THE NEW EWE

"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'"

Luke 15:4-6

June 21, 2023

LIFE IN THE FOLD

I am the youngest of five girls in my family -- no brothers. There is almost a fourteen-and-a-half years age difference between me and my oldest sister. There is about five years between each of the sisters, in age, except for the next to the oldest which is about halfway between the oldest and middle sister. I was five years old when my oldest sister got married, so didn't have a lot of years at home with her.

Many years ago, one my sisters and her husband pastored a church in Texas, so we only got to see them a handful of times per year. Another sister and her husband pastored a church in Washington, when their kids were small, so we only saw them about once a year. But for the last several years, we've all lived within driving distance of one other. We all live within four hours of one another, which is nice.

For there being gaps in our ages, we have remained very close throughout the years; but it has been a conscientious decision we all made. We all have a desire to be close, so know that we have to put forth an effort for that to happen. We have done that throughout the years by connecting with each other by phone. Whenever possible, we have visited and spent time together.

Once we all lived closer together, we decided that we would get together once a year for "sister time". This is just a time for the sisters only -- no husbands, no kids, no grandkids. Some years it has been hard to find a time when we were all available, other years one of us couldn't be there for the entire time for one reason or another, but we have made sure that we make this happen. It's important to us to have this time together. And the older we get, the more we realize how precious this time is and that the number of years that we have remaining is getting shorter and shorter.

This week is our sister week! So I'm writing this early, since I will be out of town.

When I think about the relationship that I have with my sisters, it's somewhat hard for me to understand the jealousy and tumultuous relationship between Joseph and his brothers in Genesis. I've had to really study and look at the circumstances surrounding their family to get a glimpse into why there were so many problems.

The main issue seems to be that Joseph was his father's favorite son. When a parent has a favored child, that opens the door for many issues. For one thing, Joseph was the son of Jacob's favorite wife, whom he loved best. She had been barren for many years, before being able to conceive a child. Finally, God blesses Rachel and Jacob with a son and they are thrilled! Leah was Rachel's sister, and her father had tricked Jacob into marrying her; even though he knew that Jacob loved Rachel and had worked for seven years in order to marry her. God blessed her with sons, even though she was not loved by her husband.

After Rachel gives birth to Joseph, she prays for God to bless her with another son. She becomes pregnant, then Jacob makes the decision to move his family back to his homeland. Before they reached home, Rachel goes into labor and dies shortly after giving birth to Benjamin. So her two young sons were raised without a mama. I'm not sure if Leah took the boys in as her own; or if one of Jacob's other two wives raised them; or if the boys were kind of tossed back and forth between them all.

Leah's sons likely knew the story of their grandfather tricking their father into marrying their mom. They likely knew how Rachel was the favored and loved wife. Then there were their mom and Aunt Rachel's handmaidens, whom they had given to their father as wives. They knew that Rachel was the favored and much loved wife. They saw how their father rejoiced and celebrated the birth of Joseph. They watched as he showed favor and made a special gift for their little brother; something he had never done for them. Jealousy began to take root in their hearts, until they reached the point of hating Joseph.

They hated him so much, that they decided to kill him and get rid of him. The oldest brother talked them out of doing that; but they still chose to throw him into a pit. When they saw the caravan of traders coming towards them, they made the decision to sell Joseph, who was only seventeen years old at that time.

They lied to their father, telling him that Joseph had been killed. But they had to live with the knowledge of what they had done for the next several years. They went about their lives, raising families, not knowing what had happened to their younger brother. They didn't know if he was dead or alive, or what had become of his life.

But God had a plan! He was with Joseph throughout his life and directed his steps. Joseph went through some difficult circumstances, but he maintained his faith and integrity through it all. The day came when he was in a position of power and was able to give aid to his family during a time of great famine. He was reconciled with his father and brothers. He held no grudge and didn't punish them for what they had done to him, even though he had the power and authority to be able to do so. Joseph chose to forgive his brothers!

I'm happy that Joseph was able to make peace with his brothers and live out the remainder of his life with them and their families. I'm happy that their story had a happy ending. But there were so many years of separation. I do believe that God had a plan for placing Joseph in that place of authority to accomplish His plan for the Israelites. But I don't believe that it's ever His will for families to be separated by jealousy and hatred. It's not God's plan for siblings to bring hurt to one another and desire their death.

If there is someone in your family that you've become distanced from and there is a strain in your relationship, ask God to give you wisdom in how to bring about reconciliation and healing. If there is jealousy or hatred, ask forgiveness and allow God to strip those things away so that He can bring about love in that relationship. Don't waste time and allow years to go by, waiting on their apologies or harboring resentment and refusing to forgive. If God speaks to you about forgiveness or gives you a solution for how to bring about reconciliation, then obey Him so that He can bring about peace. It may seem as if it would take a miracle, but nothing is too difficult for God and He can do those things that seem impossible!

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

We may find it a difficult struggle to get five people together for a week. But it is important for family to get together and have that time.

Sometimes, it can also seem like a struggle to get time one-on-one with our Heavenly Father. But if it seems difficult to find time to talk with Him, we're really just making excuses.

We don't have to plan ahead and work out schedules. We don't have to wait for Him to be available, or for Him to get off work. We can call on Him without any risk we will wake Him up. He won't be too sleepy to listen and understand.

We all have time each day we can talk with God or with Jesus, too. We can call out to God while we drive to or from work. We can talk with Him while trying to get to sleep, while brushing our teeth, or during advertisements.

We can pray while we are in the shower. That one might seem inappropriate to many readers. But I'm serious. We should go to God humbly. And when are we more humble than while in the shower? Jesus suffered public humiliation on the cross; can't we make ourselves humble privately with Him, too? Jesus and our Heavenly Father want to be part of our lives, not just the parts we are proud to share--all of our lives.

ON THE MENEWE:

Rotel Dip

(This is a little different take on the traditional rotel dip.)

Place all ingredients in a crockpot or microwave dish. Cook until all ingredients are melted and well mixed.

Serve with tortilla chips.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

My sister was recently babysitting two of her grandkids, who are ages 5 and 2-1/2. They were playing and my sister wasn't really paying attention until she heard the 5 year girl tell her little brother, "Go get the scissors!" She quickly said, "No!" The little girl said, "Grandma, not real scissors! We're just pretending." My sister ask why they needed scissors and was told so that they could cut their hair. She told them to just use their fingers like scissors and pretend like they were cutting hair. She looked up and there was the little boy coming out of the bathroom with the scissors that his mom uses for cutting hair. They had no idea that he even knew where they were kept! They had to find a new hiding place for the scissors. Thankfully, my sister overheard their plan and stopped it before they started cutting each others hair!!

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God. - Corrie ten Boom

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org