DAY17

MOMENTS

Genesis 41 & 42 and Matthew 12:1-23

There aremoments in life, moments that when you look back upon them, seem to define whoyou are, or serve as turning points in life.

Genesis 41 starts by notingthat Joseph has been in jail for two entire years since interpreting the dreamsof his fellow inmates. This is in addition to the time he spent there beforethe dreams. The story of Joseph before the king, interpreting the king’s dreams,ends with Joseph becoming essentially the Prime Minister of Egypt. Try andimagine going from jail (I imagine not a very nice one) to in a short timestanding before the king. Might you be thinking to yourself what you should do?Might you be wondering what you should say to prevent from ending up back inthe pokey, or worse? Might you worry?  Josephstands before Pharaoh, this is his moment. His answer is found in verse 16, “…Godwill give Pharaoh a favorable answer…” Joseph places his trust in that which knows, in whom he knows…Almighty God.

Weall have moments in our lives. I want to suggest that our response in those moments will depend upon the the foundations we have laid. Joseph responds putting his trust in God. Wehave seen Joseph respond this way before, when he was pursued by Potiphar’swife, somewhere along the way he has laid a solid foundation.

Genesis 42 tells thestory of the Joseph meeting with his brothers. Family dynamics, especiallyafter a disagreement or fight are always tough. How much more when you havesold your brother? Remarkably Joseph is moved to see them. How can he not beangry? He has made peace with himself about what was done to him. If he had nottheir interaction would have been completely different. [His brothers obviouslyhave not because even though they do not recognize Joseph, they perceive thesource of their hardship as a result of their more than ten year old sin.]

Forgivenessis so difficult, but we can see the power of it in this scene. Picture it.Joseph is going about his day, many years have gone by, and then out ofnowhere, his brothers appear. This is moment, an instant, in Joseph’s storywhen all of who he is, in his core, will be tested.

TheBible does not tell us how and when Joseph became such a man of integrity. Westart with a teenager who flaunts his dreams to his brothers and we end up witha man who has stood many tests. Tests that include: A flirting and powerfulwife, a jail term, an audience with the king, and now the power, wealth andprestige of position… with all that power he could crush those who years ago separated him from his family...instead he cries when he sees his brothers.

Wesee in each of these moments his calling to God. He did so with the serious flirtatiousadvances (cf. 39:9). He did so whenin jail (cf. 40:8). He did so infront of a king (cf. 41:16). He doesso as he dispenses the grain across the country.

As Joseph ishanding out grain, Matthew 12 beginswith grain; more specifically grain picking on the Sabbath. In Matthew 12 weread about a series of “moments” where Jesus is challenged; and he has ananswer for each.

Picking grain on the Sabbath…Jesuspoints out King David’s actions.

Healing on the Sabbath…Jesusasks, “Wouldn’t you help and animal on the Sabbath?”

Pharisees conspired…Hewithdraws.

Accused of being from Beelzebul…Hepoints out that a house divided cannot stand.

Moments, it is not just Joseph and Jesus who have them, we all do. Sometimes we do well and sometimes we (well if not you, me) do not dowell. Our reaction and behavior for these moments will be governed largely byhow we prepare. My old coach use to say, “The way you practice is the way youplay.” In other words don’t expect to be someone at a critical moment, that youare not all the other non-critical moments of life. Am I a person of prayer?Have I not just read, but received, and internalized God’s Word? Have Iforgiven?  It is not that God will stoploving you if you don't do these things, (think back to all the human mistakes we have already read about). Instead it simply means we will not be prepared to be people of God's grace in those moments.

May God inspire us to be prepared for the moments of our lives.