Returning Good for Evil

Memory Verse
“Don’t let evil get the upper hand but conquer evil by doing good.” Romans 12:21 [The Living Bible]

Have you ever tried to do something and nothing seems to come together but you know this is the right thing for you to do? Let’s say you want to join a certain team or activity in school or in church. But as it turns out, the scheduled time doesn’t work for you or for your parents to take you there. Or maybe you don’t make the team and the coach tells you to try again next year.

You keep trying and eventually you make it; you’re accepted in the team. Usually the delay occurs because the timing just isn’t right for you at the time. Maybe you have to practice more and improve your skills or maybe a position has to become available to accommodate you. A lot of things have to come together for it to happen but at the time you can’t understand why it doesn’t work. Suddenly everything falls into place.

That’s how it was for Joseph and his brothers. Joseph couldn’t understand why God would let him be sold as a slave and then be put into prison. Jacob couldn’t understand why God would let a wild animal attack his favorite son. He didn’t know it was all a terrible lie. Joseph didn’t know it would end with him saving his family from starvation and poverty.

Joseph’s brothers did bring Benjamin with him when they returned for more grain. Joseph was so glad to see his brother but he didn’t let on who he really was. He wanted to test his brothers to see if they would protect Benjamin or desert him also, as they had him.

First he invited them to a meal in his home. He saw to it that they were seated in order of their ages, from oldest to youngest. He sent food from his table to each of his brothers, but to Benjamin he sent five times as much. Maybe he was testing his brothers to see if they would be jealous.

After the meal his steward filled the brothers’ sacks with grain and put Joseph’s silver cup in Benjamin’s sack. In the morning the brothers left for home. They hadn’t gone far when Joseph sent his steward after them to retrieve his silver cup.

When the steward finally caught up to them he demanded to know why they had stolen the ruler’s silver cup. Of course, they denied taking it because they had no idea that it was in one of their sacks.

They assured the steward that they were honest men and if he found the cup in one of their sacks that brother must die and the rest of them would be the steward’s slaves for ever.

“No,” said the steward. “I will take the brother for my servant in whose sack I find the cup and the rest of you can go free.”

How surprised they were when the steward found the cup in Benjamin’s sack. They didn’t know what to do. They had promised that he would be the steward’s slave. But they couldn’t go through with that. They all accompanied the steward back to the ruler with Benjamin.

When they arrived at the ruler’s house, Joseph was waiting for them. He asked them why they had taken his silver cup. It was a very special cup. He demanded that only Benjamin stay and he would punish him but the rest could return home.

“No!” said Judah. “Our father will die of grief if Benjamin doesn’t return. I will stay in Benjamin’s place and be your servant. I promised our father that nothing bad would happen to Benjamin.”

Finally Joseph was satisfied. He saw that his brothers had changed. They weren’t jealous that Benjamin was now their father’s favorite. He knew they were better men now and he longed to tell them who he was.

So he sent all the Egyptians out of the room and then he talked to his brothers in their language. “I am your brother, Joseph, who you sold into Egypt; is my father still alive?”

The brothers stood there in amazement and fear. They probably had a hard time believing Joseph. Also they must have been afraid of what he would do to them to repay them for their mean deed.

But Joseph assured them that he really was their brother. He cried because he was so overcome with deep feelings for his brothers. He told them to come close to him and then he told them why they shouldn’t be afraid.

“It was God who sent me to Egypt,” he said. “He sent me here to save your lives. The famine will last for five more years. I want you to bring your families and everything you have to Egypt.”

They hugged each other and with joy and relief they cried on each others’ shoulders. Joseph was generous in returning good for evil. He urged them to hurry home and come back quickly, bringing his father with them.

Even Pharaoh was glad to hear that Joseph’s brothers had come. He too invited them to come live in Egypt. So the jealous feelings that the brothers had acted on years ago brought good things to Joseph and his father, Jacob, and to his brothers.

That’s what God can do in our lives too. If we give Him our problems, even if we don’t know what to do, and wait for Him to act, He pulls everything together in His time. He can use our failures and even our sins to bring glory to Him in the end.

Sometimes we have to go through a lot of pain and misunderstanding. Sometimes it takes years for us to know why something happened or didn’t happen after we prayed and waited so long. We might never know the reason why God allowed certain hard things to happen to us or our family until we see Jesus in heaven. But as we wait we can know that God loves us very much. He says we are the apple of His eye. And He is planning beautiful things for us.

Going Deeper for parents:

As adults we have lived long enough to see the cycle of returning good for evil work out. Possibly you have also observed the vicious circle of returning evil for evil take its toll on people. And maybe you, like me, have sometimes shivered as you even saw people return evil for good.

The Bible it’s easy to love someone who loves us, but God requires that we love those who don’t love us nor show love to us. I think returning good for evil is forgiving in progress. As you do good, forgiving begins to spring up in your heart. That’s what returning good for evil is all about: forgiveness.

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, The Rubik’s Cube, at http://ruthwillms.com

God Never Breaks His Promise

Memory Verse:

“Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words remain forever.” Matthew 24:35 [The Living Bible]

Did someone ever make a promise to you and then not keep it? How disappointing that was! And if the promise was very special to you, it probably made you mad or broke your heart.

I know that as a mom and grandma I have made promises that I broke. Sometimes I just got so busy that I couldn’t carry through; other times the circumstances changed and the promise didn’t work. I know my kids and grandkids suffered because of it even though I really tried to make it up to them.

So knowing how easily breaking promises happens I am so glad that God never, ever breaks His promise. Also, He never has to take back what He said. He always speaks the truth.

We sometimes hear someone say, “You’re going to have to eat your words. Just wait and see.” But Jesus never has to eat His words; not even when we don’t take what He says seriously. His words always come true.

Joseph’s brothers must have thought that Joseph would have to eat his words. He told them of his dream where the sun and moon and eleven stars bowed down to him.

His brothers knew what he was implying; that some day they would bow down to him. And they said, “No way, Joseph. This time you went too far. You are way out of line.” Only they forgot the most important thing. This dream was from God; not just any dream or Joseph’s desire to lord it over his brothers.

Now there was a famine in all the countries. There came a day when Jacob and his eleven sons ran out of food also. But Jacob heard that there was food available to buy in Egypt. So he sent the ten brothers to buy grain there. He kept Benjamin with him. He didn’t want anything bad to happen to Benjamin like it happened to Joseph.

I wonder how the brothers felt as they travelled to Egypt. As they travelled this road and then that one, did they think of the day when Joseph must have travelled that same road? Did they wonder what ever happened to their brother? Where he was? If he had perhaps died? The Bible doesn’t mention that, but I like to think so.

Pharaoh had made Joseph governor of Egypt and he was in charge of selling the grain. When the ten brothers came to him and bowed down before him they had no idea that they were bowing down to Joseph. They didn’t even know that Joseph’s dream was coming true and yet they were making it happen.

Joseph was now an Egyptian and he dressed like them and he spoke their language. The brothers spoke to him through an interpreter. Besides, they wouldn’t have recognized him because when they sold him as a slave to the merchants from Egypt he was only seventeen. That was twenty years ago. They probably thought that he was dead by now. Most slaves didn’t get very old because they had to work so hard and they were often beaten.

Joseph recognized his brothers though. Joseph also realized that his dream was coming true. But he didn’t let on. He wanted to test his brothers to see if they had changed for the better. He wanted to find out if they would betray or maybe even sell another of their brothers.

When they admitted that they had another brother at home, Joseph knew that they were talking about his little brother, Benjamin. Joseph then accused them of being spies and threw them into prison to test them further.

After three days he had his men fill their sacks with grain and demanded that they go home and bring back their other brother. To make sure they would do as he said Joseph kept one of the brothers, Simeon, hostage in prison till their return.

The brothers must have been very afraid. They knew that this governor had all power in Egypt. He could even have them beheaded. It happened a lot in those days.

They talked among themselves that these bad things were happening to them because they had sold Joseph and deceived their dad by bringing Joseph’s coat home, dipped in blood. Jacob, Joseph’s dad, thought a wild animal had attacked and eaten Joseph. Now his brothers were sorry for what they had done.

They didn’t know that Joseph understood every word they said. How hard it must have been for Joseph to not let on that he was their brother. It was important to him to test them. He wanted to see how they would treat Benjamin too. By the way they talked he knew that they would try their best to protect him.

When Joseph’s brothers said that Joseph’s dream would never come true, they made a mistake. They made that mistake because they didn’t take into consideration who gave Joseph that dream. It was God who gave him the dream and God never lies.

Because in their way of thinking the dream was so far out, beyond their wildest imagination, they thought it just couldn’t be from God. Also, it was pretty humiliating to them to think that they, the big brothers, would bow to or serve their younger brother. In those days the oldest sons were always given the highest honors.

So we need to realize that we are not to judge God’s promises; if they seem possible or not. We need to accept them as His word; truth.

When you read of a promise from God to you in the Bible you know He will do it. And as His child He gives you many promises.

One of His best promises to us is that if we are obedient and loyal to Him He will help us and take care of us. Another one is that He will never leave us or forsake us. My favorite one is that He promised one day He will come back and take us to heaven to be with Him for ever and ever and ever and ever.

Going Deeper as Parents:

As much as we trust in God’s promises, we also realize that they are conditional. If we do this He will do that; as when the Bible says if we delight in the Lord, He will give us the desires of our heart.

One promise I stand on a lot because I tend to run out of energy some days, is Isaiah 40: 31 [NKJV]
”But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.”

The other day I drove to Lethbridge for my twin grandsons’ third birthday. Since it’s a good two and half hour drive I usually stay overnight. But this time I took my niece and her two preschoolers with me so I was committed to drive back home the same day.

Still, I mused, I could easily start out at eight in the morning and be back at six to accommodate my niece’s commitment that evening. As usual, that morning I asked God for energy for the day’s activities because driving for five hours and spending time with my active grandsons would tax my limit.

As I spent time with God that morning, reading the Bible and praying, I reminded God of Isaiah 40: 31. Since I spent time with Him, asking Him to strengthen me, I trusted Him to give me energy for my day.

I usually travel alone or with my husband so I had forgotten the unexpected that happens when travelling with little ones. There was a clean up after car sickness to contend with plus a stop at the drugstore. We arrived almost an hour late but decided we would just shorten our visit and still leave at the agreed time.

But I had given God my day and He orchestrates according to His plan. The birthday celebrations were fun and going well until after lunch, when the unexpected [unexpected to us but not to God] happened and our well planned day changed.

A lid slammed down on one of the children’s fingers and fearing the finger was broken we sped to the hospital. The three hour wait delayed us once again. We were glad the finger wasn’t broken. By then it was supper time so we decided to stay a bit
longer to visit over meal time.

By the time we left, a heavy snow storm blew in which slowed us down. Further down the road we ran into blizzard conditions. It was way past our allotted time by the time we reached home in Calgary.

Inspite of the extra emotional strain and the lateness of the hour I could still say I wasn’t tired. I thanked God for His promise in giving me energy as my day.

When we practice trusting God’s promises in our daily affairs of life, it increases our faith in Him and enables us to trust God’s promises for the future also, especially concerning eternal life.

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, The Rubik’s Cube, at http://ruthwillms.com

When God Finally Answers Our Prayer

Devotionals for Kids

“And let us not get tired of doing right, for after a while we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t get discouraged and give up.” Galatians 6:9 [The Living Bible]

Sometimes we pray and pray for God to help us in our problem and nothing changes. Does that ever happen to you? It happens to all of God’s children

Maybe you’re praying for a special friend to come to Jesus. Maybe you have been praying for a long, long time for God to heal you. Maybe you have been praying that God would give you a special friend or that God would remove that bully from your life. Inspite of you praying, nothing happens. In fact, the situation looks more hopeless than ever.

Joseph, the slave in Egypt must have felt that way. First he was a slave and then he became a prisoner. He saw God restore the king’s butler to his palace but God didn’t seem to be helping him. It had been two long years since the butler was gone. He hoped the butler was telling the king about how he had been wronged. Perhaps the king would pity him and help him.

Then at the end of two years Pharaoh had two unusual dreams. None of his wise men could tell him what they meant. Suddenly the butler remembered Joseph. He told Pharaoh about the dreams he and the baker had in prison and how Joseph told them what they meant. So Pharaoh, the king, sent for Joseph.

How surprised Joseph must have been. Here he thought God had forgotten about him and now Pharaoh wanted to see him. The Bible says he shaved quickly and changed his clothing and came straight to Pharaoh.

“I have heard that you can interpret dreams,” Pharaoh challenged him.

Joseph was very wise. Now that God had remembered him and helped him by bringing him to the attention of the highest authority in Egypt, Joseph gave God the glory. He said, “It is not me, but God who will give you an answer.”
Then Pharaoh told Joseph his dreams.

“In my dream I was standing by the river. Seven cows came up on the bank from the river. They were healthy and fat and began eating the grass in the field.

“As I was standing there, watching them, suddenly seven more cows appeared, coming up from the river. They were ugly and skinny. To my amazement the seven skinny cows ate up the fat, healthy cows. But after they ate them they were just as ugly and skinny as before. Then I woke up.

“After that I had another strange dream. In my dream seven ears of corn grew out of a stalk. They were full, good ears. Then, again, as I was watching, seven more ears of corn appeared on the stalk but they were thin; shriveled and withered by the east wind. These thin ears swallowed up the plump ears. I told my dreams to my magicians but they couldn’t tell me the meaning.”

Right away Joseph knew what the dreams meant. God revealed their meaning to him.

“Your dreams are wonderful. They both mean the same thing. God is telling you what He is about to do.

“The seven fat cows and the full ears of corn are the same thing. They represent seven good years of plenty throughout Egypt. The seven lean cows and the seven thin ears are also the same thing. They are seven years of famine. The years of famine will be so bad that the seven years of plenty will be forgotten. Everything will be eaten up in all of Egypt.

“God gave you two dreams to prove that this will really happen. He is telling you to prepare for the time of famine. You must appoint a wise man to look after the harvest of the years of plenty to save up extra food for the years of famine.”

Pharaoh was so relieved to hear the explanation of his dreams. He decided that Joseph was the wisest man in his kingdom to do this great job. He then appointed him ruler over all of Egypt. He gave him royal robes and a gold chain to wear around his neck. He even gave Joseph his special signet ring. Now Joseph was next only to the king himself in his position of power.

Joseph had been faithful to God all those years. He kept serving God by doing his job the best he good. He was as obedient and helpful to the jailer as he had been to Potiphar. He interpreted the butler and baker’s dreams and the king’s dreams even not knowing what was in it for him.

That’s something that we need to do too. In our hearts and actions we still need to honor God and do what’s right, in helping others and doing the good things God teaches us in the Bible, even if we can’t see God working. In the end, even if God doesn’t answer our prayers the way we thing He should, He will reward us in heaven.

Memory Verse for the week:

“And let us not get tired of doing right, for after a while we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t get discouraged and give up.” Galatians 6:9 [The Living Bible]

Going deeper as parents:

Joseph is one of my heroes that stuck with God no matter what. He was sold by his brothers, became a slave, and then a prisoner. He stayed faithful to what he had been taught about God.

You might say to me; but he had no choice. I think he did. He could have thought, OK, I’ll adjust to the Egyptian’s culture and gods and work my way up somehow. I’ll think about “me”.

He kept himself free from sin in Potiphar’s house, even if it meant going to jail. He was helpful in prison and thought about others; that’s why the jailer promoted him. Obviously he stayed closed to God, or God wouldn’t have been able to show him the meaning of all four dreams.

When I think of Joseph, I also think of Job. Job was tested beyond what most humans can endure. Yet he stayed true to God inspite of his questions. He even said that though God slay him he would still serve Him. He then acknowledged that after God tested him, he would come forth as gold.

Like me you’re probably thinking, that’s fine for these men of the Bible but I hope I’m never tested to that degree. I think my faith would hold out and I think I would still find God at the end of my rope. It’s my flesh that gets in the way; the pain I would have to go through.

God has made us. He knows our limitations. He promises He does not break a bruised reed. God bless!

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, The Rubik’s Cube, at http://ruthwillms.com

When Things Get Worse

“For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 [The Living Bible]

Sometimes when things start to go wrong in our life we kind of sit back and wait for the good things to start happening again. That’s how I feel sometimes. I think, well, everyone has to have some problems so I’ll deal with this one and pretty soon things will turn around. That’s usually what happens then.

But sometimes things don’t turn around that fast. That’s how it was for Joseph. He thought the worst part was over. The Ishmaelites had bought him to sell him as a slave. When they arrived in the city where the king of Egypt lived, they sold him to an officer in the king’s army.

Joseph was very sensible about it. He must have been horrified that his own brothers would sell him. But he realized he was a slave now and there was nothing he could do about it. He decided to be obedient to his master and to be the best slave he could be.

His master, Potiphar, liked him. He was a very rich man and had a lot of servants. Joseph soon learned the language of the Egyptians and worked hard. God was with Joseph, caring for him, protecting him and blessing him. He could have been sold as a laborer doing heavy construction work. Usually those slaves didn’t live long because the work was so hard. But God took care of Joseph and Potiphar put him in charge of his household. He was even the caretaker of his master’s money.

So Joseph thought the worst was over. Then something even worse happened. Potiphar’s wife lied about him and told his master Joseph had done wrong. Potiphar believed her and had Joseph thrown into prison.

Joseph must have been frustrated that God allowed this to happen to him because he loved and served God. In prison the jailer noticed Joseph was a pleasant, obedient prisoner and decided to put him in charge of all the other prisoners. God was preparing him for a big job in the near future.

Remember the dreams Joseph had while he lived at home? Well, one day two of Pharaoh’s servants were thrown into prison with Joseph. They each had a dream during the same night. They were very upset because the dreams were so real and they didn’t know what they meant. Joseph asked them to tell him their dreams and told them that God would tell him what they meant.

The chief butler proceeded to tell Joseph his dream. “I saw a grape-vine that had three branches. The buds shot forth and became blossoms. The blossoms became clusters of grapes. I squeezed juice out of the grapes into Pharaoh’s cup like I used to do.”

God gave Joseph the meaning of his dream. So Joseph told the butler. He said that the three branches were three days. In three days the king would ask the butler to come back and work for him again. Then Joseph begged the butler to remember him and tell Pharaoh how Joseph had been wronged.

Now, the other servant, the baker, was encouraged. He had heard that good things were going to happen to the butler. So he told Joseph his dream too.

“In my dream, there were three baskets on my head. In the top one there were baked goods for the king. But while I held them, the birds came and ate all the baked goods.” The chief baker waited to hear what Joseph would say.

God also told Joseph what that dream meant. He felt sorry for the baker but he had to tell him.

“Three baskets mean three days. In three days the king will take you from prison and hang you and the birds will eat your flesh.”

In three days it happened exactly as God had told Joseph it would. Pharaoh had a big party for his birthday. He restored the chief butler to his position in the palace and he disposed of the baker just like Joseph said.

Do you think the butler remembered to tell Pharaoh Joseph’s story? No, he didn’t. You would think that the butler would be so appreciative that Joseph told him the meaning of his dream that he would remember to help Joseph too. But the Bible says he forgot. He just got so busy, he forgot.

God didn’t forget about Joseph though. God was planning something very big for Joseph. Only Joseph didn’t know that. I’m sure he must have wondered, “But, God, what about me? Why do you help that butler, but not me?”

Do you ever feel that way? Do you feel that all the wonderful things are happening to people around you but you’re missing out?

God is preparing some very special good plans for you too. God loves you. The Bible says we, His children, are the apple of His eye. That means He wants the very best for us. Maybe there are some things we need to learn first and things have to fall into place. Like Joseph, we just need to keep obeying and trusting Him.

Memory verse for this week:

“And this is what God says we must do; Believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another.” 1 John 3: 23 [The Living Bible]

Going Deeper as Parents:

This reminds me of the time there was a famine during King David’s reign. This story is recorded in 2 Samuel 21. After three years of famine David finally asked the Lord what was going on. And God told him. He said the famine had come because Saul and his family had broken their agreement with the Gibeonites and killed them.

King David worked out an agreement with the Gibeonites and God heard their prayers, and ended the famine.

I wonder why David took so long to inquire of God. But do we do that too?
We think, oh well, bad things happen to everyone. I’ll wait it out.

Maybe we need to examine the situation. Maybe we need to examine our lives. Like David, and like Joseph, God has the answer for us. Maybe God doesn’t bless us to the extent he blessed Joseph and David, but God loves us and we can hope in His goodness.

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, The Rubik’s Cube, at http://ruthwillms.com

Shattered Dreams

“And we know that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God and are fitting into his plans.” Romans 8:28 [The Living Bible]

Did someone ever shatter all your dreams? You had some great plans to do something special, something you’ve always wanted to do, and someone came along and messed them up.

Maybe your best friend moved away and now you’re feeling so lonely. You think no one can ever replace that special friendship.

Hockey’s big in Calgary. Maybe you were all set to play hockey and something happened in your family so you couldn’t play after all.

Maybe something really big went wrong in your life. Maybe your parents divorced. Maybe your parent remarried and you just don’t like your new step parent and step family.

All kinds of things go wrong in our lives at times. It happens to everyone. God gives us hope in these rough times. He says He can use even the bad things in our lives, even the hurting, disappointing things, to make good things happen in our lives. He says He makes the bitter things sweet, and turns curses into blessings. He really did that in a big way in Joseph’s life. But first Joseph had to go through the awful bad time, like we have to sometimes.

Joseph’s dad, Jacob, sent him to find out how his brothers were doing. They had taken the family’s cattle and sheep to Shechem because there wasn’t enough grass for them to feed close to home. So Joseph went to find them. Eventually he found them at Dothan.

His brothers saw him coming. They were jealous of him because he was their father’s favorite. Their father had given him a special coat of many colors but he hadn’t given any of them something that special. They thought Joseph thought he was better than them. And last time Joseph came to check on them for their dad, he had given their dad a bad report of them. So they envied him and they hated him.

They planned a conspiracy. They said: ”Look, there comes the dreamer. Let’s kill him and see what becomes of his dreams.”

But Reuben, the oldest brother, felt responsible for his younger brother. He didn’t want the others to hurt him.

He said. “Let’s not kill him. We could just throw him into a pit in this wilderness.” And his brothers agreed with him. Reuben planned on releasing Joseph later and sending him home safely.

When Joseph caught up with them, the brothers grabbed him. They tore off his tunic of many colors and threw him into a pit. Then they sat down to eat.

While they were eating they saw a caravan of camels passing by. The caravan consisted of a company of Ishmaelites, who were taking spices, balm and myrrh to Egypt to sell. Now, Reuben was not with his brothers. Maybe he was further off looking after the herds and flocks.

Judah, one of the brothers, said, “Come on, let’s sell our brother Joseph to these Ishmaelites.” And his brothers agreed. So they pulled Joseph out of the pit and sold him to these strangers as a slave. Joseph begged his brothers not to do this awful thing to him. But they didn’t listen. They probably just laughed at him. The brothers considered Joseph as good as dead and knew he would never return from Egyptian slavery.

Then Reuben returned. He looked into the pit to check on his younger brother. But he wasn’t there. Reuben was very upset. As the oldest brother he would be held responsible for Joseph, but he also really cared what happened to him.

The Bible says Reuben tore his clothes. People did that in those days to show their grief.

The brothers killed a kid, a young goat, and dipped the tunic in the blood. They took the tunic to their father and said: “Look what we found. Do you think this is Joseph’s tunic?”

Jacob recognized it at once. “It is Joseph’s,” he said. “A wild animal must have devoured him.”

Jacob was very, very sad. The brothers tried to comfort him but they couldn’t. Maybe they thought now that Joseph was gone their father would treat them like favorites. But he didn’t. Jacob really missed Joseph and insisted he would mourn for him all his life.

The brothers thought they had everything under control. They had gotten rid of Joseph. They had fooled their father and he would never know what they did. But were they in for a big surprise.

God had a plan for Joseph. God had allowed the brothers to sell Joseph but He was going to use this betrayal to save them all. He helped Joseph, the slave, become an important person in Egypt. He used this awful deed that the brothers did to bring about a wonderful thing. Keep reading the devotionals this week and you’ll find out what God did.

He does that in our lives too. Yes, even in your life. When you think someone really messed up your plans, you can go to God. Just tell Him how you feel and give Him the mess. Ask Him to make something good from it; something to honor Him. Then watch the miracle He does for you too to make something good and beautiful happen to you.

Memory verse for this week:

“And this is what God says we must do; Believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another.” 1 John 3: 23 [The Living Bible]

Going Deeper as parents:

Looking back on my life now I can see many things that I thought were out of control that God used for good. He had everything under control all the time. All that time when I fussed and fumed and worried.

Like most mothers I worried a lot about my kids. I wanted to be God to them. I wanted to make everything right in their lives and protect them from all that could hurt them. But it was only when I gave them to God and asked Him to be in charge that I could stop worrying. And it was when they made God their God that I saw beautiful things happen.

That has helped me trust God with current issues in my life; like starting my writing career. I returned to college when I was in my forties and studied Early Childhood Education. Even though I was a late bloomer as a teacher, God blessed me tremendously, and it turned out to be a successful experience. I think of all the people who touched my life and whose lives I could touch for God as I taught in a Christian preschool and later in my Christian dayhome. God brought me kids and parents who might never hear about Jesus any other way.

So now when I face change, God’s help in the past reminds me that He will also turn my new apprehensions into good things, as long as I obey Him and am loyal to Him.

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, The Rubik’s Cube, at http://ruthwillms.com