Genesis 37 (2) - Grief

Praise the LORD beloved of God! This is the day that the LORD has made and we shall be glad and rejoice in it. Amen! Father, thank you for this month and for all that You have been to each one of us. We thank you for protection, provision, restoration, redemption, salvation and leadership in our nations that is aligned to your plans and purposes for the world as a whole. We ask that You continue to shepherd us as Your flock, the Good Shepherd that never leaves anyone behind. Father, may Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven in the name of Jesus, Amen. Thank you LORD.

For some reason, I feel prompted to continue with Genesis chapter 37 and I believe the LORD will use this sharing to speak to your heart. In the previous post, we saw how Joseph had dreams of where he would at least at the bare minimum, rule over his brothers (Genesis 37:7-9). When his brothers had of this dream, they were offended and hated him even the more since he was already his father's favorite son (Genesis 37:4).

On the other hand, when Jacob heard his son's dreams, he kept them in his mind (Genesis 37:11).

I was having a conversation with my one of my aunts and we were discussing the story of Joseph- she is a Pastor and this is one of her favorite Bible stories! The main question was, if Israel kept Joseph's dreams in his mind, why was he quick to believe Joseph had died when his other sons brought Joseph's coat of many colors dipped in animal's blood? - Firstly, I believe that without a shadow of doubt, Jacob's heart and God's heart were too close for Jacob to doubt yet alone fail to recognize that it was the LORD speaking to his son Joseph through those dreams. At the same time, when the news of Joseph's passing came to him, I believe Jacob at the time experienced grief overload also known as cumulative grief which is a term for people who have experienced repeated losses of loved ones within a short period of time.

In Genesis chapter 36, we saw Jacob lose both his beloved wife and father. It is important that the events in the Bible did not always happen as quickly as we read them. We are not certain how many years passed between Rachel and Isaac death but one thing is for sure, that these were all people that were close to Jacob's heart.

Now when the news of Joseph's passing came to him, I believe a much older Jacob resigned to grieving his loved one in that moment, understandably so. As we continue with our reading of Genesis, we never saw Israel and the LORD God having another personal encounter as seen in the previous chapters. In fact in Genesis 37:35 tells us that Jacob was unable to receive any comfort. It reads, "And all his sons and all his daughters arose to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted, and he said, "For I shall go down into the grave to my son in mourning." Thus his father wept for him."

This may be an indicator that Jacob's heart needed some more time to heal. Interestingly, the Bible also never mentions that Jacob brought this pain to God in prayer. There was complete silence.

Thankfully, God's silence does not mean that He is not at work. Ultimately, we see God's silence ensured that Joseph was kept alive and safe in a foreign land, Egypt. God's silence ensured that Jacob despite his old age would stay alive including protecting his sons as well. God's silence ensured that He would send Joseph ahead of them to preserve the posterity and lineage of Jacob and his sons which later on became the twelve tribes of Israel. Psalm 105:17 NKJV reads, "He sent a man before them - Joseph- who was sold as a slave."

At the end of it all, despite the silence, the LORD God was more than able to keep His Word and prove His faithfulness to His people.

Romans 8:28 (NKJV) reminds us;

"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose."

AMEN. Thank you LORD.

Sometimes in the moment, when life is happening and in Jacob's case when grief after grief seemed to be unfolding, it may seem like God is far or not watching. But may I encourage you, that God is with you and He will see you through every process of pain or adversity that the enemy used against you with His victory and a restoration of hope and joy in your life. If you happened to have experienced the loss of a loved one, I encourage you to invite God into your life with the salvation prayer below. Invite the LORD Jesus into every moment of pain because He desires to walk alongside you and heal you wherever it may hurt.

Psalm 46:1 NLT is a reminder of God's comforting love for us, "God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble." - Amen. There's a season of my life where I experienced grief after grief and I saw and experienced God's ever present help through salvation and the reading of His Word that provided me with hope. Thankfully, God is interested in our physical, emotional and spiritual well-being. If God did it for me, He can definitely do it for you as well. I'm also thankful for the supportive people that He put in my life at that moment, my family and friends. Isaiah 61:3 NKJV offers a wonderful promise to everyone who's grieving or grieved and the LORD promises, "...to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD that He may be glorified."- Amen, thank you LORD.

Invitation to salvation: I invite you to make this confession that invites you to new covenant of love that is found in the precious blood of Jesus Christ where we get to have a personal relationship with God, the Father and are kept safe in all of His blessings for His children:

"I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that; Jesus Christ, the Son of God came in a human body to die for my sins so that I could have a new life where I am dead to sin and alive to God. I repent of my past sins and enter the Kingdom of light where I choose relationship with Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour and with God as my loving Father today and forever." AMEN.

Congratulations, by grace you are saved and are now a new creation in Christ Jesus. The old life has passed away and you have received the free gift of salvation into your life (2 Corinthians 5:17) where you get to freely access everything I've shared in this post. To the glory of the Almighty God. Amen.

Please feel free to reach out to us on info@bibleversionoflife.com. We would love to hear your story and send you a free Bible! God bless you.

PS: In case you have not already, please remember to read Genesis 37 alongside this post in your personal devotional time and share your thoughts in the comments below!