Thunderbird Lake State Park, Norman, Oklahoma
On the third day, Joseph said to them, “Do this and you will live, for I fear God: If you are honest men, let one of your brothers stay here in prison, while the rest of you go and take grain back for your starving households but you must bring your youngest brother to me, so that your words may be verified and that you may not die.” This they proceeded to do. ~ Genesis 42:18-20 Did you notice that Joseph mentions their God first? Egyptians didn’t recognize the Almighty God; they had their myriad of other gods. And now a final decision has been made. Joseph will keep one brother, while the others return with food for their families and then bring Benjamin back to him. We’re talking 3-4 weeks, if they do it right away, but maybe they had chores to attend to before they could come back, not to mention the time it surely would take to convince Jacob to give up another son. And how did they decide who would stay behind? How do you make difficult decisions? Do you consult God for wisdom, or do you rely solely upon friends? Family? Pastor? It’s good to get outside opinions, but God – through His Word, prayer, and the Holy Spirit – should be the ultimate source for help in decision making.
We chose CrossPointe Church in Norman for worship this week. There was a nice, smiling woman at the door who greeted us with “Good morning!”. We were roughly 15 minutes early, in a smallish church. People milled all around us, yet no one spoke a word of greeting. People (including obvious leadership) talked cheerily near to us, but no one spoke, or even acknowledged they had visitors in their midst. We felt invisible.
Until, just before service began, one petite elderly woman with pink-framed glasses intentionally came over to greet us and talk briefly. The music was excellent (in a country/bluegrass sort of way). The message was good, but without feeling welcomed into their midst, who would want to return?
However. As we were heading out of the sanctuary, that very same godly woman approached us and said, “God has laid it on my heart to pray for you. Do you mind? It’ll only take a minute.” Of course! The three of us stood very close as she prayed in a voice to be heard over the postlude music. She brought tears to my eyes, and gained a very appreciative hug. She thought she was praying for safe travels for us, but I knew better. She was God’s tangible way of reminding us that He was with us. And we not only recognized it, but were grateful for it. This is the God we serve. The One Who cares about the details of our lives. The One Who would take the time to impress us upon the heart of a godly woman who really had no idea how she was being used by Him. No other god is like Him! May I encourage you, if you feel led to engage in some way with someone, even pray over them, that you do so. You never know but that you may be the vessel God is using to touch someone’s life in a powerful way.
Sunday afternoon, we ventured out to wander around the Park. It was a glorious day! We even discovered a place to sit upon the red rocks lakeside and soak up the beauty and reflect on our morning encounter. God is good. All the time!
deep blues, white, greens, browns, yellows . . . And so many shades of each!
Comfortable and beautiful!
Because I’m writing this late, I can tell you that tonight, and all day tomorrow, we had thunderstorms and rain. This is the advantage of being behind. I can predict the future. 😊