God's calling is for reconciliation

Sunday September 11th, Genesis 50: 15 When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?" 16 So they sent word to Joseph, saying, "Your father left these instructions before he died: 17 'This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.' Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father." When their message came to him, Joseph wept. I remember that morning. My daughter had on the TV and yelled at us to watch what was happening. It was horrific as first one building was on fire, then another plane hit, a second building on fire, finally followed by the collapse of the buildings. Then over the next several days, the stories of heroism, loss, death, fear and hatred begin to trickle in. Joseph’s brothers had done horrible things, the constant teasing, faked murder, selling into slavery, all sparked by jealousy. Now in time of grave need in their own lives, they used the occasion of their fathers death to formulate yet another lie to save their own skin. Joseph wasn’t stupid; he knew what was happening, he wept anyway. Weeping not because once again he was being abused, but weeping because maybe this time, in the midst of deceit, there was hope for reconciliation. That is our calling.