It’s not too late for the Lord to work. That’s what hit my heart tonight as I was rushing about getting ready to end the day. I’d just walked in the door from a long and busy day.  It wasn’t bad a day, just very busy. I’m ready to call this day done, but I felt I needed to get this…

Jacob and company finally made it to Goshen in Egypt. It is in Goshen, where he is reunited with Joseph. Genesis 46:29 states that Joseph presented himself to Jacob, and he fell on his neck and wept on his neck for a good while. Oh, the joy. That visual brought back to my mind Jacob and his twin brother Esau’s…

Jacob and company finally made it to Goshen in Egypt. It is in Goshen, where he is reunited with Joseph. Genesis 46:29 states that Joseph presented himself to Jacob, and he fell on his neck and wept on his neck for a good while. Oh, the joy. That visual brought back to my mind Jacob and his twin brother Esau’s…

What an emotional day for Jacob and company when they learned they were leaving Canaan. Children squealed, running around in delight as the adults handled the final preparations for an unexpected road trip. The excited family members loaded into the wagons as conversations abounded about the new life waiting for them in Egypt. What a powerful experience it must have…

When Joseph’s brothers returned to their father the second time – they brought the obvious – provision and Benjamin. They also brought unimaginable news. There was so much to unpack! Jacob’s sons: Joseph is alive! Jacob: That’s impossible. He is not. Jacob’s sons: Yes, Joseph is alive, and the governor. Jacob: Joseph. Alive? Jacob’s sons: Yes. He. Is. The famine…

We’ve been in the story of Joseph for a few devotionals, and I was wondering where to go now, Lord. I opened a document and the first clause of Psalm 27:14 jumped out at me, wait on the Lord. Instantly, my mind fell on Jacob waiting for his sons to return from their second trip to Egypt for food. I’m…

While Joseph was busy revealing the jaw-dropping news of who he was to his astonished brothers, their father Jacob was back home in Canaan, unaware that he was on the cusp of a life-changing event. He’d been forced to send his youngest son, Benjamin, with his brothers to return to Egypt for more food. It wasn’t his idea – Joseph…

The bloody coat. It represented so much more than it showed. The coat was made with love and given to Joseph by his father. The coat was stripped away from him by his envious brothers, soaked in an animal’s blood, and presented to their father as all that was left of him from a horrible encounter with a wild animal.…

I’ve been meditating on how God used Jacob to assist his sons traverse the rocky path of requesting Joseph to forgive them for what they’d done to him as a 17-year-old. He had to forgive them, too. I can imagine when the truth came out about the false storyline with the bloody coat. Jacob could only be so angry because he’d hoodwinked his…

I am off work today. I hadn’t planned to be off. Yesterday, on the way home from work, I was rear-ended. Thankfully, even though there is damage to the car, it is drivable and will be repaired. However, due to some pain, I decided to stay at home and rest, along with taking some over-the-counter pain medication as well as…

I’ve been visiting the account of Joseph and his incredible shift in life from one extreme to the other. His brothers, now decades beyond the day of Joseph thrown in a pit and sold to the Midianites, stood before him in shock. The last time they saw Joseph, he was being hauled off by the Midianites for 20 pieces of…

Joseph was disappointed, frustrated, and burdened by drama he couldn’t avoid. His life was filled with unexpected events. Each major turn in his life came with unexpected events – both good and bad. He felt a glimmer of hope when he watched the butler leave the prison with his “speak on my behalf – I don’t deserve to be here”…

The horrific news of Job’s recent incredible losses traveled around town. His friends showed up to find Job unrecognizable, given the painful, itching boils on his body from head to toe.  Stunned, they silently sat around him for a week. But soon, they found much to say to Job – none of it helpful, as they accused him of sinning…

The day Joseph was summoned to the palace came unexpectedly. Two years prior, he hung his hope on the chief butler putting in a good word with Pharaoh so he could leave that dreadful place.  All Joseph wanted was to start over one more time.  He’d done it before and was willing to do it again. But nothing changed about his circumstances. It had been two years…

As I mentioned in the devotional “God’s Purpose for Your Placement,” Joseph was forced out of Potiphar’s home into prison. Nothing about that abrupt change in his life denoted promotion. In fact, it appeared as if he was regressing. But God’s purpose for Joseph’s life included several transitions – such as going to prison. He wasn’t being punished. He was…

God’s purpose for your placement. Joseph purposed in his heart not to sin against God, while Mrs. Potipher was all about convincing him to sin. She pressed him daily to sin, and daily, he declined. One day, the woman took things too far, grabbing him by his coat and pleading for him to sin. Instead, he ran off, leaving his…

“Get Out of That Tree!”

Yesterday, I talked about the blind man and Lazarus being put on the hit list because of their deliverance testimonies. The former blind man gained his sight. What blessed my heart today is the fact he gained insight about Jesus. It came through being targeted.  It was known among the Jews that if anyone said that Jesus was the Messiah would be…

You, too, are a target. The man born blind and Lazarus are just two examples of people who each faced a group of angry religious leaders none too happy about their testimonies of Jesus delivering them. Upon their deliverances, each became a target. The formerly blind man was thrown out of the synagogue, and Lazarus was added to the list…

A second chance. Cain was told by God what he needed to do to have his sacrifice accepted. Cain completely ignored what God said about him. He wasn’t interested in taking advantage of the second chance presented to him. He also ignored God’s warning that if he didn’t do right, sin was waiting to overtake him, but he could overcome…