Our Savior kneels down and gazes upon the darkest acts of our lives. But rather than recoil in horror, he reaches out in kindness and says, “I can clean that if you want.” And from the basin of his grace, he scoops a palm full of mercy and washes away our sin. Max Lucado

Of all Jacob’s sons, Joseph gets the most attention. Yet it is not from the line of Joseph that Jesus was born. The purpose of Joseph’s life was to save Judah from famine because it was from his descendants that the Messiah would come. This flawed son of Jacob didn’t mess things up so badly that he was disqualified from the Covenant. God’s promises transcended this imperfect family.

Here’s the thing.  God exalts the likes of Judah. He blesses adulterers like King David. He forgives betrayers like Peter. He saves persecutors like Paul. Judah, at the end of his life, offered to give it up for the life of another brother. His father, Jacob, lived long enough to see Judah choose righteousness. God’s forgiveness was so radical that an entire past was put under His atoning blood.

Forgiveness and redemption are still relevant now in the very places you long to see the righteousness of God revealed in the lives of someone in your family. God’s heart is for your families. No one is exempt from His grace, not even the one who seems unreachable, that very one you are thinking about right now as you read this.

God’s desire to save was never more evident than in the life of a murderous zealot named Saul. He arose from the dirt on the Damascus Road and joined the Christians in Damascus, the very ones he had targeted to murder.

So, how long have you prayed for the salvation of a loved one?  Is “How long O lord?” on your tongue as you cry out to the Lord on their behalf? I know you are weary in waiting.  And your Father knows that you need new grace and courage to believe that all things are possible.  I am praying for you right now, but even more importantly, Jesus is praying for you in all the places where your faith is  so very fragile.

May God be gracious to us and bless us; may his face shine upon us. Psalm 67:2