Genesis 3:15
15 And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring a]">[a] and hers;
he will crush b]">[b] your head,
and you will strike his heel."
In this verse God is speaking to the serpent. This is the first mention of the coming Messiah.
The next verse in my notes was the promise that God made to Abraham...
Genesis 12:2-3
2 "I will make you into a great nation
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you."
but I never got there. I got wrapped up in other stories: Cain and Abel, Noah and the flood, Rebekah and Leah. I started to feel guilty for getting off task, but then I remembered what our pastor said Sunday about hoping to get people to spend more time reading their Bibles...so far, so good. As I read these stories, I was thinking; "Wow...and I thought I was messed up." These people I was reading about had some major problems and flaws of character, but then I remembered something else I have learned: God used and still uses flawed people to do His work. I am encouraged when I read about men and women with struggles and weaknesses being used for God's purposes.
I did finally tear myself away from these intriguing stories and skip ahead to the verse where Joseph is talking to his brothers who sold him into slavery. He does not hold a grudge against his brothers because God used his misfortune to benefit many.
Genesis 50:20
20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
The message here is that God will use our trials and painful struggles for the good in our and other people's lives. So when we ask why do bad things happen to good people, we need to trust God and think of Joseph.
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