In 1969, in a science lab in New Jersey, Canadian physicist Willard Boyle and his colleagues invented the concept of an electronic eye. Using their knowledge of mathematics and the behavior of light they provided the science behind digital cameras known as a charged-coupled device or CCD. The CCD technology revolutionized photography, as light could now be captured electronically instead of on film. CCD technology is used on the Hubble telescope and the Mars Lunar probe. It was Boyle’s invention that allowed us to see the surface of Mars for the first time. In 2009 Boyle was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
A few years after the original invention of CCD technology, Boyle walked into a store to purchase a new digital camera based on his invention. During the visit, the salesman tried to explain the intricacies of the digital camera, but stopped, feeling it was too complicated for his customer to understand. According to one long-time friend, Boyle was normally a humble man, but on this occasion he was taken aback by the salesman’s arrogance and disrespect. So Boyle bluntly replied: “No need to explain. I invented it.” When the salesman didn’t believe him, Boyle told the salesman to type “Willard S. Boyle” into his computer and see for himself. A Nikon representative in the store heard the exchange and immediately came over to have his photograph taken with the famous inventor. (Allison Lawlor, “Master of Light invents a photo revolution,” Globe and Mail, 5-21-11; www.PreachingToday.com)
There are a lot of “Willard Boyle” types around here. They seem like ordinary people, but when you do a little research into their background, you discover that they are indeed very remarkable. I’m not talking about some of the world-famous scientists, scholars, and individuals that have made their way to Washington Island. I’m talking about all those of us who have put their faith in Jesus Christ. The Bible says that we are a chosen people, kings and priests in God’s Kingdom (1 Peter 2:9), given the “right to be called sons of God” (John 1:12). Through faith in Christ, we join the ranks of believers from all ages whom God has used in remarkable ways even in difficult times and difficult places.
Is that where you find yourself today – in a difficult time and place? Then let me encourage you from the story of Joseph who found himself in an Egyptian prison after being sold into slavery. He had been a slave and a prisoner for 13 long years (Genesis 37:2; 41:45), forgotten by his family and those he tried to help. But even there, in the place of his affliction, God used Joseph in a remarkable way.
If you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Genesis 41, Genesis 41, where we pick up the story at the end of those 13 years, two years after he helped one of Pharaoh’s officials in prison. Joseph had asked this official to mention him to Pharaoh, but that official forgot all about Joseph.
Genesis 41:1-2 When two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing by the Nile, when out of the river there came up seven cows, sleek and fat, and they grazed among the reeds. (NIV)
Now, cows coming out of the water to graze are not an unusual sight anywhere where it’s hot. They like to stand about half submerged in water where they find refuge from the heat and the flies. Then when they get hungry, they come out of the water for some grass. This is not an unusual sight even in ancient Egypt. What was unusual was the scene that followed.
Genesis 41:3-6 After them, seven other cows, ugly and gaunt, came up out of the Nile and stood beside those on the riverbank. And the cows that were ugly and gaunt ate up the seven sleek, fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up. He fell asleep again and had a second dream: Seven heads of grain, healthy and good, were growing on a single stalk. After them, seven other heads of grain sprouted—thin and scorched by the east wind (NIV) – i.e., a dry, devastating, desert wind.
Genesis 41:7-8 The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven healthy, full heads. Then Pharaoh woke up; it had been a dream. In the morning his mind was troubled, so he sent for all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him. (NIV)
All the scholars and experts of Egypt were clueless. And these were men who had done extensive research in this area. Magicians and wise men were experts in the interpretation of dreams and omens, but Pharaoh’s dreams had them stumped.
Genesis 41:9-14 Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I am reminded of my shortcomings. Pharaoh was once angry with his servants, and he imprisoned me and the chief baker in the house of the captain of the guard. Each of us had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own. Now a young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams, and he interpreted them for us, giving each man the interpretation of his dream. And things turned out exactly as he interpreted them to us: I was restored to my position, and the other man was impaled.” So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon. When he had shaved and changed his clothes, he came before Pharaoh. (NIV)
You see, in Egyptian culture, Joseph was not properly attired. Egyptian men were clean shaven; Hebrew men like Joseph wore beards. On top of that, Joseph had his prison garb on, certainly not the proper attire for an appearance before the mighty Pharaoh. By all outward appearances, Joseph was certainly nobody remarkable, but here he is standing before Pharaoh himself.
Genesis 41:15-16 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.” “I cannot do it,” Joseph replied to Pharaoh, “but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.” (NIV)
I love Joseph’s reply to Pharaoh. Literally, in the Hebrew text, Joseph says, “Not me, God!” Joseph’s faith is in God, not himself. Joseph knows that in and of himself he can do nothing, but with God, all things are possible! God can do what even the best of men cannot do.
Genesis 41:17-25 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “In my dream I was standing on the bank of the Nile, when out of the river there came up seven cows, fat and sleek, and they grazed among the reeds. After them, seven other cows came up—scrawny and very ugly and lean. I had never seen such ugly cows in all the land of Egypt. The lean, ugly cows ate up the seven fat cows that came up first. 21 But even after they ate them, no one could tell that they had done so; they looked just as ugly as before. Then I woke up. “In my dream I saw seven heads of grain, full and good, growing on a single stalk. After them, seven other heads sprouted—withered and thin and scorched by the east wind. The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven good heads. I told this to the magicians, but none of them could explain it to me.” Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one and the same. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. (NIV)
Notice; Joseph gives all the credit to God.
Genesis 41:26-32 The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads of grain are seven years; it is one and the same dream. The seven lean, ugly cows that came up afterward are seven years, and so are the seven worthless heads of grain scorched by the east wind: They are seven years of famine. “It is just as I said to Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do. Seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the land of Egypt, but seven years of famine will follow them. Then all the abundance in Egypt will be forgotten, and the famine will ravage the land. The abundance in the land will not be remembered, because the famine that follows it will be so severe. The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon. (NIV)
Very quickly, God will send seven years of abundance followed by seven years of a drought so severe, that the good times will all be forgotten. Multiply what we’re going through right now in the United States by about a hundred, and you get the picture. We had several years of abundance in the 1990’s going into the early part of the 21st Century, but the housing market burst in late 2008 and brought our entire economy down with it. Well, that kind of a thing, times a hundred, is going to happen to Egypt. Joseph’s advice…
Genesis 41:33-36 “And now let Pharaoh look for a discerning and wise man and put him in charge of the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh appoint commissioners over the land to take a fifth of the harvest of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. They should collect all the food of these good years that are coming and store up the grain under the authority of Pharaoh, to be kept in the cities for food. This food should be held in reserve for the country, to be used during the seven years of famine that will come upon Egypt, so that the country may not be ruined by the famine.”
Save up in the good years for the lean years ahead. I think we need some advisors like that in Washington D.C. It’s great advice. In fact, it’s the kind of advice that reflects the wisdom of Solomon in the book of Proverbs which will not be written for another thousand years. The experts of Egypt had no such wisdom, but Joseph had it because he trusted in God to give it to him.
Genesis 41:37-42 The plan seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his officials. So Pharaoh asked them, “Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?” Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.” So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.” Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph’s finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. (NIV)
The robes of fine linen and the gold chain were the clothes of royalty, and the signet ring carried Pharaoh’s full authority. With it, Joseph could authorize any law or stamp any document, and it would carry the same weight as if Pharaoh himself had authorized the law.
Genesis 41:43-44 He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in-command, and people shouted before him, “Make way!” Thus he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, but without your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.” (NIV)
Joseph had unlimited power in Egypt.
Genesis 41:45 Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-Paneah and gave him Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife. And Joseph went throughout the land of Egypt. (NIV)
Zapheneth-Paneah means something like “Savior of the World” or “Sustainer of Life,” and it was a fitting title, because Joseph’s wise advice and actions sustained life and saved many people from starvation.
Genesis 41:46-49 Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from Pharaoh’s presence and traveled throughout Egypt. During the seven years of abundance the land produced plentifully. Joseph collected all the food produced in those seven years of abundance in Egypt and stored it in the cities. In each city he put the food grown in the fields surrounding it. Joseph stored up huge quantities of grain, like the sand of the sea; it was so much that he stopped keeping records because it was beyond measure.
Joseph’s dream was to become leader of his own little tribe someday, but God made him a world ruler and put him in a place where he could save not only his family, but many other people as well. God used Joseph in the place of his affliction, and God can use you and me in such places, as well.
The folklore surrounding Poland’s famous concert pianist and prime minister, Ignace Paderewski, includes a story, which though fictional provides a true picture of what God can do with us:
A mother, wishing to encourage her young son’s progress at the piano, bought tickets for a Paderewski performance. When the night arrived, they found their seats near the front of the concert hall and eyed the majestic Steinway waiting on stage. Soon the mother found a friend to talk to, and the boy slipped away. When eight o’clock arrived, the spotlights came on, the audience quieted, and only then did they notice the boy up on the bench, innocently picking out “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” His mother gasped, but before she could retrieve her son, the master appeared on the stage and quickly moved to the keyboard. “Don’t quit – keep playing,” he whispered to the boy. Leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around the other side, encircling the child, to add a counter melody. Together, the old master and the young novice held the crowd mesmerized. (Darrel L. Anderson, Leadership, Vol. 4, no. 2; www.Preaching Today.com)
That’s the way it is with those of us who have trusted Christ as our Savior. Christ, the Master, puts His arms around us, especially in difficult times, and He whispers in our ear, “Don’t quit – keep playing.” And as we do, He uses our simple, childish efforts to create a masterpiece that is absolutely amazing. All we have to do, like Joseph, is…
TRUST GOD TO USE US FOR HIS GLORY.
All we have to do is depend on the Lord to use us even in the place of our affliction. All we have to do is rely on Christ, even in difficult times, to accomplish something absolutely amazing through us. The problem is too many of us use our troubles as excuses as to why God cannot use us.
In answer to that, I like what Rick Warren wrote in his book, The Purpose Driven Life. He wrote, “Abraham was old, Jacob was insecure, Leah was unattractive, Joseph was abused, Moses stuttered, Gideon was poor, Samson was codependent, Rahab was immoral, David had an affair and all kinds of family problems, Elijah was suicidal, Jeremiah was depressed, Jonah was reluctant, Naomi was a widow, John the Baptist was eccentric to say the least, Peter was impulsive and hot-tempered, Martha worried a lot, the Samaritan woman had several failed marriages, Zacchaeus was unpopular, Thomas had doubts, Paul had poor health, and Timothy was timid. That is quite a variety of misfits, but God used each of them in his service. He will use you too if you stop making excuses.” (Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Life, Zondervan, October 2002, p. 233)
My dear friends, don’t let your troubles become an excuse for you not to let God use you to bring honor and glory to His name. Instead, trust God in those troubles. Don’t quit. Keep serving Him, and watch what He does as He uses you to bring salvation to many through Jesus Christ, His Son.
Do you find yourself in the place of affliction today? Then trust God to use you for His glory in that place. More than that…
TRUST GOD TO MAKE YOU FORGET YOUR TROUBLES in that very place, as well.
Depend on the Lord to so richly bless you in the place of affliction that you forget the sorrows you experienced along the way. Rely on Christ to bring such good out of the pain that you don’t even remember the pain when it’s all said and done. That’s what God did for Joseph.
Genesis 41:50-51 Before the years of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On. Joseph named his firstborn Manasseh[e] and said, “It is because God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household.” (NIV)
“Manasseh” comes from the Hebrew word which mean “forget.”
God made Joseph forget all his trouble, and God can do that for you and me, as well. It reminds me of what Jesus said to His followers in John 16. “I tell you the truth,” he said. “You will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy” (John 16:20-22).
When our faith is in Christ, even though we go through times of great grief, He turns that grief into times of such joy that we forget the pain. Please, trust Him to do it for you. Whatever you do in your pain, don’t give up on Christ. Instead, keep on trusting Him until your pain is forgotten, because God has turned it into praise.
I don’t know about you, but as I grow older, I’m looking forward to forgetting some things. In fact, I’m starting to wonder about the hereafter. I find my self more and more walking into a room and wondering, “What am I here after?”
Well, just a few years ago, NPR’s Morning Edition ran a story about a woman in California who couldn’t forget. In fact, she remembers key details of her life and the world around her for every day of the past 30 years. And while most people would say they would love to improve their memory, this woman admits that a sharp memory has its down sides. She can replay decades of her life like a movie. Give her any date, and she can recall the day of the week, usually what the weather was like, personal details of her life at that time, and major news events that occurred.
“The woman who can’t forget,” as she’s called, simply says that she intensely feels each day, and remembers trivial details as clearly as major events. Asked what happened on August 16, 1977, she knew that Elvis Presley had died. But beyond celebrity headlines, she also remembered that a California tax initiative passed on June 6 of the following year (1978), and a plane crashed in Chicago on May 25 of the next year (1979).
When asked if she considered her memory a gift, the woman said: “Well, if I’m able to cure a disease, it’s a gift. But to remember, like, the end of every relationship… it’s hard.” (Michelle Trudeau, “Unique Memory Lets Woman Replay Life Like a Movie,” NPR’s Morning Edition, 4-19-06; www.PreachingToday.com)
Sometimes, being able to forget is a blessing, and it’s a blessing Jesus promises to all of us who trust Him.
Do you find yourself in the place of affliction? Then trust God to use you for His glory in that place. Trust God to make you forget in that place. And in that very place…
TRUST GOD TO MAKE YOU FRUITFUL, as well.
Depend on the Lord to make you useful in the place of your affliction. Rely on Christ to produce lasting results that will make an impact on into eternity.
That’s what God did for Joseph. Joseph had two sons born to him in the land of his affliction. The first one was named Manasseh, which means forget.
Genesis 41:52 The second son he named Ephraim[f] and said, “It is because God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering.”
Ephraim actually means “doubly fruitful.” And look at how fruitful Joseph became.
Genesis 41:53-57 The seven years of abundance in Egypt came to an end, and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in all the other lands, but in the whole land of Egypt there was food. When all Egypt began to feel the famine, the people cried to Pharaoh for food. Then Pharaoh told all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph and do what he tells you.” When the famine had spread over the whole country, Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe throughout Egypt. And all the world came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe everywhere. (NIV)
God used Joseph to save not only Egyptians from starvation, but also people from all over the world. In addition, as we shall see in the following chapters, God will use Joseph to save his own family through whom the promised Messiah would come. You see, this is part of a larger story, the story of redemption, that God is unfolding to save the world through Jesus Christ, His Son.
God made Joseph fruitful in the land of his affliction, and He will do the same for us, as well. You see, what we do as believers in Christ is not just for a short time; it’s for all eternity. It’s all a part of God’s plan to redeem lost sinners through faith in His Son. It may not seem like much now, but in eternity the ramifications will have significant impact.
Pastor Steve Yeschek, of Crystal Lake, Illinois, lost his sister, Judy, after a five-year battle with cancer. She was a woman who, as Steve described her, was a party animal—a big drinker with a self-contented lifestyle. She was someone everybody loved, because she was so much fun to be around.
When Steve tried to share Jesus with her over the years, she would laugh it off and keep partying. But at the age of 44, her world caved in. She found out she had breast cancer. She later learned her husband had cancer, too. Adding to the devastation of these two blows, she discovered her husband was having an affair. He subsequently announced he didn’t love her anymore and left her.
It was in that context that she began to ask eternal questions and soon trusted Jesus Christ as her Savior. From that time until her death, Jesus, His purpose, and his Word became her priority. With the same gusto she lived life as an unbeliever, she now approached her new life in Christ. Her greatest aim was winning others to Christ. She boldly shared her faith even as she was undergoing surgery after surgery, praying for a miraculous healing from the Lord.
Judy ultimately came to see that the greater miracle would be for her friends and family to come to know Christ. Even as she struggled for every breath, she talked her way out of the hospital about ten days before her death so she could be baptized and publicly proclaim Christ as the only way of salvation.
Judy invited everyone she knew to come to her baptism service. Moved by the Holy Spirit, she powerfully and urgently shared her testimony. Her 84-year-old father came to faith in Christ that night and was baptized—along with her ex-husband, a number of nieces, a college roommate who was a New Age cultist, her aunt, her sister, and others.
Ten days later, Judy died. Even still, more people came to know the Savior. When Steve read the message she had prepared for her own funeral service, another 100 people trusted Christ that day. (From a sermon by Pastor Bob Page, Crystal Lake, Illinois; www.PreachingToday.com)
Now, that’s a dramatic testimony. But it’s the kind of thing God can do through us as we turn our lives over to Him even in times of affliction. Maybe, we won’t see those kinds of results in this life; but in eternity, the impact of our lives can be just as significant.
Just put your trust in the Lord. Even in the place of your affliction, trust Him to use you for His glory; trust Him to make you forget your pain; and trust Him to make you fruitful as you live your life for Him.
In His time, in His time;
He makes all things beautiful in His time.
Lord, please show me ev’ry day
As You’re teaching me your way,
That You do just what you say in Your time. (Diane Ball)
