Genesis 44-47

Well, we didn't get all the way through the chapters we had planned to cover last week, so this week, we'll pick up with chapters 44 & 45 from last week's lesson notes, then go right into Genesis 46 & 47. Lots to cover, including Judah's emergence as the leader of Israel's sons, and the migration of what will be the nation of Israel out of the Promised Land and into Egypt. We also see Joseph's life-saving policies plant the seeds that one day will lead to the enslavement of the nation of Israel.

The lesson notes for the first two chapters of this Sunday's lesson can be found in the latter half of last week's lesson notes. For lesson notes on Genesis 46 & 47, click here.

God bless you. See you Sunday AM.

Matt

REMINDER: Sunday Night Recap of Chicago Mission Trip

Just a quick reminder that this Sunday night (July 26) the Elliotts and the Morrows will share more about our recent mission trip to Chicago with any members of our class who would like to join us. We'll show some pictures, tell some stories, and answer any questions you might have. We are so grateful for your prayer support while we were there. You were so active and supportive in so many ways that it truly was a full-class mission effort.

We will gather at 6pm Sunday, during the regular evening church hour, so small kids will have childcare already in place (older kids should feel free to join us). I think our plan is to meet in our normal classroom upstairs, unless it happens to be in use for something else (unlikely at 6pm on a Sunday, I suspect).

Genesis 42-45

A lot of ground to cover this week, as we near the end of Genesis. This week's lesson takes us through an elaborate deception Joseph uses to alternately test, measure, and even "mess with" his brothers as they come to him to both symbolically and literally fulfill the prophecy of Joseph's original dream (they would bow down to him).

We can learn a lot from each of the characters in this story, including Joseph, Israel, and more than one of Joseph's brothers. The climax of the whole story, though, occurs when Judah, referring to himself repeatedly as Joseph's "servant" offers himself as the substitute to pay the penalty for the theft Benjamin is accused of. This is the same Judah who had cooked up the scheme to sell Joseph into slavery for profit and subsequently fake his death. It also is the same Judah through whose lineage would come another servant who would offer himself as the substitute to pay the penalty of others. How beautiful is God's word to explore?!

To download this week's lesson notes, click here.

God Bless You.

Matt

Friday/Saturday: Wrapping Up & Heading Home

TODAY'S REPORT:

Last night I laid down next to Alex to help him fall asleep and guess what... I was out as fast as he was! Normally I post to this blog after he falls asleep, so it can show up in subscribers' email the next AM. As it is, I'm posting Saturday morning just as we pack the van to head home.

Yesterday was a long full day of prayer walking, VBS and the VBS Parents' Night party (followed by borderline gluttony at Connie's Pizza). The kids (the ones here and the ones we brought) all did great. As Rachael and I help teach Bible stories, it is amazing how many of these kids have never seen a Bible. Most do not own one. One little boy asked Rachael if he could touch my Bible. Then, when she looked up and showed a few children our memory verse, they acted as if they had just seen a magic trick: "Do another. Do another."

Another boy told Jim that he had looked up his Bible story from earlier this week in the one Bible in his home. When his older brother saw what he was reading from, he took the Bible away from him, threw it in the kitchen sink, and turned on the water, ruining the only Bible the boy had access to. The families in this area are mostly immigrants from southeast Asia, Africa or Latin America. A diverse mix of religious tradition & belief has accompanied them here, and not all are open to the truth we share.

However, the reactions of the children wanting to explore further are encouraging. We hope and pray their reactions mean they are hearing our message that this is no ordinary book. That it is written by the hand of God and therefore can be believed fully - unlike any work of man.

PRAYER NEEDS:

Thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement. As we complete our portion of this mission, our prayers remain with the people of this area. Please join us in praying for:

• God's Word in the hearts and hands of these families. For those who don't know, our group was the second in a series of three groups from Second Baptist to conduct this project in Chicago. The final group will arrive next week. With them will come a Bible for every child. I firmly believe the stage has been set for many of these children to pour over the pages of their Bibles when they receive them. Pray that, after our work here, they would be ready to receive God's word, and that their families would not be an obstacle to their study of it. Pray also that their families might be influenced by the quiet faith and study of their children.
• The Harvest. God's word reminds us: "Thus the saying 'One sows and another reaps' is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor (John 4:37-38)." As the middle group of three who will be here on this mission, we get to do a little sowing for the third group and a little reaping from the work of the first. Most importantly, we will pray for a bountiful harvest at some point to come from the work God is doing here through His people. Pray that His name would be glorified and that these children would become trophies of His grace.
• Safe return home. For Jim, Heather, Rachael and I, this has been an incredible blessing. Even our kids seem to have connected with the children here in a very short time and the older ones understand that God is doing an important work. We all are excited also to come home, and we pray for save travel today. Please pray the same.

Tomorrow is Sunday and we will be back together for our ABF class at Second Baptist. I'm hoping to get some time in the van today to refresh my study of tomorrow's lesson (I honestly haven't looked at it in nearly a week). We so are looking forward to seeing you all and sharing more (Both the Elliott camera and the Morrow camera have lots to share as well - I'll work to get pictures up on the blog later in the week, once we've had a chance to share with each other).

We love you and are so thankful for you. Thank you again so much for your prayers and words of encouragement this week (even this morning I received another Facebook note from Amanda Booth encouraging us and sharing what she is praying for us).

God's bless you, and we'll see you tomorrow!

Matt