Last day/Better Days

Wow, dear Readers
I am really glad that we have finally been able to reach the last day of the year 2016 and what a year it has been for us.
Sure , there were   victories we enjoyed,several  mountain top experiences unfortunately  valley experiences, some tears have been shed  and sometimes we were left confused but just as we are about to step into another time era, we choose to rememebr all those who did not make it to this day due to several reasons.
Some did so naturally while others have had their lives snatched out by the vold hands of death using wars, accidnets, men of the underworld and name it, totally beyond their control but you and I are here today , for which we are extremely grateful
Remmeber according to Gof's word, it can only get better. Ypour yestwerday is the soil on ehich the seeds of greatness for your fututre has been planted. And it is with this co fidence that I look at 2016 and laugh, no matter what the year has brought because I kbow and am persuaded of better days ahead.
Happy New Year
Grace Tom-Lawyer

Another Joseph

And so in this Christmas period,in keeping with the flow of the season but still in the spirit of our ongoing series, On the Way to the Palace I would like us to examine the life of  one of the  men in the most talked about family in this season. Although  a lot of attention given to Mary and Jesus  we sometimes  forget the great role that Joseph played in the story. He is another Joseph whose son eventually got to the Palace.

“Jacob was the father of Joseph, who was the husband of Mary. Mary was the mother of Jesus, who is called Christ”.- Matthew 1:16 GW God’s Word Translation 

“And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ”.- Matthew 1 :16 KJV King James Version

We are first introduced to this Joseph  as Matthew recounts the genealogy of Jesus..His father’s name was also Jacob, so we see him and his father being namesakes with our original Jacob who had twelve sons one of which was Joseph (Genesis 37:1-2)

Now the birth of Jesus Christ was in this way: When His mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. –Matthew 1:18 King James Version

“This is how the birth of Jesus ·Christ [the Messiah] came about. His mother Mary was ·engaged [pledged; ^Tbetrothed; ^Ca formal agreement between families that required a “divorce” to annul] to marry Joseph, but before they ·married [came to live together], she ·learned she was [or was found/discovered to be] ·pregnant [^Twith child] ·by the power of [through] the Holy Spirit”.-Matthew 1:18-Expanded Bible EXB

The very first thing we are told after that is that he was the husband  of Mary and later verses tell us that Mary was espoused to him.In modern words they were engaged. This to me shows something admirable in his character. He was first engaged and eventually became a husband.

Joseph was a man of commitment. He  become engaged to one woman only; he was not the type that had five different sisters in different cities(some actually have five in  thesame Church!) who were believing that they were in a relationship . He was definitely a man who followed through his commitments as he eventually became Mary’s husband in spite of all odds.

Joseph was a man who always did what was right, but he did not want to disgrace Mary publicly; so he made plans to break the engagement privately.- Good News Translation GNT

The next thing we are told is that he is a just man and when the Bible declares a man to be just, we better take it as the truth. Although Jesus Christ had not yet come and people had not began to live by faith through Jesus ,Joseph is decribed as “just” . Other translations describe him as  “good”, “righteous”,”a  man of stern principle”, ”honourable” .Ask any group of women to give some qualities they would want in a mate and these attributes are usually among the first to be listed.

“Joseph her husband was a righteous man. Because he didn’t want to humiliate her, he decided to call off their engagement quietly”.-Matthew 1:19-Common English Bible CEB

“Joseph, because he was kind and upstanding and honorable, wanted to spare Mary shame. He did not wish to cause her more mbarrassment than necessary”.- Matthew 1:19 VOICE

“Joseph ,the man she was to marry was a good man.He did not want  her to be made ashamed .So he planned to leave her without telling people about it “-Matthew 1:19 Worldwide English WE

“And Joseph her husband, being a just man and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily”.(emphasis mine)-Matthew 1:119 KJ21

Although this man is just, Joseph  is sensitive. He is sensitive to the feelings of Mary and just this little phrase alone (..minded to put her away privily.....)underscores volumes of how much he really loved her. His love was not just based on “as long as I marry you”. Yes she had done something that was outrageous and he was hurt, disappointed and felt betrayed, yet he did not think there was any need to put Mary through any further turmoil. In our day, he did not see the need to go to Facebook or send tweets on Twitter ranting about how disappointed he was and looking for cheap sympathy. Usually this would draw several biased comments from people who are not seeing the other side of the picture and only end up strengthening whatever hurt he may have felt or the need to soothe his ego.Sometimes the simple reason while we choose this course of action is the need for revenge but Joseph did not have any iota of this . He knew what the law demanded but he also knew he had the rights to execute mercy. He could not control what had happened but could definitely control his reactions. He did not leave his thoughts to dwell on his hurts but thought about what it would mean to the woman he loved .This was a man any woman would want any day, He was a protector.

On the Way to the Palace, we need to be people who can be trusted to follow through our commitments and we should not let our doing things right hinder us from being sensitive to others.

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Merry Christmas,

Grace Tom-Lawyer.

On the Way to the Palace 18-The Pit 2

 “ Now when Joseph reached his brothers, they stripped him of his tunic ,the {distinctive } multicoloured tunic which he was wearing ; 24 then they took him and threw him into the pit. Now the pit was empty,there was no water in it”- Genesis 37:23-24 AMP Amplified Bible

So we see Joseph is thrown into a dry pit by his brothers and the very next verse tells us that they sat down to eat food. It is very possible to be  a few inches from where help is and encounter no response. The action of Joseph’s brothers in this instance goes a long way to show us how far jealousy and hatred had shut their minds against their younger brother. Although they heard his pleas, they refused to listen and left Joseph in a precarious situation in a bid to get rid of him and his dreams.

Contrary to popular opinion on how our lives should be, we see that the life of Joseph ,a man who eventually got to the Palace was not without trouble (Psalms 34:19). He was not constantly always on Cloud 9.He had his ups and downs and honestly, that is just life. Between every mountain top experience are valleys. It is one of these valley experiences that we find here as Joseph encounters a pit.

Joseph is found in this pit because his brothers threw him inside. The man on the way to the Palace may encounter pits as a result of the actions of others or even as a result of his own action. Some pit situations may be self generated due to unwise decisions(Luke 15:11-32). It is important for the man on the way to the Palace to distinguish how he came about being in the pit as this may be a first step to coming out of the pit.

The second thing we see about the pit is that he is left alone by himself having been stripped of his beloved coat and symbol of his father’s love. Physically there is no one with him and emotionally, there is also a void. It is an age long trick of the enemy while we are in the pit, to want us to believe we are actually alone whereas the Scriptures make it clear that God never leaves (physically ) or forsake us(emotionally ) Hebrews 13:5 .On the way to the Palace, as we encounter several pits, it is of utmost importance to remember we are never alone, irrespective of our external circumstances.

The third thing about Joseph in the pit is that we are made to understand is that Joseph was not idle. He was not content to remain   in the pit thus  he lifted up his voice and cried, appealing to his brothers to have mercy. It was certainly not a pit he could come out by himself because if he could , he would have surely done so. But even his pleas for mercy fell on deafened ears(Genesis 42:21). Joseph quickly found out  that although help may seem quite near, the only help we can really get is the help that comes from God(Psalms 121:1),

 The man on the way to the Palace would encounter pits. These may come in different sizes, shapes and seasons. We generally do not choose to enter a pit but sometimes we may by our actions bring pit situations to ourselves. But whichever way we get into the pit, we must remember that we are not alone. A conscious awareness of both the presence of God and continual meditation of the word of GOD are indispensable for the man on the Way to the Palace.

Yours Sincerely,

Grace  Tom-Lawyer.

Happy New Month

⁶ Come, let’s worship and bow down!

    Let’s kneel before the Lord, our maker!
⁷ He is our God,
    and we are the people of his pasture,
    the sheep in his hands.

If only you would listen to his voice right now! Psalm 95:6-7

 Common English Bible (CEB)

And so it appears that we have now arrived at the last month of the year and what a year it has been. There have been many things that have happened that even if the most respected prophet had foretold it, we would have still had doubts.

On all fronts, family, career, nation or even the world  there may have been things we never bargained for but they have come and gone and we are still here.

This year, some of us have lost loved ones that we never thought would happen in forty years, some by sickness and some have just been snatched away by the cruel hands of death through road traffic accidents or men from the underworld.

But before we go on and on about what happened and did not happen, I always like to sit back and say Lord we are grateful. A friend of mine for the past 7 years or more always gives every day of  the month of December to Thanksgiving. She encourages us daily with something for us to be grateful for and if in this last month of the year, you think you have nothing to Thank God, Thank God for me, yes seriously but let me encourage you to Thank God first for yourself, that you are alive and as long as you are alive, no matter what may be happening today, according to God’s word, it will only get better, no matter how crazy it may look now.

Where am I getting that confidence from you may ask and I make it bold to say it is purely  because God’s word says so(Proverbs 4:18).The path of the righteous can only shine brighter and brighter like the dawning of a new day. No matter what is happening in the world today, the dawn always breaks and the day goes brighter and if that has not been broken, God’s covenant word over your life shall come to pass and with that, I welcome you to December, the month we celebrate our saviour’s birth. Come, let us bow and kneel before our Lord our maker, bring him your personal praise today for He is indeed your personal God.

In His Service,

Grace Tom-Lawyer.