Do you have a worry box? It’s a mental box that we can place our worries in. This box can only hold so many worries, so as soon as one disappears, we fill it with another. If a bigger worry comes along, we discard the smaller worries to make room for it. These worry don’t vanish. They are just discarded until there is room for them to return.
I lost my wallet a few years back. Immediately a new crop of worries came along that pushed out several of the smaller ones. Someone had stolen it. In it was my Social Security card. Someone had my identity. Also my driver’s license. Someone had my address. Also my credit card. Someone was going on a shopping spree. I was finically ruined and under threat.
A couple of days later, as I lay in bed, I heard a thumping noise. Was it the wind or the person with my wallet trying to get into my house? It never dawned on me why having my wallet would drive someone to seek out my house to break into. But the worry was there.
It was like the worry that I had when my father-in-law died. He had several pairs of new shoes, most still in the box, which I inherited. They were stored under the bed. One night I woke up to the noise of a thumping noise coming out from under my bed. It sounded like someone pecking on a shoebox. Immediately I became worried that his spirit had returned to show his disapproval of my owning his shoes. Carefully I crossed the floor with my eyes closed until I reached the light switch and could turn on the light. Standing in the room, I heard it again. It was defiantly a thumping noise and defiantly coming out from under the bed. Ever so cautiously, I peered under the bed and there before my eyes---- was my dog scratching his ears. That worry was quickly gone.
Now this worry. Could I go to work in the middle of the night, leaving my poor wife defenseless against this burglar? I was worried if I didn’t I would lose my job. So I prayed for her and left for work.
We rush out one morning to start our car but it won’t do anything. It must be the battery, or worse, the starter, or even worse, the alternator. What if it blew the head gasket? I just paid the car off and now I have to get another car with payments. Then you realize that it wasn’t all the way engaged in gear so the safety mechanisms kept it from starting.
The list goes on. A letter from the IRS that turns out to be nothing. A phone call in the middle of the night that turns out to be a wrong number. Sirens in the distance right after your teenager has left the house with your car. We all have worry boxes, don’t we?
As we continue to look at Abram, we will discover that he too had a worry box. And that worry box caused him many difficulties.
Abram was told to leave his native land and go to the land that God would show him. In obedience, he did so taking his wife, Sarai, his nephew, and all his livestock and trained servants, which numbered over 300. God promised him a land mass that was about the size of New Jersey. There Abram traveled around and built two altars to worship God. Life was grand. His relationship with God was intimate. God had proven himself faithful.
Then a famine hit. His worry box filled up. Suddenly it was difficult to find grazing areas for his cattle. Another worry went in. Suddenly he was faced with the challenge of caring for 300 + people. The worry box is filling up.
I wonder if he began to question God. Worries will make you do that. I wonder if he returned to the altars he had built and to seek the Lord. Worries tend to keep you away from God. So what did he do? Let’s examine that question and learn some lessons. Lesson one Don’t blame the world
“At that time a severe famine struck the land of Canaan, forcing Abram to go down to Egypt, where he lived as a foreigner.” (Genesis 12:10)
Egypt is the ideal place. The Nile River courses throughout the land. This reliable source of water results in plentiful harvest and healthy livestock. Abram has undoubtedly heard of this wonderful place and he leaves behind his altars and his promise and turns to Egypt for the solution to his problem. The Bible says he was forced to go to Egypt but the word used here indicates that he felt there was no other choice.
In scripture, Egypt always represents the world. When there is a famine in a person’s life, the world can look enticing. If it’s a financial famine, the world offers easy credit and schemes. Too often, we find ourselves in a bind, stop seeking God, and begin seeking a financial institute. We feel we have more to gain by making payments to man than giving to God. I have been there so I know about this.
If it’s a health famine, we seek out doctors and specialists, turning to God in prayer as a last resort. I can tell you of times when a doctor’s report was found in error after prayer was introduced into the situation. At my age, prayer precedes every physical exam or blood work so my health will not worsen.
Any famine in a person’s life should be brought before God in prayer first. He is more than capable of supplying our needs during any famine of any type. But turning to Egypt first may derail his plan to provide.
Lesson 2 In Egypt you are a foreigner.
“At that time a severe famine struck the land of Canaan, forcing Abram to go down to Egypt, where he lived as a foreigner.” (Genesis 12:10)
Abram had left Ur and traveled to a land that was not his own. Abram was a foreigner when he arrived in Canaan. But He would not remain a foreigner there because God gave him this land.
In Egypt he was a foreigner, an alien from another land, because he decided not to stay where God had placed him. When the situation became tough, he turned from God and turned to the world.
Ephesians 2:19 “So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family.”
When Abram lived in Chaldea, he lived in the midst of false gods and idol worship. God took him to a land of promise. It would safe to say that in Chaldea Abram was a stranger and foreigner to God. But God’s plan was to make him the father of a holy people. He would become a part of God’s family.
Like the Gentiles of the scripture, we were strangers and foreigners to God. But through the sacrifice of Jesus, we are now God’s holy people. We are in God’s family.
Because of that, we must heed the warning of 1 Peter 2:11 “Dear friends, I warn you as ‘temporary residents and foreigners’ to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls.”
We are not permanent residents of this world; anymore then Abram would be a permanent resident of Egypt. When Abram entered Egypt, he ran the risk of losing his citizenship in Canaan. We must be careful that we do not run the risk of becoming a residence of this world by pursuing worldly desires.
Lesson 3 Egypt brings new problems.
“As he was approaching the border of Egypt, Abram said to his wife, Sarai, ‘Look, you are a very beautiful woman. When the Egyptians see you, they will say, “This is his wife. Let’s kill him; then we can have her!” So please tell them you are my sister. Then they will spare my life and treat me well because of their interest in you.’” (Gen 12:11-13)
In Canaan Abram had one problem. There was a famine. Egypt offered a whole series of problems.
In Canaan he was under God’s protection. God’s word was all that mattered to him. He simply had to put his trust in God to care for him. There were altars that he had built for worship, praise, and petition. Altars that were available for him to give God a burnt offering of gratitude. Abram lived in confidence of God’s love and protection. Everything he could see was his to possess.
But as he approached Egypt that all changed. Now his life was in danger. He became concerned with what others would say. He became a schemer. Here there would no place to offer burnt offerings to God, only a Pharaoh who believed he was a god and would demand worship. Here he would offer his own wife as a sacrifice to protect himself. He was in fear and possessed only the material things that were with him.
When people cross that thresh hold of a close relationship with God and decide to enter into the desires of the world, they sacrifice a lot. No longer do they feel the safety of being in God’s arms.
They begin to worry about what people will say about them. They find themselves worshipping at the feet of materialism. They attempt to scheme their way through a Christian lifestyle while sacrificing the very things that they worry about losing. They lose their confidence in God and live in fear of being abandoned.
And sure enough, when Abram arrived in Egypt, everyone noticed Sarai’s beauty. When the palace officials saw her, they sang her praises to Pharaoh, their king, and Sarai was taken into his palace. Then Pharaoh gave Abram many gifts because of her—sheep, goats, cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels. Abram’s deception brings us to our next lesson.
Lesson 4 In Egypt you disarm God’s promises
“But the Lord sent terrible plagues upon Pharaoh and his household because of Sarai, Abram’s wife.” (Gen 12:17)
Remember God’s promise to Abram in Genesis 12:2? “I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others.”
Abram could never be a great nation in Egypt. There he would always be a foreigner. Abram was not a blessing to anyone. Instead, he proved to be a curse to the Pharaoh and his household. And Abram became famous. He became known as a liar and a schemer.
When people allow themselves to be drawn back into the influences of the world, they become like Abram. Their behavior smacks of being foreign to God. They become less of a blessing and more of an obstacle to those who are lost. And worst of all when they are caught in deceit and deception they become know as liars and schemers. They are guilty of doing much damage to the household of God, the church.
Let’s continue the story. “So Pharaoh summoned Abram and accused him sharply. ‘What have you done to me?’ he demanded. ‘Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife? Why did you say, “She is my sister,” and allow me to take her as my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and get out of here!’ Pharaoh ordered some of his men to escort them, and he sent Abram out of the country, along with his wife and all his possessions
So Abram left Egypt and traveled north into the Negev, along with his wife and Lot and all that they owned. (Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold.) From the Negev, they continued traveling by stages toward Bethel, and they pitched their tents between Bethel and Ai, where they had camped before. This was the same place where Abram had built the altar, and there he worshiped the Lord again.”
Abram found himself rejected by Egypt so he returned to the place he never should have left. He went back to his beginnings and worshipped the Lord. God was waiting for his return and restored his fellowship with him. That is the God we serve. One who will embrace us when we return to him.
Question What will you do when your famine hits?
Are you prepared for a famine in your life? There is one coming. It may be financial. It may be a health issue. It could be a number of things.
Here is a verse to stand on when the famine hits.
“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” (James 1:2-4)
Abram missed a chance to see God’s provision in a supernatural way. Imagine the great joy he could have experienced. His faith in God would have allowed him to endure the hardship of the famine. And in enduring, He would have seen God’s ability to provide everything he needed during this time of famine.
When the famine comes, it could be a test of your faith. So instead of being fearful, rejoice. For as your faith is tested, your ability to endure crisis in your life will grow. It’s like exercising. The more you do so the more muscle mass you build. Eventually you are chiseled with huge pecks, a six-pack gut, and 26” pythons. You will become a perfect specimen of physical health. James says take your troubles head on. Do not run from them. Face them as a person of faith. Look forward to the day when your faith will be perfect and complete, needing nothing from the world.
We should be like Micah. “As for me, I look to the Lord for help. I wait confidently for God to save me, and my God will certainly hear me.” (Micah 7:7) Instead of asking, “How can I get out of this?” ask, “What can I get out of this?”
Famines build faith if we have a relationship with the one in control of the famines. Without that relationship, the ground is dry and hard. But when we turn our circumstances over to Jesus we can stand on this promise; “Even the wilderness and desert will be glad in those days. The wasteland will rejoice and blossom with spring crocuses. Yes, there will be an abundance of flowers and singing and joy! The deserts will become as green as the mountains of Lebanon, as lovely as Mount Carmel or the plain of Sharon. There the Lord will display his glory,
the splendor of our God. With this news, strengthen those who have tired hands, and encourage those who have weak knees.
Say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, and do not fear,
for your God is coming to destroy your enemies. He is coming to save you.” (Isaiah 35:1-4)
Those days are now.
