Editor's note: Enjoy today's devotion adapted with permission from God Won’t Leave You There by Anne Graham Lotz & Rachel-Ruth Lotz Wright.
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Genesis 48
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in Heaven for you. — 1 Peter 1:3–4
Several years ago I had prepared a message on this very passage and was up early going over it for my Bible study that day. The only problem was, I didn’t have an introduction to the message. I prayed and asked the Lord to give me an idea of how to open the message, but I still couldn’t think of one.
I was dressed and ready to go, going over my message one last time, when all of a sudden a screeching alarm went off that scared me right out of my chair. Our house alarm was going off! It was an alarm that we had never used. I had no idea it even worked, and I definitely didn’t know how to turn it off.1 My Bible study was scheduled to begin in less than an hour, so like any committed teacher, I just left the house with the alarm blaring. As I drove away, it hit me—God had given me my introduction! Alarms are going off in our world today, and God wants to get our attention... but about what?
I believe one of the alarms has to do with the next generation.
Do you hear it too?
The Enemy of our souls—the devil, Satan, that old dragon—is relentlessly attacking young people.
Wake up! This is war! The younger generations are under attack and in terrible agony, even if their Instagram posts say otherwise. So what in the world can we do about it? One way to begin is by learning from Joseph’s example.
Joseph was intentional when it came to the next generation.
After being separated from his family for so many years, he wanted to have as much time as possible with his father. Although the Bible doesn’t give us details about the sixteen or so years Joseph and his family had to enjoy with his father, Jacob, we can assume that Joseph spent many hours over those years talking with him, sharing meals with him, and allowing his boys to glean from their grandfather’s wisdom.2 The alarm went off for Joseph when a messenger brought him the news that his father was ill. Even though the news may have not been unexpected, due to Jacob’s advanced age, it was still jarring.
When that alarm sounded in Joseph’s life, he didn’t waste time.
He didn’t put off going to see his father until it was convenient. He didn’t let the busyness of his schedule as second-in-command of Egypt keep him from immediately dropping everything to go see him. Joseph most likely had to rearrange very important meetings and appointments, as the weight of the government rested mostly on his shoulders. So we aren’t talking about dropping trivial tasks, like pickleball, a luncheon, or a haircut.
Joseph took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim along with him (48:1). Joseph knew how important it was to be with his father at this time, and he also knew how important it was for his boys to be with their grandfather. Like any godly parent, Joseph would have desired to instill in his boys a love for God like that of his father, especially when he knew time was running out.
As Jesus-followers, we have a responsibility to
train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.3
We are also instructed to pass on
what we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, His power, and the wonders He has done.4
We are commanded to pass on our love for God and the truth that leads to faith in Him to the next generation. All through Scripture we are urged to talk about God with our kids and our grandkids, our nieces and nephews, our students, our neighborhood kids, and with whomever else He puts in our path.5 We must be intentional because faith in God and love for Him needs to be nurtured, or it can be lost in one generation.
- Joseph put everything else aside as he hurried to take his sons to see his father.
As he and his boys rode across the desert landscape, I wonder, was the sun setting? Did it strike Joseph that the sun was also setting in Jacob’s life? As golden hues streaked across the sky, did it cause tears to well up in his eyes as memories flooded him of wonderful times spent with his father? Looking over at his strapping sons, was there a cry to the Lord for mercy to keep Jacob alive until they were able to get to him so that his father could impart wisdom and blessing to them one last time? Did Joseph feel the agonizing reality that there was just never enough time with those you love?
As Joseph and his sons arrived at the place where Jacob lived, servants would have rushed to greet them, tending to the horses and chariots, then escorted them into Jacob’s dwelling. I imagine the smell of incense mixed with woodsmoke from a crackling fire filled the interior of the tent compound as they strode across plush carpets.
Joseph’s commanding presence and elegant Egyptian appearance would have been quite a contrast to the modest surroundings. He and his sons were likely led into the room where his father lay crippled—a shell of the man who once wrestled with God.
When Jacob was told, “Your son Joseph has come to you,” Israel rallied his strength and sat up on the bed (48:2). At that news, even though Jacob was dying, his strength was renewed. He rallied, just because Joseph and his two sons walked into the room to see him. This reveals the importance of spending time with our parents and grandparents.
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My parents ensured that I spent time with my grandparents. I saw with my own eyes and heard with my own ears their love for Jesus and His Word. The relationship they had with the Lord was obvious and it left a lasting, grand impression on me.
My mother’s father and my grandfather, whom I called Daddy Bill, brought every conversation I had with him back to the Lord in some way. He led devotions every night after dinner whenever we were with him. As he got older and couldn’t see very well, he had Scripture verses blown up into huge block letters on poster boards and hung them all over his bedroom, bathroom, and down the hallways so that wherever he went around the house he would be reading Scripture. It was important to him to never stop learning and hearing from God.
My mother’s mother, whom I called Tai Tai, always had a worn Bible in her lap or close by. She also usually had several translations nearby and discussed the Scriptures with me. My mother describes how she always held her Bible with such reverence. The way my grandmother stroked the pages revealed it was her most important treasure. As she grew older and was crippled by degenerative arthritis, she told me she felt like a mouse on a glue board, stuck in her chair because of pain—but she could pray! I saw how vitally important her relationship with the Lord was because I spent time with her, and it greatly impacted me. I wanted to know Him like she did.
My dad’s dad, whom I called Grampa, was a pastor in the worst part of the Bronx. Whenever he came to visit us, I remember as a young girl seeing him lean over his Bible with a magnifying glass for hours, reading it and studying it. He had a rubber strap around his Bible because the pages were falling out from so much use. My dad’s mom, whom I called Gramma, was always singing or humming hymns while she served everyone with so much joy.
Both sets of my grandparents were authentic Jesus-followers. I wouldn’t have known or seen any of this if I hadn’t spent time with them. The lessons I learned by witnessing their examples continue to reverberate in my life to this day. Which begs the question:
What kind of example am I setting for my kids and, one day, my grandkids? Will they want to know and love Jesus because they have seen Him in me?
Joseph knew what it was like to be separated from family, and he didn’t want that for his boys. As he stood before his father, I wonder if the servant, or even Joseph himself, reached behind Jacob to fluff his pillows to give him something to lean against as he sat up to speak, helping him to adjust his shoulders in a more comfortable position. Did Jacob relish the scent of Joseph as he drew near? Did the scent bring a whiff of the desert wind as well as the rich oils and sandalwood of Egypt? Did Jacob’s heart skip a beat at the sound of Joseph’s strong, deep voice? Surely Jacob was still in awe of the Lord’s great mercy in bringing his family back together after so many years.
As Joseph looked down at the frail man propped up in bed, he must have held his breath. Was he on high alert as he anticipated his father’s words? What would his father say? Jacob was bound to know the alarm was going off in his life. He knew his time was short and that he must make the most of it.
He didn’t waste time trying to impress his son and grandsons with stories of his adventures or vacations or how much livestock he had acquired over the years. Instead of talking about trivialities, Jacob immediately began sharing about his relationship with the Lord and the promises God had given him. He gave them his testimony!
Jacob’s voice likely would have been weak and raspy as he shared,
God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and there He blessed me and said to me, ‘I am going to make you fruitful and increase your numbers. I will make you a community of peoples, and I will give this land as an everlasting possession to your descendants after you.’” — 48:3–4
At the end of his life, the most important thing to him was his relationship with God!
He therefore knew that was the most important thing he could possibly talk about with his son and grandsons.
We need to do the same! The next generation is being inundated with materialism, greed, and selfishness. What do our children and grandchildren hear when they listen to us speak? Do we try to impress them with our accomplishments? Awards? Bank accounts? Clubs? Promotions? Vacations? Vehicles? Do we go out of our way to avoid pushing “religious stuff” onto them because we want to be “cool”? When have you shared your own authentic testimony?
Our children are desperate for direction, encouragement, and wisdom. Why stay silent? Share what God has done in your life! Tell them when you first gave your heart to Jesus. Tell them how He helped you through a breakup. Tell them how God healed you, gave you promises, brought you a spouse, provided for you when you didn’t think you could make it financially. Tell them how He has opened doors and closed doors, guided you through a move, spared your life on the battlefield, given you courage to witness to a neighbor, freed you from addiction, or restored a broken relationship. Don’t hold back! The alarms are sounding—time is short! Gather your family together and share your testimony from your heart.
1. We got our alarm fixed, and it works now!
2. “Bible Timeline,” Bible Hub, accessed January 6, 2026, https://biblehub.com/timeline/. “Bible Timeline,” www.biblehub.com.
3. Proverbs 22:6.
4. Psalm 78:3–4.
Adapted with permission from God Won’t Leave You There by Anne Graham Lotz & Rachel-Ruth Lotz Wright, copyright Anne Graham Lotz & Rachel-Ruth Lotz Wright.
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Your Turn
Parents and Grandparents, share your faith with your kids and grandkids! Leave your stamp on their lives so that when you’re gone, they warmly remember your life as Jesus-oriented. Even if they’re not following Him now, your prayers and your influence matters and may make the difference in their choice to follow Him, too! ~ Devotionals Daily