Faith as a Footnote

Scripture: Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the Israelites swear an oath. He had said, "God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place." Exodus 13:19

Observation: As this entire section is about the departure of the Israelites from Egypt, this one short paragraph comes up. Joseph had always had faith that the people would leave Egypt and go back to the promised land, and had made this request about the final burial of his bones. He was the only one of Jacob's sons to make such a request, and he is the only one for which a tribe is not named.

Joseph's faith is unique. He could be the obscure son who disappeared from history, and in his younger years he was brash, arrogant, and foolish in dealing with his brothers. However, it was almost exclusively by his faith - throughout his time in slavery and prison and then exalted status - that literally saved Israel. As they begin their epic journey as a nation, his faith gets one final nod.

Application: Like most Christians, I probably want my faith to be loud and proud. I would like that to be the headlines of all stories. That just isn't the case, however. In most cases, I'd be happy if my faith were just mentioned at all in a third-party retelling of my day. I likely fail to even make faith a side comment about my activities on most days.

And here is Israel, rescued by God, marching into the desert, and there is a side comment of faith. As a nation of hundreds of thousands - who will very soon lament an impending attack and fear for their lives - there is a faith reflected in the hope of Joseph.

Faith is almost a footnote, but it is there. That is better than me on most days. I hope that, in the retelling of my daily life, faith can become more evident to any third-party narrator ... that faith would be a side comment, then a theme, and then the protagonist that drives my story.

Prayer: Lord, I know I am not the central figure in my life, you are. May this become more visible to others. May everyone have something to think about me every day, even if it's just a short sentence, that comments on my faith. Amen.