Lessons for Life Based on the Lives of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph

Relationships within the family are of the greatest importance, having potential for enrichment but often the source of great difficulties. How to preserve commitment and faithfulness to a partner, how to balance the love and the discipline of children, how to live peacefully with neighbours... it's all there, in the first book of the Bible! Sadly, many of the stories are of failure and of missed opportunities, but in some the potential for good is fully developed. However, that is how most of us learn, and those of us who are wise observe the mistakes of others and avoid the committing of the same mistakes in our own lives. Within four generations - from Abraham to his great grandson Joseph - relationships between husbands and wives (and mistresses), between children and their parents, between siblings, and not forgetting the neighbours... it's all there in Genesis, and behind and above it all is the search for meaning and purpose for life in a relationship with God, and God working out his divine purposes in the lives of His followers. In addition to sixty years in medical research, Elwood and his wife Margaret were involved in Bible teaching, and for a period of 14 years they led a growing Baptist Church in Pontypridd, South Wales. In 2012 Prince Charles - now King Charles III, awarded Elwood an OBE for 'Services to Health'.