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Unswayed

The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the Lord was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field. So Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph’s care; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate.

Genesis 37:2-4 New International Version (NIV)

Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!” But he refused. “With me in charge,” he told her, “my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her.

Genesis 39:6b-10 (NIV)

One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by his cloak and said, “Come to bed with me!” But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house. When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house, she called her household servants. “Look,” she said to them, “this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us! He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed. When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”

Genesis 39:11-15 (NIV)

Then she told him this story: “That Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me. But as soon as I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.” When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, “This is how your slave treated me,” he burned with anger. Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king’s prisoners
were confined.

Genesis 39:17-20a (NIV)

But while Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.

Genesis 39:20b-23 (NIV)

Betrayed

This is the account of Jacob’s family line. Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them. Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe 
for him. When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.

Genesis 37:2-4 New International Version (NIV)

“Will your mother and I [the sun and the moon] and your brothers [the eleven stars] actually come and bow down to the ground before you?” His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind.

Genesis 37:10b-11 (NIV)

Bitter versus Better: What do you choose?

Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there. The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted 
to his care everything he owned.

Genesis 39:1-4 (NIV)

I am not alone
I am not alone
You [Lord] will go before me
You will never leave me

 

Hands

And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good
and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from
the tree of life and eat, and live forever.”

Genesis 9:2 NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (NIV)

The fear and dread of you will fall on all the beasts of the earth, and on all the birds in the sky, on every creature that moves along the ground, and on all the fish in 
the sea; they are given into your hands.

Genesis 6:5 (NIV)

So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, 
for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my 
righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:10 (NIV)

The hands make all the difference!

Yet you, Lord, are our Father.
We are the clay, you are the potter;
we are all the work of your hand.

Isaiah 64:8 (NIV)

What about your hands?

Heart

My eyes fail from weeping, I am in torment within; my heart is poured out on the ground because my people are destroyed, because children and infants faint in the streets of the city.

Lamentations 2:11 New International Version (NIV)

The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.

Genesis 6:5 (NIV)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your 
own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your 
paths straight.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

Proverbs 4:23 (NIV)

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit 
within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and sustain in me a willing spirit.

Psalm 51:10-12 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; 
believe also in me.”

John 14:1 (NIV)

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. 
I do not give to you as the world gives. 
Do not let your hearts be troubled and 
do not be afraid.”

John 14:27 (NIV)

Eyes

The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Genesis 2:9 New International Version (NIV)

When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, 
who was with her, and he ate it.

Genesis 3:6 (NIV)

O be careful little eyes what you see
O be careful little eyes what you see
There’s a Father up above
And He’s looking down in love
So, be careful little eyes what you see

Be careful little eyes what you see
It’s the second glance that ties your hands as darkness pulls the strings
Be careful little feet where you go
For it’s the little feet behind you that are sure to follow

CHORUS:
It’s a slow fade when you give yourself away
It’s a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day
It’s a slow fade, it’s a slow fade

“SLOW FADE” By Casting Crowns

Then the eyes of both of them 
[Adam and Eve] 
were opened, and they realized they
were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings
for themselves.

Genesis 3:7 (NIV)

“If I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, do not pass your servant by.”

Genesis 18:3 (NIV)

“May your servant [me, Hannah] 
find favor in your eyes.”

1 Samuel 1:18 (NIV)

“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and 
give you peace.”

Numbers 6:24-26 (NIV)

“Do not judge, or you too will 
be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 
‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Matthew 7:1-5 (NIV)

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save
the world through him.

John 3:17 (NIV)

“No one lights a lamp, then hides it in a drawer. It’s put on a lamp stand so those entering the room have light to see where they’re going. Your eye is a lamp, lighting up your whole body. If you live wide-eyed in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. Keep your eyes open, your lamp burning, so you don’t get musty and murky. Keep your life as 
well-lighted as your best-lighted room.”

Luke 11:33-36 The Message (MSG)

 

 

Feet

instruments of motion

“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God Reigns”

Isaiah 52:7 NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (NIV)

“My shalom [peace]
I give to you…”

John 14:27 (NIV)

“You can’t fully experience the peace
OF God,
if you are not at peace
WITH God”

If it is possible,
as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

Romans 12:18 (NIV)

“…if you confess with your mouth that “Jesus is Lord” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved…for “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news.”

Romans 10:9-15 (excerpts) (NIV)

“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God Reigns”

Isaiah 52:7 (NIV)

Sand

The angel of the Lord called to |Abraham from heaven a second
time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld 
your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take
possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed,
because you have obeyed me.”

Genesis 22:15-18 New International Version (NIV)

“These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock. But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don’t work them into 
your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a 
house of cards.”

Matthew 7:24-27 The Message (MSG)

Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread 
of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven 
not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”

John 6:35-40 (NIV)

“If you declare with your mouth, 
“Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, 
you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”

Romans 10:9-10 (NIV)

Seagulls

Ornithology – Study of Birds

God spoke: “Swarm, Ocean,
with fish and all sea life!
Birds, fly through the sky
over Earth!”
God created the huge whales,
all the swarm of life in the waters,
And every kind and species
of flying birds.
God saw that it was good.

God blessed them: “Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Ocean!
Birds, reproduce on Earth!”
It was evening, it was morning—
Day Five.

Genesis 1:20-23 The Message (MSG)

As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”

Matthew 3:16-17 New International Version (NIV)

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?  Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable
than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?”

Matthew 6:25-27 New International Version (NIV)

 

Shells

A seashell or sea shell, also known simply as a shell, is a hard, protective outer layer created by an animal that lives in the sea. The shell is part of the body of the animal. Empty seashells are often found washed up on beaches by beachcombers. The shells are empty because the animal has died and the soft parts have been eaten by another animal or have decomposed.

-Wikipedia

Put on the full armor of God, 
so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Ephesians 6:11-13 New International Version (NIV)

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in
my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully
and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

Psalm 139:13-14 (NIV)

The word of the Lord came 
to me, saying,
“Before I formed you in the womb
 I knew you, before you were born 
I set you apart;
I appointed you as a prophet 
to the nations.”

Jeremiah 1:4-5 (NIV)

Sports

First: Patience
Second: Everything is harder.
Third: No control over the conditions.
Finally: Have to relax and think differently.

But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile,
and pray to the Lord on its behalf,
for in its welfare you will find
your welfare.

Jeremiah 29:7 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

For I know the plans I have
for you, says the Lord,
plans for welfare and not for evil,
to give you a future and a hope.

Jeremiah 29:11 (NRSV)

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