Don't Just Sit There!

Genesis 42:1-2

When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why do you just keep looking at each other? 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.”

There is nothing more frustrating than being in a dilemma that is fixable but everyone is just standing around waiting on somebody else to do something about it. Oftentimes, we know that there is a solution but we don’t move to action.

I grew up in a family where you didn’t sit around when something needed to be done. It was all hands on deck when there was something that needed to be accomplished. You didn’t just sit around looking when there was a job to be done.

Jacob had 11 sons who were sitting around looking at each other during a famine. Ironically enough, their brother Joseph that they sold into slavery was in Egypt running the whole country. He had created a system that would ensure the survival of not just Egypt but surrounding countries. He saved up the grain from the seven years of plenty because God told him there would be seven years of famine to follow. His brothers back in Canaan didn’t even know if he was still alive much less responsible for creating a surplus to supplement the famine.

God will send people ahead of us to handle something that we don’t even know is being handled on our behalf. Many times we sit around stagnated because of some issue that God has already fixed. Their father Jacob had heard that there was grain in Egypt and he asked a good question of his sons, “Why do you keep looking at each other?” Why do we just sit around looking at each other when we are faced with a dilemma?

Intimidation. Maybe they were thinking about how far Egypt was or the fact that it was a foreign place with a different culture. Sometimes in order to overcome a famine we have to go to places we’ve never been before. We might have to move to another city, find work in another place, or associate with people we normally don’t associate with. We can’t afford to be intimidated.
Procrastination. They kept waiting for the inevitable. They hadn’t run out of food yet. We ought not wait around until there is nothing left before we decide to move. We should take a shortage as a signal that it’s time to move. Don’t wait until all the cheese is gone before you go get some more new cheese.
Trepidation- They had a fear of the Unknown. They didn’t know what was going to happen between here and there. Fear can be paralyzing. We have to walk by faith and not be paralyzed by fear.
Frustration. They kept waiting on somebody else to step up. Sometimes, when you have a lot of people around you, it’s easy to keep expecting somebody else to step up and do something. Sometimes when you want something done, you have to do it yourself.
Jacob’s solution: Go down to Egypt and buy some grain so that we may live and not die. What do you need to do today so that you and your family may live and not die?

Dear God,

Please remove the fear of the unknown so that I can go get what I need for my family to live and not die. Please make my journey successful and give me grain for my family and protection during my journey.

In Jesus Name,

Amen