Picturepocket's Blog

Category: religion

  • Exodus 7: River of Memory 

    Exodus 7: River of Memory 

    God responds to Moses’s complaint saying he will make him like God to Pharaoh and Aaron will be his prophet telling him to let the Israelites go. Again God warns Moses that Pharaoh will not listen, so God will “raise his hand to him.” The text lets us know that at this time Moses was…

  • Unreliable Narrators 

    I’ve always found using self-reporting to be a tricky way of gathering information. I think my skepticism probably started with my experience with the Myers-Briggs test. It was all the rage in the 1990s. The test produced a four-letter result based on a bunch of questions to categorize people with personality traits. I had to…

  • The God Who Speaks 

    The God Who Speaks 

    There several times in my life that I have sought God’s wisdom. I believe from scriptures that God has wisdom and wants to share it with us. (Proverbs 8:1) (Colossians 1:9) (James 1:5) I have often prayed when facing with a fork in the road. Should I go to college? What should I study? Should…

  • Genesis 45: The Big Reveal 

    Genesis 45: The Big Reveal 

    After all the back and forth, Joseph can no longer contain his emotions. He sends all the Egyptians out of the room and cries in front of his brothers. He’s so loud that every one can hear him anyway. He tells his brothers that he is their long lost brother Joseph, and they are devastated.…

  • Genesis 40: Grape & Grain

    Genesis 40: Grape & Grain

    Joseph has now been in prison for a while. What’s a while? Five weeks? Five months? Something happens in the palace and Pharaoh angrily tosses two of his inner circle into prison: his chief baker and royal cup bearer. Did someone in the palace get food poisoning? The head of the prisoners, assigns Joseph to…

  • Genesis 36: Everybody’s Kids

    Genesis 36: Everybody’s Kids

    In Genesis 35:23-26 there is a summary of all the male children from Israel organized by mother starting with the sisters. Leah had Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. Rachel had Joseph and Benjamin. The servant Bilhah had Dan and Naphtali, and Zilpha had Gad and Asher for a total of twelve sons.  Genesis…

  • Genesis 30:25-43 Family Feud

    Genesis 30:25-43 Family Feud

    After Jacob‘s fourteen years of service to Laban, and his twelve kids, he lets his father-in-law know that it’s time for him to go back home. Laban says that divination told him he’s prospered because of Jacob, so asks him to name his wages. Jacob agrees to take all the spotted and speckled goats and…

  • Genesis 25: Twinning 

    This chapter starts with a list six of the sons that Abraham had with his second wife after Sarah died. One of these sons is Midian whose tribe shows up in the story later. With each son, Abraham sends them out eastward from his camp like he sent Hagar away with Ishmael. The author also…

  • Genesis 19: Fire & Salt

    The angels that had visited Abraham arrive in Sodom and Lot greets them at the gate of the city. As evening approaches, he invites them to stay at his home instead of the town square. They are there to assess the wickedness of the city and will have an answer within a few hours. That…

  • Genesis 18: The Visitation 

    Abraham saw that the Lord appeared to him by the Oaks of Mamre. There were two angels with him and Abraham ran out to offer them hospitality, including water to wash their feet and inviting them to rest while he brought them food. Then, he went to Sarah and had her bake bread while he…