Good for my soul

The other day at work, my next-door desk neighbor and I were looking over an article about Moses (yes, this is what working at the Church magazines entails. It's awesome). We were both shocked to discover how much we didn't know about this snake staff-wielding, Red Sea-parting, burning bush-seeing prophet, like the fact that he fled Egypt after killing someone. What the heck? That wasn't in any movie I ever saw about Moses. I mean, I'm sure he had a good, Nephi-like reason for doing it that's not recorded in the scriptures, whatever. It's not shaking my testimony or anything, but I was stunned that I had never even heard of what seems like kind of a big detail, and I consider myself to be fairly scripturally literate. 

So naturally, I decided that it was high time to read the Old Testament. I have always thought of this as a relatively impossible task, and granted I'm only at the end of Genesis so I still have a long way to go, but I just feel that this daily reading has been so good for my soul.

From what I've read so far, the Old Testament seems to be largely about Jehovah keeping His promises—even (and especially) those crazy, how-on-earth-could-that-possibly-ever-happen promises. Which is good for me because I'm waiting on a couple of those.   

I've read most of these scriptures before, but stringing them all together like this just gives me more faith in the power of God's promises.  

Genesis 30:22, "and God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her."

Genesis 28:16, "and Jacob awakened out of his sleep and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not."

Genesis 25:21, "And Isaac entreated the Lord for his wife, because she was barren: and the Lord was entreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived."

Genesis 21:2, 6, "For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him (see Gen. 18:10, "And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son."). 

". . . And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me."

Genesis 18:14, "Is any thing too hard for the Lord? 

At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son."

Genesis 15:6, "And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness."

Love it!

What themes have you seen in the Old Testament? Let me know now before I get too far in and miss them all!