Christian Devotional – November 30, 2018

Coming face to face with our sin is never a comfortable experience. Realizing that we have done wrong is a challenging process. Many times, we can spend time avoiding the consequences or justifying our actions to ourselves, but eventually God puts us on a collision course with the consequences of what we have done. Joseph’s brothers start to realize this in Genesis 42:25-28.

Then he said to his brothers, “My money has been returned, and behold, it is even in my sack.” And their hearts sank, and they turned trembling to one another, saying, “What is this that God has done to us?”
Genesis 42:28 NASB
https://bible.com/bible/100/gen.42.28.NASB

They had tricked their brother and sold him into slavery years and years ago. It’s probably safe to say that other than seeing their father’s grief, they haven’t really experienced much in the way of consequences. Now, all of sudden, that sin is forefront in their minds and they are wondering what God is doing to them as punishment.

When God wants to get our attention, He has no problem doing that. He knows exactly the most effective way of doing that. What we need to understand is that He does it with the purpose of repentance, forgiveness and restoration.  Here, the brothers think they are being punished, but Joseph is not seeking to punish, but to test and hopefully restore.

Is God trying to get your attention? Are you trying to avoid Him? He wants to see your repentance and restoration but you have to be ready to confront the things that you have done that are wrong. If you’re not ready, he will bring about circumstances designed to get you ready. What do you need to bring to Him in repentance today?