Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“But Joseph said to them, ‘Do not be afraid! Am I in the place of God? Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today.’”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, September 22, 2024
by Pr. Sara Gorman, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: “Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good.”
Sometimes being the smartest person in the room, isn’t the best thing. People look at you a little funny. Maybe not as many people choose to sit close to you or talk to you. But in that loneliness there is deeper wisdom that you hold onto—that the material doesn’t matter. And that things will all work out as they are supposed to, even if they don’t make sense at the time.
Joseph’s brothers didn’t like the idea that if anyone in the family would have power and influence that it would be Joseph. After all he was the youngest, and their father’s favorite. So instead of being okay with that, knowing that parents love all their children, and root for them all equally, they made their own plan to make it so that Joseph wasn’t in the way any longer.
Years later when Joseph’s brothers had to interact with him again due to the famine, they weren’t so sure how they would be treated. After all, they hadn’t exactly been kind to Joseph. Why would he treat them any differently than they had treated him? But Joseph, proves to be the bigger man and offers to set all of what happened before aside so he can help his brothers.
Joseph no doubt learned a lot while he was in his position of power, and definitely could have used that to his advantage. In fact, the brothers anticipate having to be his slaves after what they did to him. But instead, Joseph treats them with kindness, and decides to put the past in the past. While Joseph may have been angry at his brothers immediately after they threw him into the pit, he had a deeper knowledge that what happened was part of what got him into the position he was in now.
While Joseph could have taken advantage of his brothers’ embarrassment and had them serve as slaves, he showed them there is a different way, even when it doesn’t make sense.
