Life as LawWife

These are some thoughts from Derek W.H. Thomas in August's Tabletalk. I've excerpted most of it, though I left out a few big chunks that weren't necessary to the point.

Four times in Genesis 39 we read that God was with Joseph (39:2-3, 21, 23).

It is relatively easy to reason that when things are going well that this represents blessings of God. Most of us fall into it by default: things are going well and we thank God for "every good and perfect gift that comes from above." We count our blessings and name them one by one. In the abundance of provision and security of a life where things are going well for us, it is reasonable to conclude that God is in the midst of all of this.

But Moses, in writing the account of Joseph, has a more profound theology than this. As the story develops, things suddenly, and without warning, turn bad.

What now? When things suddenly turn dark, what are we to think of God's promises to His children? It is one thing to reason that God is with us when things are going well. It is another to conclude the very same thing when things are going badly. And yet, this is precisely what Moses does. ... God was with Joseph in the bad times as well as the good times.

It is worth pondering what this means. We might have expected Joseph to reason that because things had turned worse, God must surely be against him. It is natural for us to assume that bad things are indicative of chastisement. "What have I done to deserve this?" we ask. The false accusations made against Joseph would then be an example of instant retribution. God was punishing him for something he had done. ... And because we do believe in divine retribution, this sometimes is the case. Paul seems to be saying as much when he comments on why some of the Corinthians are sick and dying (1 Cor. 11:29-30). But such a conclusion is not a necessary one, and in this instance it would be an entirely false one. Outward suffering is not necessarily an indicator that God is against us.

What Joseph did not know, but what the end of the story in Genesis 50 makes clear, is that God had a purpose in mind for placing him in prison. He would be the right man in the right place when the pharaoh would be losing sleep due to a recurring dream. God would have an interpreter of the dream there at hand in the king's own prison, having exercised his gift among the pharaoh's former butler and baker (who are also in prison). God is weaving a plan, which in its macrocosm will lead to the raising of Joseph to leadership and the rescue of the covenant family from the famine that befalls his homeland. Joseph's imprisonment is part of the unfolding of the greater plan of redemption on the pages of history.

Only faith in the "steadfast love" of God towards His own (Gen. 39:21) will reason this way. But it is the way of faith to reason in just this way. No matter how dark the path gets, there is a reason for it. I may not know it; but that is not important. What is important is this: He knows!

I've been really enjoying this not-charting thing. I haven't been thinking too awful much about how often love is supposed to happen. And I think I ovulated at some point in the past couple of weeks, but I'm really not sure when. I know I have post-O symptoms, but I can't really say much more than that. I've had a lot of spotting, though, and a tidbit of cramping. I expect AF just about any day, but it wouldn't really be late until August 20 or later. So I just stay tuned in to my typical PMS indicators...cramping, acne (that's DEFINITELY here), bloating (had this the other day), fatigue, irritability, etc.

D and I have discussed where we want to go from here, and on account of my pathetic CF, we're planning to give IUI a couple of tries. At least then we'll have given it everything we've got (that we're comfortable with). If we lived anywhere near a CrM practitioner or NaPro doctor, I'd be willing to pursue testing and treatment with them. My heart is still not truly open to adoption, so that's not even on the stove, let alone the back burner. 

And that's the State of the Beka for August 10, 2007.