Where is the land of goshen
Living in the Land of Goshen: Prospering in the Midst of Crisis
turn in your Bibles with me to Genesis
chapter 41 and verse 15 and while you're
turning there I gotta ask you you like
my outfit I got this shirt and tie at a
nice little designer store I frequent
called good while and now I know some of
you like to call it Goodwill but I like
to call it good while this shirt is
itami got the little emblem right there
to prove it 65 bucks retail this tie is
a tommy 45 bucks a hundred and ten
dollars between the two of them and I
got them both for less than eight
dollars so why am I such a careful
shopper because we are in the middle of
a recession
since the recession began in December
2007 the unemployment rate has
skyrocketed to nine point four percent
that's the highest it's ever been since
the Great Depression and I don't know
about you but my world is changing all
around me things are changing on a daily
basis and if we were ever in the midst
of a crisis we're in it now and if we
ever needed direction solid direction we
need it now I think you know what I'm
talking about by a show of hands how
many of you have felt the effect of this
recession let me see your hands
all right that's most of you well you
need to listen carefully to the message
today because it is possible to prosper
in the midst of crisis and God's Word
shows us how Genesis chapter 41 and
verse 15 Pharaoh said unto Joseph I have
dreamed a dream and there is no one that
can interpret it and I have heard it
said of you that you can understand a
dream and interpret it and Joseph
answered Pharaoh saying it is not in me
God shall give Pharaoh an answer of
peace let's pray father I thank you for
this beautiful day it's the day that
you've made and I choose to
rejoice in it thank you for this
beautiful church and for these beautiful
people and I pray that you would anoint
your word today and see it cause new
life in our lives Lord let it bear much
fruit in the name of Jesus our provider
in the midst of crisis amen
sitting on a cold floor in his prison
cell Joseph looked back over the the
roller-coaster ride of his life
that led to his dreadful imprisonment
just twenty years before he was the
favorite son of a loving father a father
that loved him so much that even bought
him a special coat so that everybody
would know that he was his favorite
things were good for Joseph well about
that time Joseph had a dream and it was
an interesting dream that actually had
his mom and dad and his brothers and
everybody bowing down to him remember
that part by the way and you know he
gathered his family together and he
thought they were going to be excited
about this dream but much to his
surprise they were pretty upset with him
not long after that he went on a trip
out of town with his brothers and his
brothers were so angry at him that they
decided to kill him but one of his older
brothers stepped up and said no we can't
kill Joseph let's sell him yeah that's a
good idea let's sell him things were bad
for Joseph so he's taken into Egypt
where he's purchased by a man named
Potiphar who likes him so much that he
puts him in charge of his entire estate
Oh things were good for Joseph well the
problem was Potiphar's wife liked Joseph
- a little bit too much today we would
say she had the hots for him because he
wouldn't sleep with her she got offended
and she falsely accused him of rape so
her husband Potiphar has Joseph thrown
into
all things were bad for Joseph in that
kind of what life is like one day things
are good for you and the next thing you
know things are bad for you
suddenly there comes a shout from the
prison guard Joseph come with us next
thing he knows he's standing in front of
Pharaoh who says I hear that you can
interpret dreams I've had a dream and I
needed interpreted so Joseph answers he
said it's beyond my power to do this but
God will tell you what it means and it
will set you at ease in other words
Joseph is saying I can tell you what God
is trying to communicate to you Pharaoh
because although you can't hear his
voice I can Pharaoh goes on to tell
Joseph about not one but actually two
dreams he's had and Joseph quickly
interprets them and he says your two
dreams are actually one and he begins to
explain to Pharaoh that God is telling
him that there will be seven years of
prosperity followed by seven years of
famine well Pharaoh was so impressed
with Joseph that like Potiphar he puts
him over his entire administration
Joseph at the age of thirty is second
only to Pharaoh and that in name only
because in reality
Joseph is more powerful than Pharaoh
listen carefully to how Joseph makes
good use of the Word of God in the seven
plentiful years he gathered up all of
the grain in Egypt and brought it into
the cities Joseph gathered so much grain
it was as the sand of the sea until he
stopped counting it for it was
immeasurable that's a lot of grain and
the seven years of plenty ended and the
seven years of famine began to come just
like Joseph said and the famine was in
all of the lands but in Egypt because of
Joseph there was grain so when all the
land of Egypt was famished the people
came to Pharaoh for bread and Pharaoh
said listen don't come to me go to
Joseph
and whatever he tells you to do do that
Joseph opened up all the storehouses of
grain and sold it to the Egyptians and
the famine became so severe that all the
countries came to Joseph in Egypt to buy
grain now there's a twist to this story
that's so fascinating that you've really
got to read it for yourself sometime but
remember those angry brothers that sold
Joseph into slavery
well they and their father Jacob's house
were all suffering from the same famine
time really doesn't permit me to tell
this whole story it's just rich rich
with excitement and meaning but the peak
of the story comes when they to go to
Egypt and come face-to-face with none
other than Joseph and guess what they do
yes just like the dream said they bow
down to him but they didn't recognize
him because after all it had been 22
years by this time so taking advantage
of the situation Joseph decides to play
a little cat and mouse game with his
brothers and accuses them of being spies
and in their defense of trying to
convince him that they're not spies they
tell him that they're in a family of 12
brothers 10 which are before him one a
younger brother that's back home with
dad and another brother that well he got
killed
so Joseph sends them home with the
command to return with that youngest
brother and he holds one of them as
hostage to make sure that they return
smart guy now it takes some convincing
for dad to allow them to take the
youngest brother back with them because
he's terrified that the same thing that
happened to his other favorite son could
happen to this one but one of the boys
convinces his dad to allow it or else
dad we're going to starve to death so
with the youngest brother they all go
back to Egypt and when they arrive
Joseph is first of all so emotional
about seeing his younger brother you see
this is his only
oh brother the others were half-brothers
this brother was a full brother by the
same mother and he's so emotional to see
this this little bully now grown that he
actually has to excuse himself to gain
his composure or else he'll be found out
so he does that he comes back and then
he begins to try his best to spur
jealousy in the older brothers towards
that youngest one you want to know why
he wants to see if they will treat that
youngest brother the same way they
treated him and guess what they passed
the test Joseph finally reveals to them
that he is their long-lost brother and
at first they're terrified because they
assume that he's going to want revenge
you could assume that but they're soon
convinced that all is well and Joseph
along with Pharaoh convinced them to go
home and get their father and all of
their families and bring them back to
Egypt where they'll live in a beautiful
city set apart from all the other
Egyptians perfect for raising cattle
which is what they did by the way it is
the best of the land a place called
Goshen now remember this is in the
middle of a famine well the story goes
on to tell of how Joseph took good care
of his father and of his brothers and I
saw to it that they had everything that
they needed in the midst of famine but
the rest of Egypt there was not even
enough bread to go around so Joseph
started selling all of the grain that he
had stored up and brought the money from
that into Pharaoh's house and when the
money ran out they all came back to
Joseph again and said give us bread or
we're going to die
so Joseph made them a deal he said all
right nice cattle you got there trade me
your cattle for the bread and they did
two years after that they come back
again and they say look we're not gonna
lie to you Joseph we're all out of money
all out of bread you've already got all
of our cattle all we have left is our
lives and our land Joseph made them
another deal he said okay sell me your
land and they did every man except for
the priest I like that part they
the preachers alone after that Farrow on
all of the land in Egypt Joseph was a
kind man and he did above and beyond
he gave them enough seed to plant in
their fields so that they would be able
to have crops every year and feed their
families but with one stipulation you
have to give 1/5 of your increase every
year to Pharaoh very smart once again
and the people came to Joseph and they
said surely you have saved our lives the
story goes on in chapter 47 verse 27 so
Israel referring to Jacob and his sons
the house of Israel Israel dwelt in the
land of Egypt in the country of Goshen
and they had possessions there and grew
and multiplied exceedingly and the
people in Egypt were just getting by on
the conditions of the crisis but
joseph´s family prospered greatly in the
midst of crisis do you get that picture
there's a group of people the larger
group in the country they can barely get
by and Joseph's family is prospering in
the land of Goshen you know I want to
step back a few points and take you back
to the point where Joseph was testing
his brothers that might seem cruel to
some that little cat-and-mouse game but
I don't think it really was Joseph
wasn't trying to see see if they had
changed so much for his benefit he
wanted to see for their benefit what
they could handle and what they couldn't
you know God will test you but God
doesn't test you to see where you're at
God tests you to show you where you're
at Joseph has tested these men and sees
that they have changed and now they're
living in the land of Goshen what made
the difference between the people who
barely survived the conditions of the
crisis and the few who prospered in the
midst of it one man who could hear the
voice of God and obeyed it now Joseph in
this story
the type of Christ if you're a Christian
he is in a sense your brother and he
knows that you basically sold him out in
your sin but he tests you to see if
you've changed so once you commit
yourself to him and you rid your life of
all of the things that block your
hearing
he speaks direction to you and he shows
you the directions to a place in your
life like Goshen Anne in spite of crisis
you will enjoy his provision listen to
live in the land of Goshen to prosper in
the midst of crisis you must hear the
voice of God and obey it now my guess is
that there's someone here today that is
frustrated because you can't hear the
voice of God as a matter of fact you
wouldn't know him if you were standing
face-to-face with him you haven't seen
him or heard his voice in so long just
like Joseph's brothers you wouldn't even
recognize him as a matter of fact you're
probably jealous of somebody like Joseph
they could hear his voice you know there
was no delay in his interpretation to
Pharaoh Pharaoh told him the dreams
Joseph interpreted it he knew God's
voice he knew what God was trying to
tell Pharaoh and you might be jealous of
Joseph because he could hear God's voice
well there's good news for you today you
can hear him too God is no respecter of
persons
he doesn't favor Joseph more than you he
doesn't put the coat of many colors just
on Joseph and say I'm going to speak to
this man and give him the unique ability
to hear my voice God doesn't do that he
gives us all the ability to hear his
voice and he speaks to every single one
of us on a daily basis you can hear him
too but what you have to do is get rid
of everything in your life that's
standing between you and him and begin
to cut off all of those things that are
just muffling the channel between you
and God keeping you from hearing his
voice you'll maybe not hear it in an
audible voice like you're hearing mine
today but you will begin to sense his
door
correction in your life you may see it
in the circumstances around you you may
see it in his word as you study his word
you may see it in the wisdom that comes
from your Christian friends you may see
it in messages like this one in church
but you will begin to see and hear the
voice of the Lord and step by step you
will make your way into a place in your
life like Goshen several years ago I was
sitting at master control in a
television station it was in the evening
and my cell phone rang and as soon as I
answered it I recognized the voice it it
was my daughter Renee and not only did I
recognize that it was renamed I could
tell with her hello daddy
that something was wrong you know how
that is you know your children's voice
you know the difference between a dad
and a dad you know their voice and they
know yours and I could tell something
was wrong and I said what what's wrong
and she says daddy I don't know how to
tell you this but I am lost some friends
of hers at Christmas time had asked her
to take them from southeastern to the
Tampa Airport so that they could go home
and spend the holiday you know they were
gonna show her how to get there and then
they said to get back all you have to do
is just retrace your steps back to the
to the college and then from there she
was going to come on home so that was
the plan the problem was at some point
along the way she took that dreaded left
turn off of i-4 and ended up in the
middle of nowhere I began to ask her
what do the road signs say and she said
that's just it I haven't seen road signs
in a long time no exits no road signs no
nothing daddy well I was panic-stricken
you know my first thought was forget the
television station forget FCC rules that
it has to be man 24/7 I'm getting in my
car and I'm going to my baby girl to
rescue her and then it dawned on me I
have no clue where she's at
I don't even know what road she's on so
I said look just stay on the phone with
me don't hang up
so she stayed on the phone with me and I
said take the next exit you can she took
the next exit it was one of those ghost
town exits where there was like a gas
station there but it nobody was in it
you know it had been boarded up so then
I help her navigate back to the highway
and she stops at the next exit which
took a while to get to and I said okay
number one fill your tank up with gas
number two ask someone where you are
so she's filling up her tank and next
thing I hear is her voice saying could
you please tell me where I'm at what
what exit and I hear a man's voice and I
said no no Renee he told don't ask a man
don't tell a man you're lost go in and
tell the lady clerk you know don't tell
a man but it was too late he tells her
that she is at the intersection of i-75
and highway 51 which I was not familiar
with so I'm on my computer on MapQuest
I'm zooming into that general area you
know to try and see where she's at and I
can zoom in and zoom out and I look and
I I made the mistake of saying oh my
goodness Renee you're halfway to Georgia
well that panicked her and she freaked
out and she said oh I'm never gonna get
home I'm gonna die I'm gonna die
so I said don't worry don't worry I
shouldn't have said that well we're
gonna get you home well I could zoom out
and first of all I thought you know
technology is incredible I could zoom in
and I could see the top of the gas
station where she was you know you do
that Street View it was amazing
so I told her I said alright when you
pull out of there turn left you're gonna
be on a road called highway 51 and just
follow daddy's instructions so she said
okay so she turns left and I could I
could go ahead of her and I would say
okay you're about to cross over a
railroad track Renee and she would say
yes I'm coming across it right now and
then a little while later I could say
all right the next intersection that
you're going to come to is Harper Road
and she'd say yes daddy yes I see it
right now
I'm at the stoplight at Harper Road and
then I said you know okay you're gonna
go a while now and it it might seem kind
of scary but it's okay there's nothing
but like pasture land for a long time on
your left and your right it's gonna seem
like you're out in the middle of nowhere
but you're safe and eventually you're
gonna see a huge lake off to your right
and we talked all that way to keep her
calm as she drove through that
wilderness area and eventually she said
yes daddy I I see the lake now I see the
lake and I took her all the way to the
Florida Turnpike which she was familiar
with so that she could get on the
turnpike and come on home to safety with
us to celebrate Christmas and boy did
she get a hug when she got home you're
never going to drive a car again I'm
taking the car away that'll make you
safe no I couldn't do that but boy what
an experience we had and somewhere
across the middle of highway 51 the
thought hit both Renee and me at the
same time this must be what it's like
for God he sees his children in the
middle of a life-threatening crisis
thinking all hope is lost but he can see
the quickest route to safety and get us
there he sees us in our crisis knows
where safety is and knows how to get us
there now for just a moment try and
remember that same story but think about
it this way what if Renee had a terrible
relationship with me one so bad that she
couldn't bear to pick up the phone and
call me you know because every time I
talk to dad it turns into an argument
he's going to tell me I'm stupid for
getting lost out here he's going to
condemn me because I didn't follow the
instructions better that I was supposed
to now I've got myself in a mess
I'm not even going to call him that's
where a lot of Christians are where a
lot of non-believers are but she didn't
have a relationship like
that she had a great relationship with
her daddy
she knew his voice and he knew hers
we're gonna open up these altars in a
few minutes because I want to give you
just a little bit of time and an
opportunity to to clear the channel
between you and God whether it's about
this economic crisis that we're in or
maybe it's another type of crisis that
you're experiencing in your life and you
just don't have direction you may be a
Christian already but hearing God is
kind of sparse for you one day it's good
one day it's bad or maybe you've had a
long period of time where you just
haven't heard a thing it's not that he's
stopped talking
it's that you've stopped listening we
give you an opportunity to clear up that
channel and for those of you maybe that
have never even committed your life to
Christ accepted him as your Lord and
Savior
you hear stories like the one about
Joseph and the one about my daughter
Renee and you wish you had that type of
intimate connection with your Heavenly
Father
so that you could connect with him and
get direction for your life that can
happen and it can begin today so we want
to open up these altars and give you
that opportunity as a matter of fact why
don't you stand with me I want to
encourage you you might be saying Lord
I'll get things cleared up with you just
after this crisis has passed
once this one's over I promise all I'll
make things better but I want to remind
you that the famine remain until Jacob
and his family were nearly starving as a
matter of fact I believe that if the
famine had lifted Jacob and his family
would have never made it to the land of
goshen so don't wait another day
to clear this up God may not be causing
this crisis but he will use it to bring
you back to safety to live in the land
of goshen
to prosper in the midst of crisis you
must hear the voice of God and obey it a
man would you come
you
