dFirst of all, let me reassure those of you who think I might be experiencing marriage problems, which is leading to my FB suspension, let me reassure you that is not the case. My wife and I are doing quite well, and it really is the marriage conference, in large part, which provoked me to take this hiatus. I am really enjoying the last few days, and being able to take care of convalescing relatives (two sons and my wife) has really given me a good dose of patience and pleasure in the smaller things in life (namely Isaac and Emmaus).
Secondly, this blogging is no attempt to circumvent FB to communicate with others. I am not that smart or desperate (well, okay, maybe that smart, but certainly not that desperate).
Okay, so, back to my post. I was reading the latter fifth of Genesis, and it just occurred to my on Monday I had a dream about my future as well. If the dream comes true, I will be back in Missouri at some point.
The latter fifth is about Joseph, the son of Jacob, who was sold into slavery in Egypt and rose from the prison to become the chief Egyptian administrator. I would say that he was sold into slavery by his envious brothers because he shot off at the mouth rather than humbling himself and keeping the dreams within. The odd thing, perhaps, is that if he had not shared those dreams, he might not have gotten sold into slavery. Perhaps he was meant to tell his brothers, and the were meant to get envious, and his destiny was to be sold into slavery in Egypt. This says something about our circumstances. No matter how bad they get, God can still use even the worst of them to do a massive amount of good. Perhaps, sometimes, it is by His permission, these less-than-ideal circumstances are allowed into our life so that His glory can be manifested and made known. For certain, without Joseph’s running off at the mouth, his family and that entire segment of the known world might have died off.
Moreover, who is to say that there are not times when God finds it necessary, in order to launch us into our ultimate destinies, to permit a lot of adversity, including prison and poverty.
Job, anyone?
I wonder what Calvin would say about this…