always in our time of need. Our God has the best timing for all things in his care. Our God loves us and always wants to build us up, encouraging us daily in his word. God cares and will never let you down; he loves you.
Heavenly Father, amid our uncertainty, you provide all we need. You love us and want the best for us always. May I go out each day knowing you give me more than I need so I can share what I have with others around me. Help me to share your love with others day by day. Amen.
Pastor Mark Gierus currently serves as a Lutheran pastor in Redland Bay, Alberton and Woongoolba in Queensland. He has three beautiful girls aged 8, 11 and 21, and he enjoys hiking with them, going to the beach, singing and jamming, looking after their pets as a family and going on road trips. Mark prays that God will continue to bless you as you grow in him and come to know him more and more through his life-giving eternal word.