"Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive" (Col 3:13)
A funny thing happened and has never stopped since. There was once a man called Joseph who walked out of a prison. But you know what; though free he kept himself locked up in a prison!
Joseph had been sold by his brothers into slavery after an attempted murder on his life (Gen 37). That brutal experience had left him so bruised that even when God restored him to a position of power the pain of betrayal still ached him. After being thrown in jail on false charges, he was plucked from Prison and made Prime minister of Egypt (Genesis 41). However, though he had now access to all means and was in a position of power a certain matter still left him sleepless. How could his very brothers cause him all the suffering he had experienced.
So, one day, look; there before him are his once captors near starvation and begging for food. All the pain he had let up. He put them through a ringer by locking up Simeon until they returned with Benjamin, the youngest left behind.
Finally, overcome with grief at the mention of his father, Joseph surrendered all and forgave his brothers. "Then he threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin embraced him, weeping. And he kissed all his brothers and wept over them. Afterward his brothers talked with him" (Gen 45:14-15). In a sense it is when he finally forgave them that he started living as a free. Before that he was a man in a prison of bitterness
But could there be a past hurt you are carrying too! Perhaps like Joseph you too God long delivered you yet you insist to carry that burden! Only by fully forgiving will you not only walk out of a prison but leave it behind and experience total healing and freedom!
Prayer today: Lord Father God of Abraham, maker of heaven and earth, I surrender to you any weight I might be carrying for true freedom that you offer through faith in Jesus, this I pray in Jesus' name.
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17/05/2024 - 18/05/2024 All day“And I in righteousness I shall see your face; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with seeing your likeness” (Psalm 17:15)
One of the defining aspects we see in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ is that He began the day with prayer. “Very early in the morning while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed” (Mark 1:35). As he was always surrounded by crowds and after such a busy day before of preaching and engaging the Pharisees in debates this must have been a therapeutic moment for Christ when he would have some good time to himself.
But there was also more. For Jesus being away in a secluded place would also mean a chance to pour out His heart to God, meditate in quietness, plan for the day ahead and listen to the Father. Jesus must have looked up to this moment every day knowing its benefits. Conversations with His Father must have been real and intimate, bringing a certain soothing and uplifting of His spirit. You do not wake up and stick to something on a daily basis that is a drag – this must have been his best time of the day!
Martin Luther the leader of the protestant reformation is reputed to once have said, “I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer.” Here is the point. In the olden days before the arrival of locomotive transport those who were setting out for a long journey on foot had to start early with the first cock crow before the punishing sun came out. One of the things they had to start with also was a good meal, which was fuel needed to give them energy through the long walk to their destiny.
There are no rules about waking up to pray as first thing- or even saying prayer at a defined hour of the day. God is everywhere and ever with us. He is accessible at any time of the day. But there is something special about prioritizing our lives that the first thing we do is to talk to God. Just like the early traveller we need fuel, for the long day ahead!
Prayer for today: Lord Father God of Abraham, maker of heaven and earth, what a joy and privilege to make time at the start of any day, talk and hear from you, for the power I need through the day, this I pray in Jesus’ name!
