by Carolyn Ehrlich
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And his brothers listened to him (Genesis 37:27b).
Read Genesis 37:23–36
In today’s reading, we read about Joseph’s brothers scheming and taking action to get rid of him. On the face of it, Joseph appears to be an annoying little brother, basking in his father’s favour with no real understanding or knowledge about what has been happening to his brothers.
Maybe this resonates to some degree with you. Perhaps it does not. Either way, in today’s reading, we hear how Joseph’s brothers decided to take things into their own hands. I can almost hear them hatching a plan to deal with this annoying younger brother. Hatching a plan included talking, throwing around ideas (although Rueben did not really go along with the ideas), seeing opportunities and making plans on the fly (so to speak). It required people to talk and listen, and it required action. Speak, listen, act.
This cycle of speaking, listening and acting is an interesting thing to me. We listen to people, and we expect them to listen to us. Listening and speaking are also inextricably linked with discerning – at least, it rightly ought to be. Proverbs 18:21 says: ‘Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit’. This tells me that I need to be careful about what I speak and how I listen.
Further, it tells me that I need to be discerning. As a listener, I wonder what prompts us to listen to one person’s advice and ignore another’s. Who do we gather around and listen to? Do we check what they have to say? How do we assess what is reasonable and what is not? Have you ever thought about who or what you listen to every day? Do you ever consider how much you listen to God each day?
If you are a leader in your family, with your peers, or in your church community, who is listening to you? And is what you are saying worth listening to? So today, ask God to shine his light into your words and the words you listen to. Ask him to show you how to discern what his will is.
My Heavenly Father, you are all-knowing, and your plans are perfect. Reach into my heart today and show me what you want me to speak, hear and discern. Teach me your truth, for your word is truth. Amen.
Carolyn Ehrlich lives in retirement with her husband Wayne in Ipswich, Queensland. Prior to retirement, Carolyn worked as a researcher in the disability and rehabilitation fields. Today, Carolyn keeps busy with hobbies, supporting the Ipswich Lutheran Parish in various leadership roles and supporting her family.
by Carolyn Ehrlich
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
They hated him and could not speak peacefully to him (Genesis 37:4b).
Read Genesis 37:3–22
Sin festers. In today’s reading, we see how being less favoured than someone else by a person in authority led to jealousy and revenge. To put this another way: Joseph’s brothers were not blessed in the same way as Joseph. Intertwined in this story is another story of intergenerational deception, blessing and birthright. Jacob had taken Esau’s birthright by deceiving Isaac, and now Jacob favoured Joseph over his older brothers. Whether it is our biological family or church family, families are messy. People are blessed with different skills, talents and attributes. We get along with some people better than others. People take offence. Sometimes, we look at what others appear to be receiving and dislike or even hate them.
As I ponder today’s reading, I am struck by the way sin festers and the consequences of allowing it to happen. When sin was allowed to fester, Joseph’s brothers conspired against him, planning to kill him but ultimately selling him into slavery. I am also reminded of another Scripture that tells us how our desires lure us. James 1:14,15 says:
But each person is tempted when they are lured and enticed by their own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
Sin and evil take root, bitterness and hatred grow, and death ensues. But it starts with desire. A desire for something to be different than it is, to be acknowledged, understood and appreciated differently than we are.
Is there a different path to travel? Well, Scripture has an answer for that, too. In 2 Peter 1:5–7, we read:
For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love.
Today, ponder whether you are being lured and enticed by your own desire. Is there someone (or a group of people) you believe are more blessed than you? How are you reacting to that? Are you in a situation in which intergenerational biological or church-family matters discolour or stain your worldview? Is sin festering in your life? If it is, take heart. God has a plan, and his plan is good. He has given you the gift of faith. Make every effort to supplement that gift.
Father God, thank you for your gift of faith. Today and every day, help me to make every effort to supplement your gift to me with virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, mutual affection and, ultimately, love. Amen.
Carolyn Ehrlich lives in retirement with her husband Wayne in Ipswich, Queensland. Prior to retirement, Carolyn worked as a researcher in the disability and rehabilitation fields. Today, Carolyn keeps busy with hobbies, supporting the Ipswich Lutheran Parish in various leadership roles and supporting her family.
by Carolyn Ehrlich
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
But Esau ran to meet him and embraced him and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept (Genesis 33:4).
Read Genesis 32:22 – 33:17
Today, I want to look at the big picture of reconciliation that has reached its pinnacle in verse four. Jacob stole Esau’s birth right and then ran away. He found a beautiful woman to marry but was tricked and had to wait another seven years to marry the one he most loved. God blessed him in exile but then told him to return to his homeland. And now he had to face his older brother and his past. Jacob needed to come face to face with things he had done in his youth. Jacob was different now but did not know if Esau would accept him. Jacob was fearful. He sent gifts to Esau, trying to show that he was sorry. He also had to wrestle with God.
Reflecting on my understanding of reconciliation and forgiveness, I have often believed it is something I just do and then get on with my life as before. But this is not what this story is telling us.
Let’s look at what Jacob actually did. He didn’t face the person he had wronged for a long time – he ran away, avoided the situation and got on with a life separate from his brother. But eventually, Jacob had to return to the scene of his crime (so to speak). On that journey to reconciliation, he listened to God. He responded when the angel of God appeared to him – he said: ‘Here I am.’ Even though he ran from his brother, he did not run from God when called. Is God calling you to reconciliation right now? Jacob was afraid at more than one point on this journey. He was frightened about leaving Laban and returning to Esau.
Are you on a journey to reconciliation? If you are, and you are frightened, know that Jacob was too, and God is with you. Then Jacob had to wrestle with a determined but unrecognised stranger. Are you wrestling with a stranger? Could that stranger be God? If you are, you may come away changed, but ask for God’s blessing anyway.
Then Jacob came to the point where he was entering Esau’s territory. He was stepping into Esau’s lands and way of doing things. Jacob was going into that place where the initial hurt/damage/injury/insult had occurred. To that place where he had done wrong. Is this where you are? Jacob sent gifts to Esau. He was testing how Esau would react. He was uncertain. You might be in that uncertain place. Pray. God has a plan, and his plan is good – always.
So, is this what reconciliation looks like? Seeking forgiveness if you are the one who has done wrong? Wrestling with God. Foreshadowing that you are on your way. Praying fervently. A journey that, at the end of the day, must be walked alone (verse 14).
Lord God, thank you for being with me always. Thank you for being a God of reconciliation. Please be with me on my journey of reconciliation today and always. Please show me where you are and what you want me to do. And Father, please bless me on this day. In Jesus’ precious name, I pray. Amen.
by Carolyn Ehrlich
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I am not worthy of the least of all the deeds of steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown [me] … Please deliver me from the hand of my brother (Genesis 32:10a,11a).
Read Genesis 32:3–21
Unworthy. I don’t know about you, but when I feel unworthy, I often focus on what is wrong with me. How broken I am. I also want to please others. I certainly would come with gifts to placate a brother who would rightly be angry with me. Jacob does that, too. But he also recognises and appreciates the steadfast love and faithfulness that God has shown him. He has been blessed with family, livestock and riches, and he knows it. Despite his brokenness, God has continually shown Jacob how much he is loved. And still, Jacob is frightened of Esau. So, he boldly asks God for deliverance even though he is unworthy.
From today’s reading, one reality and two questions arise for me, which I think deserve to be pondered. The reality: God’s love is steadfast, unchanging, ongoing, given, a gift, unwavering, believable, trustworthy, available and demonstrated. When I think about the vastness and certainty of God’s love for me, I am overwhelmed. Still, it is right and proper to think about God’s love for you. Like Paul, it leads me to say:
For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38,39).
Based on this unwavering, steadfast love of God, the two questions that I think deserve consideration are: ‘Where has God shown his steadfast love for you in your life?’ and ‘What can you boldly ask him to deliver you from today?’
Jacob had good reason to be frightened that Esau would harm or kill him. But he turned to God for deliverance. We, too, can and should turn to God for deliverance. Does that mean things will go the way we want? No. But they will go the way God wants. His love is steadfast. He is faithful and delivers us, even though we are unworthy. Praise God.
My Father in Heaven, thank you for your steadfastness. Thank you for all the mercies you extend to me every day. Thank you for always loving me. Thank you for the many blessings you give me each day. Today, I come before you and boldly ask you to deliver me from [fill in the whatever you need here]. Through your Son, Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.
by Carolyn Ehrlich
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
Then the Lord said to Jacob, ‘Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you’ (Genesis 31:3).
Read Genesis 31:1–21
God gives Jacob a promise, a promise that Jacob could rely on. That promise was simply, ‘I will be with you’. God gives each one of us that promise, too, when we are obedient to his instruction. All we must do is to be available. In response to God’s calling, like Jacob, we must say, ‘Here I am’ (verse 11).
I don’t know about you, but I cling to God’s promise that he will be with me. I do not know what is around the corner. I also do not see the full picture of what I am saying ‘yes’ to when I say to God, ‘Here I am’. I might get an idea about what this picture looks like by looking back over my life and seeing where God has been and what he has done. I know that God’s fingerprints and handiwork are all over my life.
But how do I hear God? Most certainly in his word and the teaching of his word in Sunday services. What am I listening for? Like Elijah in 1 Kings 19:11–13, we do not always hear God in the big things like fire and earthquakes. Instead, ‘After the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper’ (1 Kings 19:12). Be still and listen for the sound of a low whisper. Pay attention to it.
Knowing that God will be with you today, would you join me in listening for his gentle voice? Ask God to show you where he has been in your life. Ask him to show you his hand, even in the most challenging places of your life. In trauma, grief, childhood, adulthood, loss, joy, sorrow, happiness, tears, work, play, disagreements, shared conversations, controversy, disobedience, someone else’s disobedience and all the places and spaces of your life, God has been with you. I know that for certain because he promises to be with each of us who believes in the name of Jesus. But I don’t always see his hand. Ask and then wait for him to show you. Get a cup of tea, sit and ask. Look, listen, smell, taste, feel. God will show you because he is faithful and steadfast.
Loving Father, you always keep your promises and have promised that you are with me. Here I am. Show me where you are in my life. You know my heart’s deepest yearnings. You know my desires. Please help me always know and unquestionably trust your goodness. Amen.
Carolyn Ehrlich lives in retirement with her husband Wayne in Ipswich, Queensland. Prior to retirement, Carolyn worked as a researcher in the disability and rehabilitation fields. Today, Carolyn keeps busy with hobbies, supporting the Ipswich Lutheran Parish in various leadership roles and supporting her family.
by Carolyn Ehrlich
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
And to love him with all the heart … and to love one’s neighbour as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices (Mark 12:33).
Read Mark 12:28–34
Have you ever loved someone so much that it almost hurts? That person who captures your whole being? Your heart feels like it would burst from your chest. You gaze adoringly at them. You hang onto their every word. You want to spend time with them. You can’t wait for the next word, whisper, smile, hug, gurgle, coo, phone call. You run to them with all your might. You want to be with them, hold them. You think about them all the time.
How do you love God? Do you hold onto his every word? Desire to spend time with him? Gaze adoringly toward him? Do you look for his whispers, smiles and hugs? As I write this, I am on holiday near McLaren Vale in South Australia. It has been the most beautiful day. The sun has been shining – the warmth of the morning sun gently kisses my face. The scent of the ocean dances gently to my nostrils, and the sound of warbling magpies as they play in the trees is a melody to my ears. Today, I have tasted God. All the things that have delighted me so much today were created by God. None of the most delightful things have been human made. Today, I know that God loves me. But how well do I love God?
Jesus commands us to love God with all of us. All our heart. All our strength. All our mind. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I don’t even think I can focus on one thing with my entire being for even one second. I cannot even fathom what loving God with all of myself looks, feels, tastes, smells or sounds like. It is so much more than the offerings and sacrifices that I bring. SO. MUCH. MORE. Today, as I see, hear, feel, taste and smell all of God’s creation, I know that loving him is so much more than Sunday worship – although that is important, too. Today, I know that I eagerly wait to be able to love God with all my heart, all my mind and all my soul.
My Heavenly Father, loving you with all my heart, mind and soul is so much more desirable than offering you sacrifices of time, money or material things. Thank you that I can love because you first loved me. Thank you for instilling the taste of your love within me. Help me to love you with everything I am today. Help me to love others as I love myself today. In Jesus’ precious name, I pray. Amen.
Carolyn Ehrlich lives in retirement with her husband Wayne in Ipswich, Queensland. Prior to retirement, Carolyn worked as a researcher in the disability and rehabilitation fields. Today, Carolyn keeps busy with hobbies, supporting the Ipswich Lutheran Parish in various leadership roles and supporting her family.
by Pastor Tim Klein
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O that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes! (Psalm 119:5)
Read Psalm 119:1–8
Our two-year-old grandchild looks up at us with a wistful smile and eyes that reek of innocence. Our love is mutual. But that’s not always how it is. It would be great if it were that way all the time. As for me, I would love to be that innocent, smiling, butter-wouldn’t-melt-in-my-mouth kind of person. I would love to say I am completely steadfast in keeping the statutes of the Lord. But you and I know that’s not how it is.
I could pray long and hard, ‘O that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes!’ And still, be less than steadfast! Nevertheless, I will continue to pray for a steadfast and blameless life. Why? Because that pleases the Lord. I know it – and perhaps so do you. Like me, have you experienced the blessings of walking in the ways of the Lord many times?
When we sing these verses, they are significant because they reassure us that despite our sometimes lack of steadfastness – our low threshold of blamelessness – the Lord remains steadfast in his love toward us. He renews. He forgives. He restores. He assures us of life with him forever.
‘The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness’ (Lamentations 3:22,23).
I will continue with you to seek the Lord’s precepts. I will endeavour to remain steadfast.
Dear Lord, prompt me with your Holy Spirit to walk in your ways. Lift my eyes to see the light of your word and let it light my way so that in all my ways, I follow you. In the name of Christ, Amen.
Tim has served as a pastor for more than 30 years in Australia and New Zealand. He plans to retire on 12 January in 2025. Husband to his wife Joy, father of three and grandfather of more than 10, Tim says he is living in hope. He enjoys gardening (especially his orchard of more than 60 trees, succulents and flowering plants), making music (he loves to sing), beekeeping and taking photos.
by Pastor Tim Klein
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
[Jesus] cried out with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out’ (John 11:43).
Read John 11:32–44
I am looking forward to resurrection when this ageing, painful, wearing-out body of mine will be fully restored by the Lord:
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away (Revelation 21:4).
Whenever a Christian congregation confesses the Apostles’ Creed, we confess that we believe in the resurrection of the dead. We believe that on the last day, our bodies will be raised from the dead, and we shall all be gathered in the presence of Jesus. This is a central and essential statement of our faith.
The Apostle Paul makes that clear when he says this:
If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith (1 Corinthians 15:13,14).
For some, even to consider resurrection is impossible. But for us who believe, it gives hope and even power to our lives. I consider that if the Lord was able to knit me together in my mother’s womb (Psalm 139) and give me life in the first place, then he can restore me from the grave.
This story of the raising of Lazarus from the tomb by Jesus is another account of the incredible power over life that the Lord has. It took only three words from Jesus, and Lazarus was resurrected. In just three days, Jesus overcame death and all the powers of darkness and was himself raised to life.
Can people die and be raised back to life again? Of course. Here’s an example. It’s called ‘cardioversion’. Tomorrow, I will lie down on an operating table, and my cardiologist will stop and start my heart. I have experienced this several times over recent years. As the anaesthetist injects the anaesthetic, I don’t count backwards. I simply say: ‘Lord, into your hands … zzzz.’ I am fairly matter of fact about it.
Likewise, I am convinced of our confession: ‘I believe in the resurrection of the dead and the life everlasting!’ I will live and die in faith (by God’s grace), and on the last day, he will raise me to life with him forever.
Lord of death and life, strengthen such faith in me so I can be confident of this resurrection confession and place my life in your hands daily. Amen.
Tim has served as a pastor for more than 30 years in Australia and New Zealand. He plans to retire on 12 January in 2025. Husband to his wife Joy, father of three and grandfather of more than 10, Tim says he is living in hope. He enjoys gardening (especially his orchard of more than 60 trees, succulents and flowering plants), making music (he loves to sing), beekeeping and taking photos.
by Pastor Tim Klein
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her (Genesis 29:20).
Read Genesis 29:1–20
In yesterday’s devotion, in Genesis 28:2,3, Jacob’s father Isaac sends him on his way with instructions and a blessing:
Arise, go to Paddan-aram to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father, and take as your wife from there one of the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother. God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may become a company of peoples.
So much for ‘the best-laid plans of mice and men’ (thank you, Robert Burns). Those plans soon went astray. With some significant manipulation (dare we say ‘skullduggery and trickery’) by Laban, not one, but two wives – both the daughters of Laban – were married to Jacob. But God’s plan was still at work. Fulfilment of the blessing took more than one wife; it took both wives and two maidservants, Bilhah and Zilpah (whom Jacob also married), to produce Jacob’s 12 sons, the founding fathers of the tribes of Israel.
It is amazing how God persists with his plan. It’s the big salvation plan. One of the sons is Judah – and his house is the house of Israel from which Jesus came.
If you are interested in the story, keep reading Genesis for the extraordinary roll-out of God’s saving plan all those generations ago.
Is there some encouragement in this for you and me? If you read on, you will discover the characters of the 12 leaders of the tribes of Israel. They were many and varied, and God had something to say and do through each of their lives.
You may find a direct comparison to your life among them. However, in general terms, you will see the miracle of how the Lord works through different people, in good and bad situations, always working for the good of his people and the sake of his kingdom.
By all means, we lay our plans. But most of all, we trust the Lord to guide us through them all.
Lord: you must laugh sometimes at the plans we make. Yet despite us, you remain working in and through us. Please continue to give us the confidence to boldly step ahead in faith, trusting in you, knowing that you are there with us, working your good for the sake of your kingdom. Amen.
Tim has served as a pastor for more than 30 years in Australia and New Zealand. He plans to retire on 12 January in 2025. Husband to his wife Joy, father of three and grandfather of more than 10, Tim says he is living in hope. He enjoys gardening (especially his orchard of more than 60 trees, succulents and flowering plants), making music (he loves to sing), beekeeping and taking photos.