Musings and Nuggets

                          I live a  “FROGGY” Life! Proverbs 3:5,6 (NLT) Trust in the Lord with all your heart; and do not depend on your own understanding.  Seek His Will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. I’m a FROGGY kind of person. (No, I don’t mean that I actually like the amphibian nor am I interested in eating their legs.)   You are probably wondering what being “froggy” has to do with the above scripture. I will clear that up.  F.R.O.G. is an acronym that stands for F ully R elying O n G od.  According to the Cambridge English Dictionary, an acronym is an abbreviation consisting of the first letters of each word in the name of something pronounced as a word.”  FROG is an example. There have been times in my life that I did not understand Why, What, How , Which way , or even When .  However, as I matured in my faith and my journey,  I knew for an assurance the Who .  The Who is always God, Jehovah Jireh, My Provider.  Just as He graciously provided for

  Matthew 5:44  (NLT)   But I say, love your enemies!    Pray for those who persecute you! Proverbs 25:21-22   If your enemies are hungry, give them food to eat.  If they are thirsty, give them water to drink.  You will heap burning coals of shame on their heads, and the Lord will reward you . Both of these scriptures are  tall orders for sure, yet this is what those of us who are “called by His Name”, are called to do. If we are honest, praying for and loving those who intentionally hurt us is not a natural response.  This is literally what Joseph did. I believe that we all can agree that in order for Joseph to fulfill the destiny that was upon his life, he endured much at the hands of his brothers.  The evil they held in their hearts toward him led to a chain of events that were discouraging, but did not deter his ending up in the palace.  INSULT TO INJURY: When I posted “From The Pasture To The Pit” I alluded to revisiting the fact that Joseph was sold to the Ishaelites.  Without

  A Portrait of FAITH & FORGIVENESS Key Verse:  Genesis 50:20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. Both faith and forgiveness are huge themes throughout Joseph’s life.  We could learn much about both from his entire journey from being a lad tending Jacob’s sheep to becoming second in command to the  Pharaoh.  Faith is an appropriate theme because Joseph’s trust in God and the visions He gave him as a boy never wavered in spite of all of the twists, turns, and detours. Joseph was 30 years old when he finally reached the palace.  In the natural, it  probably looked as if each bump in the road  was moving him further away from his destiny when in fact, because of his faith, each one brought him closer.  God positioned him to be in the right place at the right time to be able to  save his father, brothers, and their families when the famine happened.  It is reminiscent of the way G

 Note:  Just realized this entry didn't  publish last Wednesday.  (Sorry.) From the Prison to the Palace Genesis 42:6  “Now Joseph was the governor over the land; and it was he who sold to all the people of the land.  And Joseph’s brothers came and bowed down before him with their faces to the earth.” After two years, the chief butler’s memory of Joseph was jarred when Pharaoh had a dream that no one could interpret.  That is when he told the king about a “young Hebrew man”, Joseph, who was able to correctly interpret their dreams in prison.  Pharaoh called for Joseph to come to the palace and he was able to interpret the king’s dream.     God was warning the king that a 7 year famine was coming which would “deplete the land”, but would be preceded by 7 years of plenty.  The interpretation included instructions to Pharaoh on how he should proceed in order to prepare. At the age of 30, Pharaoh recognized the hand, spirit, and favor of God in Joseph’s life which opened the door to

   “ALMOST THERE!” Genesis 39:20a,b   Then Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were confined.  Joseph finds himself once again somewhere unexpected, but nearer to realizing the fulfillment of those dreams than he probably realized.  He is imprisoned not because he broke any law or did anything wrong, but because he refused to do something that was wrong.  His unwavering loyalty to God cost him his freedom. It was obvious to the prison warden that there was something special about Joseph.  The favor and hand of God were evident in his life so much so that the warden gave Joseph authority over all the prisoners in Pharoah’’s prison.   After Joseph’s imprisonment, the King got upset with his chief butler/cupbearer and chief baker, and  had them imprisoned where they were turned over to Joseph.  Both had disturbing dreams that same night that only Joseph was able to interpret, and both interpretations came