God Restores What We BreakMuskoka Lakes Ministry of Knox, Port Carling & Zion, Torrance
Sunday May 2, 2021
Message: God Restores What We Break
Reverend Glynis Faith

Announcements
* There are changes occurring in how we put together the worship videos. We thank you for your patience as we work through the growing pains of change. For the near future, the times the worship videos will be made available will vary. The printed copy will continue to be emailed out early on Sunday mornings.
* Bible study on Monday at 7pm via Zoom
* Music in the Sanctuary at Knox Tuesday 2-3pm (please pre-register with Edie Bard (705-645-6748)
* Lectio Divina on Thursday at 7pm via Zoom
Prayer of Intercession
Compassionate God, the pains of this world are not Your will, and we know You work through it all to restore. We cannot see the over-arching picture, but You see where we have been, where we are and where we are going. Lord, you work towards good, and You work through us to that purpose.
God of healing and hope we bring before You our prayers of intercession:
Lord, we pray that the pains of this pandemic will bring about greater compassion and care in all people. May we not close our eyes to systems that need to overhauled. May we put people before profit.
We lift up those whose surgeries have been postponed. Grant them patience and hope.
We bring before You those who have had recent surgery. May their healing be swift.
We ask for Your comforting presence to surround those who mourn with peace and assurance.
We pray for those in ICU units fighting for their lives and for those working tirelessly to give them the care they need. We pray for miracles in the ICU!
Lord God, we lift up to You the frustrations of Your people. There is much frustration in the world. Help us to trust in You through all of this.
We bring all these prayers to You, O Lord, in the Name of Jesus we pray. AMEN
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“ God Restores what We Break ”
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In chapter 1 we learn that God is sovereign; Creator of all that is. In the beginning God. We exist because willed it to be so. You have purpose and are precious to the LORD. And when our sin separated us from God’s presence, our Creator set a plan in motion to bring us back into His loving presence; again, you are precious to God – your life has purpose – you are loved by the heart of the One who Created you.
In chapter 2 God begins building a nation from everyday people like you and I, blessing His people and blessing all nations through His people. We are sinful in our nature, but when we say yes to worshipping and serving God, He leads us in a righteous path and continues to bless us and bless others through us – even when we mess up – which we do. We concluded chapter 2 with the life of Jacob and we will begin chapter 3 looking at the family dynamics of his sons, the sons who would become the 12 tribes of Israel. Here we learn that God continues to work good into our lives, despite our failings, and here we glimpse at that bigger picture. You and I, my friends, see in a limited way what affects us here and now, but God see’s the whole picture and works into our here and now to guide and save us in the future. Let’s open God’s Word and see what we can learn . . .
2 This is the account of Jacob’s family line.
Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with
his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s
wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them.
3 Now Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because
he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate[a]
robe for him. 4 When his brothers saw that their father loved him
more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind
word to him.
5 Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated
him all the more. 6 He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: 7 We
were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf
rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine
and bowed down to it.”
8 His brothers said to him, “Do you intend to reign over us? Will you
actually rule us?” And they hated him all the more because of his
dream and what he had said. Genesis 37:2-8
Wouldn’t it be nice if God intervened in all the troubles of the world. I imagine Jacob’s family dynamics would have been more civil if he had not openly expressed his favour for Rachel over Leah and the servant wives. If God had zipped Jacob’s mouth shut and not allowed him to buy a fancy coat for ‘the favoured son’ there might have been more love and peace between the brothers. Perhaps if God had given Joseph the dreams with a warning at the end that said ‘this is for your eyes only – keep it to yourself,’ his brothers would not have plotted to kill him.
Of course, that line of thinking ignores the fact that we have been given choice and we sometimes make poor choices. What is important for us to remember is that God works into chaos to bring about order – to bring about good. The most commonly quoted passage from the story of Joseph points to this fact, Joseph says to his brothers, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
Joseph irritates his already jealous brothers with his dreams of one day ruling over them…. Let’s see where that leads:
“So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan.
But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they
plotted to kill him.
When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue him from their hands.
“Let’s not take his life,” he said. “Don’t shed any blood. Throw him
into this cistern here in the wilderness, but don’t lay a hand on him.
” Reuben said this to rescue him from them and take him back to his
father.
So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe—
the ornate robe he was wearing—and they took him and threw him
into the cistern.
Judah said to his brothers, “What will we gain if we kill our brother
and cover up his blood? Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and
not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh
and blood.” His brothers agreed.
So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph
up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the
Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt. Genesis 37:17-28 (select verses)
So, the brothers get rid of Joseph, but in the process, break their father’s heart.
When Joseph arrives in Egypt, he is sold again, this time to one of Pharaoh’s officials, Potiphar, who rewards Joseph’s hard work and integrity by putting him in charge of his household. God blesses Joseph by blessing everything he puts his hand to, thus he is elevated in position and favour.
Unfortunately, he runs into a situation, perhaps more volatile than jealous brothers – the boss’s wife, who has a wondering eye and a vengeful spirit when she doesn’t get her way.
Now it would be easy to conclude at this point that Joseph is never going to get a break. Sure, he messed up with his brothers – down right ticked them off by boasting about his dreams of ruling over them, but he did everything right this time, and where does it get him – BOOM, right into jail – do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars.
Life can be like that sometimes, can’t it? There are times we can accept that we played a key role in the situation we find ourselves in, but there are also times when we throw our hands up in the air and say, “what did I ever do to deserve this God?” And when that happens, pull out the story of Joseph and pay close attention to what happens next.
Joseph is in the slammer, and we read in the narrative that God shows favour to him and gives him success in all he does. (well, that’s nice and all, but I think if one was in jail, the favour they would like God to show would be to clear their name and set them free, but remember, God is working towards the big picture in ways we don’t see). So, God enables Joseph to interpret dreams and he shares this gift with two fellow inmates. One man promises to speak to Pharoah on Joseph’s behalf when he is restored to his position as on official in Pharoah’s court, but he forgets, and Joseph remains incarcerated. Sigh!
Again, life can be like that sometimes. People don’t always keep their promises. You feel frustrated, let down, disappointed and questioning why God lets you wait and wait and wait and wait.
Then God gives Pharaoh two dreams, but there is no one in the land who can interpret those dreams – no one, that is, except Joseph, whom God has gifted to interpret dreams. Now isn’t that convenient! So, guess who is summoned out of their prison cell to come before Pharoah? Guess who tells Pharoah the meaning of his dreams – 7 years of abundant harvest to be followed by 7 years of severe drought? And guess who becomes Pharoah’s right hand man – the second most powerful person in the land, put in charge of collecting and storing the abundance to carry the nation through the famine?
It’s funny, when life knocks us on our butts, we don’t see what God has in store for us. We can’t possibly see the future. We have to trust – to live our faith trusting that God is working through whatever the situation to bring order – to reconcile us – to bless us.
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. 57 And all the world came to Egypt to buy grain
from Joseph, because the famine was severe everywhere.
When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons,
“Why do you just keep looking at each other?” He continued, “I have
heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us,
so that we may live and not die.” Genesis 41:56-42:2
You can see where this is going, right? Jacob sends his sons to Egypt to buy grain during the famine. Now who is in charge of the grain, but the very brother they sold as a slave some 20 years earlier. And how do you imagine that scenario playing out?
a) Terrified brothers see who is in charge of the grain and high tail it back to Jacob empty handed?
b) Joseph recognizes his brothers and plots his revenge?
c) Joseph recognizes God’s hand in all that has transpired, embraces his brothers in forgiveness and is reunited with his father.
If this was a motion picture movie the plot would move towards choices a or b. But this is not a motion picture movie, this is the story of God working through everyday people like you and I to bring healing and restoration. The story of Joseph reminds us that God is at work in all the details of our life – equipping us – strengthening our character – restoring relationships – God is at work in ways we do not see, not, at least, until we look back.
My journey through seminary is a perfect reminder to me that God is working things out in His perfect timing. It was an uphill battle most of the time with the challenges of distance learning, family responsibilities, the death of my father and several roadblocks along the journey. The interesting thing was that when I completed my studies and prepared to seek the direction God was calling me, I realized how perfect God’s timing was. I had fulfilled my immediate family responsibilities and some of those roadblocks had become springboards. That would not have been the case if I had graduated two years earlier.
It is important to remind ourselves and to remind each other that God is working good in the midst of whatever trials, challenges, struggles and frustrations we face. Even in the midst of this pandemic God is working – reminding us to spend more quality time with family – to work for better conditions for our elderly – to open our eyes to homelessness – to take the time when we have it to embrace the people we love, because we never know how much time will pass before we might see them face to face again.
Friends, we see the situations before us from a very short scope, but God sees the whole picture and works through the highs and lows, the pain and the joy, the good and the bad, the triumphs and the failures to reconcile, restore and bring hope to all. Please pray with me:
Sovereign God, we give You thanks for your loving presence in our lives, and we trust that You are working for the good of all nations. Lord, help us to let go of past hurts and follow Joseph’s example of forgiveness that is based on a deep rooted trust in You.
Father, through the death of Your Son on the Cross, we see You work through the sins of humanity to redeem those who sinned against You. Grant us hearts that remain rooted in Your love, even when the situation around us seems bleak. In Christ we pray. AMEN
HYMN ~ We Lay our Broken World in sorrow at Your Feet

We lay our broken world in sorrow at your feet,
haunted by hunger, war and fear, oppressed by power and hate.

We bring our broken towns, our neighbours hurt and bruised;
you show us how old pain and wounds for new life can be used.

We bring our broken selves, confused and closed and tired;
then through your gift of healing grace new purpose is inspired

O Spirit, on us breathe, with life and strength anew;
find in us love, and hope, and trust, and lift us up to you.

Words: Anna Briggs (1947 -) Music GARELOCHSIDE, Kenneth G. Finlay (1882-1974)
Words: copyright © Iona Community (Scotland). Used by permission of G.I.A. Publications Inc.
OFFERING
During our time of offering this week, I would like to give thanks to the individuals who take time each week to study God’s Word together through Bible study and Lection Divina. There is much we learn from one another through our presence and our sharing, so thank you for your participation each week. And a special thank you to Jane Haapiseva, who is leading the Lectio group on Thursday evenings while I conduct the Monday evening study group. Jane has a vast knowledge of Biblical languages and historical studies, and we are grateful to her for sharing her gifts with the group.

OFFERTORY PRAYER
Lord, accept the gifts we offer – gifts of our time, financial gifts and the sharing of our talents. We acknowledge all of these as a gift from You, and we ask Your blessing upon all we return to You. In Christ we pray. AMEN

PRAYERS OF THANKSGIVING & LORD’S PRAYER
When life gives us lemons, Lord, You give us the recipe for lemonade.
We cannot see the final picture, not yet, anyway, but we can look back at how you loved and provided for Adam and Eve and Cain, despite their sins, how You brought Abraham and Sarah into a new land, giving them descendants in their old age, and how you worked through Joseph to bless those who had meant him harm.
Through Your Word, O Lord, we are reminded to trust in You in all circumstances. Almighty God, we give You thanks and praise. You and You alone are worthy of our praise, so to You and You alone we lift our hearts in gratitude and praise to You, Father, Son and Holy Spirit - one God in three persons – Blessed Trinity.
Bless us within Your presence now, as we lift our voices to pray the Lord’s Prayer saying, “our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever. AMEN