Friday of the second week of lent

Date: Friday, Mar 10
Contributor: Robyn Schmidt
Lectionary Link   
 
My reflection is on the Genesis story of Joseph's coat of many colors as the KJV names it.  This story has caught the attention of many persons; Dolly Parton wrote a song about her mother making her a coat out of scraps of fabric - her personal coat of many colors - as she was raised in a very poor family.  The Broadway musical "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" also held audiences’ attention for years (though I think it must be said that any musical with that much flash and color and excitement would draw attention).  
Though Joseph's dad loved him, he didn't do him any favors in respect to his other sons.  They were so jealous they sought to kill Joseph.  Fortunately for Joseph his brother Reuben prevented that though the outcome could have been just as bad.   At any rate, through God's help and his own perseverance, Joseph eventually won the favor of the Pharoah, and the world was his oyster.
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And that, I believe is the crux of the matter:  God's help and our own perseverance during trying times.  And, the icing on the cake was Joseph's reaction to his brothers later in the  story.  Forgiveness.  Though they sold him into slavery, he grew into a powerful man.  Joseph could have done more than just terrorize his brothers; he could have had them killed as he was that powerful.  Instead he forgives.  This is a lesson for us all:  God's love which informs our perseverance and forgiving any hurt we feel may have been done to us.