Travel Tips

Genesis 46:1-27, 1-4

• Joseph has sent for Jacob to come to Egypt

• Jacob prepares to make the trip

• An old man is leaving all he knows and understands to travel to an unknown place and lifestyle

• His present and future both cause him to be afraid

• The real story here is how God works in the hearts and lives of His people

1. Start your journey at an altar before God 46:1

2. Egypt is probably a scary place for Jacob

3. God will come to him and speak to him about his fears 46:3

4. Egypt was where his grandfather Abraham went before him when there had also been a famine in the land

5. Pharaoh had taken Abraham’s wife because he said she was his sister and she was so pretty 12:15

6. God plagued Pharaoh for having Abraham’s wife and Pharaoh got mad at Abraham and sent him on the road 12:20

7. Hagar--Abraham’s concubine was from Egypt and causes great heartache for the family from then until now 16:4, 15

8. Isaac (his father) was told not to go down to Egypt in time of a famine 26:2

9. Now Egypt is where his son is and has suffered for 13 years

10. The way things are is usually much more comfortable than the place you may be called to go by the Lord

11. Change or moving should cause us enough concern to seek God’s face Proverbs 27:8

12. Be careful how you wander and let it never be away from God’s will Proverbs 21:16

13. Beersheba--the border town--a lot of family history

14. The place where Abraham (his grandfather) put away what was probably his biggest mistake and sin 21:14

15. Abraham had called on the name of God in this very place 21:31

16. Probably where Abraham was when he heard that he was to take his son to offer him in sacrifice 22:1, 19

17. Isaac (his father) built an altar there 26:23-25

18. Jacob himself had just left Beersheba when he met with God in his life-changing experience 28:10-22

19. Beersheba marks an apparent turning point in the family and in their lives

20. Do you have a place where you wait especially on the Lord

21. Definitely when you are going to make a change in your life

22. You should not begin marriage or even business without definitely seeking for the Lord Psalm 127:1-2

23. Seek His guidance and help always but especially when you are starting something new

24. Stops to offer sacrifices and worship

25. Time with God is never a hindrance but rather a benefit

26. Many would lead you to think that the decision is easy to make and you do not need to confer with the Lord--Joseph and the wealth of Egypt is waiting on him

27. Reasons to stop at the altar possibly

28. Get their sin confessed and out of their lives

29. His family had all sorts of problems

30. 4 wives

31. Jealousies among the wives and the children

32. Wicked sins that had been committed by his sons

33. It is always wise to be ever watchful lest sin take us and our families--Job prayed for his children regularly

34. Let’s get sin out before it brings greater harm to our family and us

35. Let’s get rid of sin and prepare to serve the God of Heaven where ever we are going

36. The move was taking them to a possibly more dangerous place than they were accustomed to--Egypt

37. Possibly wants to stop and sacrifice--worship to give thanks

38. Joseph is alive and well

39. Benjamin was not lost

40. Simeon is returned to him

41. Do you magnify and thank God for all the good things that He is doing in your life

42. Possibly he feels like he needs direction in such a large endeavor

43. I worry about how quickly we make decisions about what we should do without seeking God

44. God wants you to be concerned about getting His direction and staying in His will for your life

45. He still directs the paths of His children!

46. Joshua got into major trouble because he did not ask God about the Gibeonites Joshua 9:14

47. How often are you too busy and too hurried to spend time seeking God--your life, your job, you have become more important than stopping the whole caravan to worship because you are on the way to what you want and great success

48. He is worshipping the God of his father

49. What kind of godly heritage are you leaving for your family?

50. Though you may be the first generation in your service for the Lord, you should begin leaving a heritage

51. What habits and customs are you developing in your family

52. Church attendance

53. Family prayer

54. Bible reading

55. Giving

56. Witnessing of your faith

57. Abraham had commanded his children after him 18:19

58. Do you have a spiritual life worth passing down to your children?

59. Realize that every move you makes affects a lot more people than just you

60. Your mistakes affect a lot more people than you think

61. Jacob has a family of 70 looking to his leadership 46:27

62. You are not an island--in other words, no one lives and dies to themselves alone Romans 14:7

63. You are an open letter known and read of all men II Corinthians 3:2

64. Achan’s sin caused the death of his entire family

65. Amazingly God writes the name of everyone in the family as this trip is being made 46:8-27

66. All of his family goes with him and so does your far more than you would like to admit 46:7

67. Believe and you will be saved and those of your household Acts 16:31

68. Old Testament kings show the same tendency, Ahab, Jezebel, and children

69. How is your life affecting the life, faith, and service of your family and friends?

70. Travel in the spirit and not in the flesh, Israel versus Jacob 46:2

71. It is Israel on the journey, 46:2, yet God speaks to him as Jacob, Jacob

72. Jacob was the name of his weakness

73. The name he was born with

74. He was the supplanter 25:26--born holding on to his brother’s heel

75. He stole his brother’s birthright 25:31-34

76. He stole his brother’s blessing 27:21

77. He was deceived and deceived his father in law to make himself rich 30:37

78. Israel is the title of his strength 32:28

79. The man who had wrestled with God and prevailed

80. The man who had God’s power and promises

81. The moment that he takes such a major step in his life he is afraid and lapses into his old weakness and weak nature

82. How often do we alternate between being Israel and Jacob?

83. We are and have many promises as the children of God

84. We are new creatures II Corinthians 5:17

85. We are dead to sin Romans 6, Galatians 2:20

86. Accepted in the Beloved Ephesians 1:6

87. Yet we fail to live up to who we are

88. We feel like miserable creatures Romans 7

89. We worry about everything Philippians 4:6

90. We let fear dominate our thoughts and lives II Timothy 1:7

91. We allow sin to dominate us Romans 6:1-2

92. We don't do things that we know God wants us to do

93. God works in us to cause us to live always as Israel--prince with God

94. We must believe the promises Hebrews 11:6

95. We must lift our shield of faith Ephesians 6:16

96. We must bring every thought into captivity to the truth II Corinthians 10:5

97. III.Travel with the promises of God 46:3-4

98. Fear is normal-you are not the only one

99. He is leaving what he knows to go to what he doesn’t know

100. He knows that his family has a history there that wasn’t so pleasant

101. It is a land of idols and spiritual wickedness

102. It is very different from any place he has ever lived

103. “Better the devil that you know than the one you don’t know”

104. His children have already caused him trouble, out on the plains among the common uneducated shepherds and nomads but now to the educated, rich, and powerful Egyptians?

105. There must have been a thousand “what ifs” in his mind

106. What if my sons are wrong

107. What if this is a trap--after all he lost Joseph and then Simeon didn't come back for a year

108. What if Joseph loses his position of power

109. What if we die on the way

110. Once we start worrying our fears mount and imaginations run wild

111. God does not want us to live in slavery to fears

112. Fear causes us to be unhappy

113. Fear has torment I John 4:18

114. We are to rejoice in the Lord Philippians 4:4

115. We are to delight ourselves in the Lord Psalm 37:4

116. Fear causes us to be weak

117. Fear is contagious Deuteronomy 20:8

118. Fear is fatal in battle Numbers 13:31-33, 14:1-3

119. Fear will cause us to want to rebel against God’s will for our lives Numbers 32:9

120. Fear is a lack of faith once we know God’s will

121. Our answer is

122. Shall such a man as I flee Nehemiah 6:11

123. If God be for us who can be against us Romans 8:31

124. Caleb says that if God is for us we are not to fear Numbers 14:8-9

125. His fear is overcome by the person and promises of God 46:2-4

126. God knows him personally and speaks his name--just the way he is--Jacob 46:2

127. He knows our name

128. He knows where we are and what we are going through

129. He knows what we are thinking

130. He knows what we need

131. Just remember he is talking to “Jacob” in his weakness

132. The God says--Here am I and I am God 46:2-3

133. If we can have fellowship with God and His protection what can happen to us

134. If we have the privilege of entering the Heavenly King’s presence what is a Pharaoh

135. He is the same God that took care of your father before you and so he can take care of you

136. He is the God of the promise or covenant to Abraham, Isaac, and now Jacob

137. He is God that never changes

138. Not only is He here but He promises to go down with Jacob 46:4

139. He promises to bless him there 46:3

140. He is going to make him a great nation

141. He is going to bring him back out

142. He is going to make sure that Jacob sees Joseph

143. He promises him to bring him back again to the land of promise 46:4

144. What appears losing his promise is really getting his promise

145. He is leaving the land that God has given to his family

146. His wealth has greatly diminished

147. God promises that he will make it all the way because Joseph will close his eyes

148. God promises that his family will become a great nation even in Egypt

149. The ways of God are not our ways

150. To be whole you must be broken

151. The way up is down

152. The way to live is to die

153. The way to get is to give

154. The way to lead is to serve

155. The way to be fruitful is to die

156. Instructions for modern-day travelers

157. Don't get so busy that you forget to seek God in worship to know His will for your life

158. Don’t get so excited about what you think the destination ought to be that you rush off ahead of God or in a different direction than God wants for your life

159. Take time to constantly maintain that relationship with the Lord

160. Remember that no matter how many times you mess up He knows you in your strength and in your weakness

161. Remember that the real key to your success and blessing is not you or the promises of someone --Joseph-- but of God in your life

162. Remember that He will never take you or do in your life what will not accomplish His purposes

163. Remember that your life influences dozens of people even if you don't think so

164. Remember that you cannot think and plan like the world or regular people because God does things backwards according to them

165. Know that even the greatest loss in your life will always end up being a win--If He takes you down to Egypt He will bring you back again

166. Learn to live your life based on promises, and not worries

167. Even death is not a loss for us