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    Joseph - Women's Bible Study Preview Book: The Journey to Forgiveness
    Joseph - Women's Bible Study Preview Book: The Journey to Forgiveness
    Joseph - Women's Bible Study Preview Book: The Journey to Forgiveness
    Ebook53 pages40 minutes

    Joseph - Women's Bible Study Preview Book: The Journey to Forgiveness

    By Melissa Spoelstra

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    About this ebook

    This pocket-size book provides a snapshot of the underlying message of the complete study—that God wants us to release our past and present hurts and allow Him to do a supernatural work of forgiveness in our life. Based on the Bible study:Joseph: The Journey to Forgiveness.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAbingdon Press
    Release dateAug 4, 2015
    ISBN9781630885397
    Joseph - Women's Bible Study Preview Book: The Journey to Forgiveness
    Author

    Melissa Spoelstra

    Melissa Spoelstra is a popular women’s conference speaker (including the Aspire Women’s Events), Bible teacher, and author who is madly in love with Jesus and passionate about helping others to seek Christ and know Him more intimately. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Bible Theology and enjoys teaching God’s Word to diverse groups and churches within the body of Christ. She is a contributor to Girlfriends in God online devotional as well as Proverbs 31 ministries First Five app. She is the author of eight Bible studies (Acts, The Names of God, Romans, Elijah, Numbers, First Corinthians, Joseph, and Jeremiah) and four books (Total Family Makeover, Total Christmas Makeover, 30 Days of Prayer for Spiritual Stamina, and Dare to Hope). Melissa makes her home in Waxahachie, Texas, with her pastor husband and four kids.

    Read more from Melissa Spoelstra

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      Book preview

      Joseph - Women's Bible Study Preview Book - Melissa Spoelstra

      Introduction

      Do you ever find your mind replaying old tapes of wrongs done to you? Have you walked into a room, spotted someone who has hurt you in some way, and wanted to walk the other direction and hope the person didn’t see you? Maybe your pain runs deep from fresh wounds, or perhaps your scars leave a daily reminder of discomfort from the past. All of us know what it’s like to feel betrayed by someone we trusted. Often it’s a small breach such as being overlooked, having a demeaning comment made about you in front of others, or being neglected in a time of need. Other times we’ve experienced lies, gossip, or harsh words that cut us to the core. Some of us have endured unspeakable pain through abuse, adultery, or abandonment.

      The consequences of holding on to the hurt inflicted by others can ruin the way we view God, ourselves, and other relationships. The stakes of forgiveness are high, and when betrayal gets personal in our lives, it certainly isn’t easy.

      Nowhere do we see forgiveness played out more fully in Scripture than in the biblical story of Joseph in the Old Testament. No sugarcoating there. Forgiveness rises to the top in this story, but not without the messy grappling with grace that we all encounter. Through this snapshot preview of Joseph’s story of trial and triumph (which I explore in depth in my Bible study by the same title, Joseph: The Journey to Forgiveness), we will find that God has much to teach us. Joseph’s dreams, betrayers, dysfunctional family, and journey toward reconciliation will reveal truths that echo into our own personal situations. I invite you to join me on the journey to find freedom through forgiveness.

      1.

      Acknowledging the Pain

      Genesis 37; 39

      We don’t have to look much farther than our own front door to find a place to practice forgiveness. Living in close proximity to others provides many opportunities to hurt one another. With pretenses down, we unveil our true selves at home. Family members see what we hide from others outside our four walls.

      I’ve heard it said that the true test of a Christian is how he or she lives at home. Families are the people committed to love us even when our flaws are exposed. Whether through birth, adoption, or the covenant of marriage, family connections often involve our closest relationships: husband and wife, parent and child, sister and brother, grandparent and grandchild.

      This was certainly true for Joseph. His father’s favor and God-given dreams contributed to friction with his brothers. They were jealous and unkind to Joseph. Their negative emotions led them to plot his murder, throw him in a pit, and ultimately sell him into slavery.

      The First Step

      Through the account of Joseph and his brothers in Genesis 37, we find that the first step on the journey to forgiveness is acknowledging the hurt. We can never forgive without getting honest about our pain. Joseph’s brothers endured some unfair neglect because of a birth order they had no control over. Whether they intended to or not, Jacob and Joseph caused pain for the brothers. And the brothers had the choice of working toward forgiveness or vengeance. Though you may not be struggling with being on the wrong end of favoritism as Joseph’s brothers were, it’s likely that you are carrying some pain at the expense of others.

      If we stuff or ignore our pain, we can’t bring it to God for healing. This can leave us with festering negativity that can lead to bitterness. God wants to

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