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“The seven years of plenty that prevailed in the land of Egypt came to an end; and the seven years of famine began to come, just as Joseph had said.” Genesis 41:53

This week, I, along with several others from the church, have been attending the Environmental Film Festival at Eckerd College. When it comes to the environment, many people just see the bad news. Not seven years of famine, but simply a downward, irreversible trend. This leads many to apathy and depression. It’s too big a problem. It’s too far gone. There’s nothing that can be done.

These films have presented an alternative view. A view of hope. Yes, they document the problems, but they also encourage responses that are realistic and practical. There are many facets to environmental problems. Some people see that as an excuse to do nothing. It’s too complex. It’s so involved. It’s too much work. You can’t make a difference. But the other side of that is, everyone can do something. If you aren’t ready to become a vegetarian, you can drive an electric car. Can’t give up tuna? Ok. Maybe you can install solar panels on your house. Too much to deal with? You can advocate and do something like call your state senators about fracking. Or recycle something. Or pick up trash on the street. Or turn the water off while you are brushing your teeth. Or turn the a/c up a degree. Everybody can do something. This is something that can bring us together. Or it can tear us apart. It depends on us.

The situation of plenty and famine in Joseph was a cataclysm. Instead of just bemoaning things, Joseph came up with a plan and stored grain for the lean years. Then when the people were starving, the state had bread for them. This was due to Joseph’s foresight, planning, and leadership.

The story also reminds us that there is a constructive role for the state in addressing disasters as well as the individual. The environment is a disaster and we should expect leaders on every level to be doing all they can to respond with creativity and ingenuity and passion.

Bad circumstances can draw forth the best of the human spirit. We certainly see this most clearly in the life of Jesus.

Prayer
When times are tough, may we respond out of hope and not fear or despair. We can trust God. Joseph and Jesus did. Amen.

“There will come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt. After them there will arise seven years of famine, and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt; the famine will consume the land. The plenty will no longer be known in the land because of the famine that will follow, for it will be very grievous.” Genesis 41:29-31, NRSV

How do we deal with looming bad news? Pharaoh has two dreams which Joseph interprets as a warning about an upcoming famine. Pharaoh could dismiss this interpretation. He could deny what he has been told about the future. After all, as they say, “Denial is a river in Egypt.” Pharaoh could easily dismiss Joseph’s abilities and accuracy because he doesn’t like the content. This happens all the time, too.

When there is doom ahead, we can deny it. We can ignore it. We can put our head in the sand. We can refute it. I suspect this is what lots of smokers do every time they light up. This applies in our personal lives but with social and political trends as well. People going along, ignoring the calamity ahead. Ignore the aging infrastructure of a city, and you get a water crisis like Flint, Michigan. Another glaring example is climate change and sea level rise. Many outright deny the calamity ahead. Others acknowledge the problem, but postpone taking the drastic steps needed to address it.

Ignoring unpalatable events ahead doesn’t make them go away.

Pharaoh listens to Joseph’s interpretation, and then follows Joseph’s recommendations to prepare for the famine. In this way, disaster is mitigated for Egypt.

Lent might be a time to think about the bad news ahead that we have been ignoring. It may be a time to come to terms with a looming difficult situation that needs our attention, but that we have been pushing aside. It may be a time to come out of our denial and take matters in hand. Jesus had 40 days in the wilderness to give things a good, hard look. Lent is a time to come clean and be honest.

Prayer
We are masters of deception. We deceive ourselves. And we deceive others. We ignore or discount the things we don’t want to see, especially in ourselves. It is so much easier to see the sliver in someone else’s eye than the log in our own. This Lenten season, may we turn aside from our deception and denial, knowing that Love awaits us. Amen.

“In the morning his [Pharaoh’s] spirit was troubled, so he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but there was no one who could interpret them to Pharaoh.” Genesis 41:8

Pharaoh is troubled by his dreams. He is so unsettled that he persists in all he can do to get clarity and understanding. He does not relent in this quest to comprehend the dreams he has had.

We might think of a Pharaoh like a king or a president. Days filled with many important matters: Affairs of state, foreign dignitaries, domestic issues, grain production, holiday and festival observances, giving of awards, and on and on and on.

Someone so busy and important and powerful could easily ignore a dream or two. Indigestion, maybe. A change in the weather. But, no, Pharaoh is relentless in pursuing the meaning of this spiritual experience. It is as if he puts the Empire on hold while he seeks answers to his spiritual unrest. This matter of these dreams is so important to him that he cannot let it go. He cannot ignore what is going on.

We, too, can live busy, distracted lives, even if we don’t have the power and authority of a world leader. In today’s world, much of our value is judged by our busy-ness. If we are busy, then we must be important, with so much to do. We must be needed. Counted on. Making a difference. But with all this busy-ness, we can easily be distracted from our spiritual lives. We can easily ignore what is going on in our souls.

We can see the possibility for this temptation in the life of Jesus. So many people to feed, heal, and teach. So many demons to cast out. So much ground to cover. A schedule to keep up. Expectations rising, work increasing. And yet we are told repeatedly in the gospels of Jesus going off to a quiet place, praying, investing his time and energy in his spiritual life. That’s what keeps him centered and grounded. That’s where his spiritual and moral power and energy proceed from. The time in silence and prayer. Reflecting. Listening.

There are so many ways we can go astray in this life and this world. And the options are increasing with increased communication. It is so easy to become overwhelmed with busyness. Things to do. People to see. Shopping to take care of. Upkeep and maintenance of our possessions which exceed those of any generation before us. It’s easy to get swamped and ignore or forget about the importance of soul work. Of paying attention. Of seeking. Of living from our center of Divine Love.

Prayer
May we seek rest for our troubled souls. May we take the time and make the effort to find our center, our energy, our purpose, our passion in the God of Jesus Christ. Then our joy will be ever full! Amen.

“Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.” Genesis 40:23

In the story of Joseph, there is a direct encounter between Joseph and the cupbearer. They discuss a dream. Joseph gives an interpretation of the dream. It is enough of an interaction that it would not be easily forgotten. And yet, the cupbearer forgets. Forgets about Joseph, for two years.

We have mentioned what that waiting may have been like for Joseph and how it is to have to wait. But this verse also invites us to think about forgetting. Joseph is in prison unjustly. He should be let go. But he has no recourse. And the cupbearer, who could aid him, forgot about him.

I am wondering about all the people who may feel forgotten about: Who are counting on others who know about their plight. Who have no other recourse. And who feel forgotten.

I am thinking about the kids who go to school every day but don’t learn how to read. I am thinking about the people who make clothes in sweat shops in less developed countries. I am thinking about the people who pick our food. I am thinking about people who live in areas of drought and have no food. I am thinking about families, children, and grandparents in war torn areas. I am thinking about people on death row. Do they feel forgotten?

Has someone asked for our help and we have forgotten?

Lent is a time to remember. To remember those who are suffering especially with no comfort or recourse. To remember those who feel they have no one to call upon save God. To remember those who feel forgotten.

Prayer
Sometimes we can get so wrapped up in our own circumstances and problems that we forget. Forget that there are others who need to be remembered. Forget all the advantages we have.  Forget God. In this Lenten season, may we remember. Amen.

“Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him. After two whole years, Pharaoh dreamed. . .” Genesis 40:23-41:1a

After two whole years. I love that word, “whole.” It stresses just how long Joseph was waiting and waiting and waiting for something to happen that would get him out of jail. Pharaoh’s dream turns out to be the catalyst for his release.

Two whole years. A long time. Seemingly forever. All those days in prison with no end in sight. It’s not as if Joseph had been sentenced to two whole years in prison and had to wait them out. He was simply there until further notice. No end in sight.

If there’s one thing most people hate it is waiting. People don’t like to wait at a red light. They don’t like to wait for the check in a restaurant. They don’t like to wait on line. And theses are just the little inconvenient waitings. There are the bigger waitings that are that much difficult. Waiting to hear about a job. Waiting for the college acceptance. Waiting for the tax return to pay the rent and car insurance. There used to be waiting for a letter from someone you care about. Then, sometimes there are those really significant, life changing waitings like waiting for the results of the critical medical test. Or waiting to see if the treatment worked. Or waiting to see if a loved one will survive a car accident. There are those life and death waitings.

In Lent, we can imagine Jesus for those 40 days in the wilderness. Was there waiting? Waiting to see if God would come to him? Waiting to see what his call would be? Waiting to see what would happen in that intense experience of opening himself to God?

Joseph used his time in prison to serve the other prisoners. He kept himself suitably occupied. Lent is a time to think about waiting that is expectant, hopeful, and perhaps productive. Waiting is an opportunity to learn trust. It can be a fallow time of resting in preparation for what is to come. Maybe waiting is an invitation to take delight in all that we do have and can appreciate.

Instead of seeing waiting as an annoyance, maybe we can use waiting as a time to deepen our faith and feed our spirits.

Prayer
While we may not like waiting, we know it can be a time of healing, a time of growth, and a time of preparation. And before we complain too much, let us remember all the waiting that God endures. Waiting for us to figure out how to love one another and stop killing each other. Waiting for us to decide to devote ourselves to the care for Creation. Waiting for us to practice forgiveness on a regular basis. That puts our waiting in perspective and invites us to trust. Amen.