Click this link to hear an audio version of the below text narrated by SOTH member Jerry Rhinehart:
Genesis 45:25-28 (NIV)
25 So they went up out of Egypt and came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan. 26 They told him, “Joseph is still alive! In fact, he is ruler of all Egypt.” Jacob was stunned; he did not believe them. 27 But when they told him everything Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the carts Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob revived. 28 And Israel said, “I’m convinced! My son Joseph is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”
Jacob had every reason to believe that his son Joseph was dead, so why would he believe his sons when they returned and told him Joseph was alive? However, the promises of God, rooted in the death and resurrection of Jesus, remind us that we are never without hope. Is there something happening in your life right now that you cannot see a way out of? Maybe a relationship with a family member or a situation at work? Remember that God is in the work of creating and resurrecting. We are never without hope.