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“Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of Egypt. And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth by handfuls. And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he up in the same. And Joseph gathered corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering; for it was without number.” (Genesis)

Any Student of the Bible recalls the story of Joseph sold into Egypt that is recorded in Genesis. And how he managed to attain power by interpreting the Pharaoh of Egypt’s dream of seven fat calves and seven lean ones that eat them up. Joseph’s interpretation that they were to be seven plentiful years and then seven very lean years led the Pharaoh to give Joseph the power to build huge granaries that stored food that would later save Egypt and give it great power in the area. I am sure if we had diaries of people who lived during those times, there would have been many naysayers of Joseph’s plan of storage. I’m sure many thought him a fool or a charlatan. Or worse yet, a reckless individual who was only interested in power. Alas, we know from the story’s ending that Joseph’s plan of accumulation was inspired. The stored food was given out at the proper time when the famine hit. I am sure before that time, there were many requests to drain that food from the Pharoah’s granaries. But Joseph was a man of God and stuck with the plan. In the end, it saved the lives of countless individuals.

What of today? Recently there has been criticism of my church regarding how it uses its resources. Some cry this, and some cry that. Some say they will now pay their offerings and tithes to whoever they decide is worthy of it. They will no longer trust the leaders of their church. When placed with a problem that can be vexing, I often search the scriptures for answers. I found my answer to the above modern problem in Genesis. At least, I am very comfortable with this answer for myself. Perhaps some objective, reflective study can do us all good when faced with questions that come up in our lives. Add a pinch of prayer and a douse of faith, and most often, our minds are put to ease.