The Big Picture

Soooo I'm reading through the entire Bible right now for the first time. This is quite a challenge for me as I read at the speed of a sloth! I chose a chronological plan so of course it began in Genesis and then after chapter 11, it skipped to the book of Job, and then jumps right back into Genesis chapter 12. First off, let me say that God really knew what He was doing with the order of the books because if a non or new believer picked up the Bible and had to read Genesis 1-11 and then Job, well that right there might just be the end of that journey because boy is it a wild ride! :)
Anyway, I finished Genesis this week and read through the famous Joseph saving his brothers from the famine scene. Reading it at this point in my life there were a few things that really stuck out to me. First we know that Potiphar's wife falsely accused Joseph, and he was put in jail for at least a little over two years. Now even though "the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did," (Gen 39:23) that is still a long time to be imprisoned for something you know you didn't do. Then he helped interpret two men's dreams, and once released, "the chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him."(Gen 40:23) How disheartening to help someone in such a desperate time and have them take it for granted! After Joseph was finally free, God made sure he was redeemed. I also noticed that he was thirty years old which is ironic to me since that is the same age I will be on Friday. What a HUGE responsibility for a 30 year old! Pharoah quickly realized what a mighty man of God Joseph was and "said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.”"(Gen 41:41) Joseph used the seven years of abundance in Egypt just as God told him to; "He stored up huge quantities of grain, like the sand of the sea."(Gen 41:49) Then when the famine came, Joseph was prepared. He ended up saving thousands of lives including his own brothers. This is the part that knocks my socks off: Ultimately he said the them, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives."(Gen 50:20) It is truly amazing to me to think about Joseph during these years and the faith that he had. So often we look at circumstances in our lives as tragic, unfair, or devastating, but we can see through the life of Joseph that God has mighty and awe-inspiring plans. When we feel completely overwhelmed by the realities of this life, we need to remember that our Holy Father truly does hold us in His arms and will use all our pain and suffering for His glory. His Big Picture is so much better than our narrow human view! 

Last week was a great week filled with lots of funny moments. I will be sharing them over the next few days. Enjoy!!
Day 1 - Friday the 15th!
That morning the boys and I were out in the backyard when all of a sudden Hope started going nutso! She was digging and pawing and barking. To our surprise she had found a turtle. Grady named him Swimmie and we put him in a box for a few hours. Once we found him chewing his way out we put him over the fence to enjoy our neighbors garden!

Here comes the kicker! It must have just been a reptile kind of day because a friend and I were sitting on my outside sofa and our boys were all playing when all of a sudden i hear, "look what i found mama!" Now, for all you girl moms out there don't fear this phrase but boy moms, you better watch out!!!! I turned and Grady was holding something that looked a little like this:

Exept DEAD, BLOATED AND 10 INCHES LONG HANGING IN HIS HAND!!!!!!!
I began to scream like a scared little girl and gag. Grady told me that it was floating in the fountain and it was just a toy. I immediately let him know it definitely was NOT a toy and to drop it. My friend took him inside to wash his hands with LOTS of soap and i had the joyous task of picking it up with my trusty pooper scooper, while still gagging and tossing it out of my sight. Honestly it was absolutely disgusting! I'm just so thankful he didn't put it on my lap to "show me." Grady said, "Mom, dead lizards are not gross. You just have to get rid of them." You gotta love boys!!
More to come.......