Dream or Nightmare?

Intro

The comeback.

Looking at one of the greatest comeback stories of all time, Joseph.

Favorite child, hated by his brothers, beaten and sold into slavery,

Slavery to Potiphar, get elevated, Potiphar’s wife lies and he is thrown into prison.

Any one of the things that Joseph went through, I think we would all be understanding if he gave up… Yet he didn’t

He kept persevering. Keep moving forward.

We understand a setback, How do we come back? Rise up? Overcome?

Imagine this.

A small island discovers an ancient tablet.

The secret to life:

Where hats. so for generations the made hats. wore them. bigger and more extreme.

then someone find out the tablet had been translated and interpreted wrong.

it didn’t say anything about hat.

It was a recipe for stew....

Generations of people would have lived based off a wrong understanding.

THE OUTCOME IS DETERMINED BY THE INTERPRETATION.

Joseph is one who understood this reality.

He had dreams in his heart, and somehow he had discovered a way to live the dream even when it feels like a nightmare.

Because he knew how to interpret the dream no matter what the day looked like.

We say living the dream, but we usually just means anything but.

We find Joseph locked away in prison.

Knocked down but still not taken out.

Genesis 40:1-4

“Some time later, Pharaoh’s chief cup-bearer and chief baker offended their royal master. Pharaoh became angry with these two officials, and he put them in the prison where Joseph was, in the palace of the captain of the guard. They remained in prison for quite some time, and the captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, who looked after them.”

Joseph is now in a leadership position, in prison!

Genesis 40:5-6

“While they were in prison, Pharaoh’s cup-bearer and baker each had a dream one night, and each dream had its own meaning. When Joseph saw them the next morning, he noticed that they both looked upset.”

Joseph sees them, cares and has compassion.

He noticed they were upset.

One of the greatest indicators to how you interpret life, is how you view others.

Joseph didn’t just see them as a task or part of his imprisonment…But as people.

Genesis 40:7-8

““Why do you look so worried today?” he asked them. And they replied, “We both had dreams last night, but no one can tell us what they mean.” “Interpreting dreams is God’s business,” Joseph replied. “Go ahead and tell me your dreams.””

tell me what you saw. I’ll tell you what God says.

I know the source of interpretation.

Interpretation is something that makes sense of the senseless..

Clarity to what is confusing.

A language out of sounds..

We need an interpretation.

Clarity, Make sense of it all.

Joseph says interpretation belongs to God.

Through everything he had been through, Joseph hasn’t lost his understanding of where to make sense of it all.

Cupbearer tells his dream about branches and grapes. - Joseph told him, it means you will be restored back to your position.

Genesis 40:14

“And please remember me and do me a favor when things go well for you. Mention me to Pharaoh, so he might let me out of this place.”

Baker tells his dream now about baskets of bread. his interpretation isn’t so good.

Pharoah will life up your head… and then cut it off.

Joseph knew the source to make sense out of the senseless.

Genesis 40:20-23

Pharaoh’s birthday came three days later, and he prepared a banquet for all his officials and staff. He summoned his chief cup-bearer and chief baker to join the other officials. He then restored the chief cup-bearer to his former position, so he could again hand Pharaoh his cup. But Pharaoh impaled the chief baker, just as Joseph had predicted when he interpreted his dream. Pharaoh’s chief cup-bearer, however, forgot all about Joseph, never giving him another thought.”

Forgotten, again.

But he hasn’t given up.

He understands that t’s God who makes sense of it all. Who brings clarity into confusion.

Clarity breeds perseverance.

Romans 5:3-5

“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”

It doesn’t make suffering easy, but theres clarity.

I know...

When I know, I don’t give up.

A new way to understand life is the key to the strength to keep on.

Genesis 41:1

“Two full years later, Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing on the bank of the Nile River.”

Crazy dreams about fat cows and skinny cows eating the fat cows, and 7 heads of wheat and then 7 skinny ugly heads of wheat swallow up the good ones...

Tried an no one could interpret the dream.

Genesis 41:9

“Finally, the king’s chief cup-bearer spoke up. “Today I have been reminded of my failure,” he told Pharaoh.”

Genesis 41:15-16

“Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I had a dream last night, and no one here can tell me what it means. But I have heard that when you hear about a dream you can interpret it.” “It is beyond my power to do this,” Joseph replied. “But God can tell you what it means and set you at ease.””

It’s beyond my power to make sense of this… But God.

He knew it wasn’t by his power, (power of gray-skull) it was only God. Leaning on heaven.

He interpreted that there will be 7 years of plenty and 7 years of famine and told them what to do to survive.

Pharoah promotes Joseph straight from he Prison to the Palace. Second in command of all Egypt!

We need to make sure that we are getting the right interpretation in life.

We need the power to interpret. That comes from the holy spirit.

He guides into all things. teaches all things.

I think of A Christmas story and the decoder ring.

A code doesn’t make any sense without a key.

A key tells how to understand the code.

language - find things in common

code - find what is substituted.

What letter is what.

making sense.

Life can feel like that code.

And they key you use to interpret it with determine everything.

Joseph determined that interpretation belonged to God.

So it changed the outcome and the experience of everything he did.

The key God gives us to filter and understand life through is called faith.

It is the decoder ring.

When we interpret through the word of God, through listening to the holy spirit, through walking in step with God we are able to see more of the message in the mess of life, See some Sense in the senseless.

I don’t filter Politics through left or right but God.

I don’t filter interpret someone by just what happened by through God and with his help.

Josephs source of interpretation changed how the outcome and experience of everything.

BUT. There is another interpreter out there wanting you to use his key to interpret life.

The enemy of our soul slips his decoder in, most of the time without us realizing.

His decoder doesn’t use faith as the key, but fear.

WHO IS YOUR INTERPRETER?

Faith or fear?

Faith sees hope, fear interprets doubt and speculation.

Faith finds peace, fear interprets panic.

Fear domineers, Faith serves.

Fear sees the worst, Faith sees God at work.

Fear sees comparison (their dreams are coming true, look at them…), Faith finds contentment.

Fear feels disillusioned, faith gives confidence

Fear brings discouragement, Faith give courage.

Fear speculates, rumors and talks about, faith builds up and encourages.

Fear breeds pride, faith produces humility.

Fear sees the lack, faith focuses on the abundance.

I THINK WE CAN SEE THE DIFFERENCE

The interpretation matters.

All of the soothsayers and magicians had no clue what the dream was about, It was senseless.

Joseph said “I cant do it either, but God can”

Interpretation belongs to hHm.

2 Timothy 1:7

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.”

Romans 8:5

“Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit.”

Psalm 56:3

“But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you.”

Has satan subtly became your interpreter?

God is who makes sense out of the senseless.

Joseph knew this and had clarity, confidence and perseverance no matter what.

4 Prayers to God:

God interpret my Dreams and Desires

Are my hopes, dreams, desires and strivings of life what God wants?

is your life pointed in His directions.

God show me. align my desires with yours.

What are my motives?

Psalm 37:4

“Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires.”

God interpret my Pain and Trials

the rejection hurt.

That loss was devastating.

that result was debilitation.

God help me interpret my pain as purpose not as the end.

God that rejection was your protections.

You sold me, god sent me.

Holy Spirit help me.

God interpret my Thoughts

My thoughts are always real but not always right.

2 Corinthians 10:5

“We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.”

I have runaway thoughts that don’t line up with what God says and who he is. My interpret to my situation has changed.

Philippians 4:8

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”

God interpret my Emotions

We all feel, often we don’t even know what we feel or why we feel what we feel.

yet we allow those feelings to dictate most of our lives.

do you live just reacting to however you feel at the moment?

Stop and seek God.

God interpret my emotions.

Has fear dictated how you feel?

Can you imagine the emotions of Joseph???

CONCLUSION

Today we need confidence like Joseph on who the interpretation belongs to.

It changes the outcome and experience of everything.

The world around us tries to interpret for us, but it can’t.

Interpretation belongs to God.

Sense to the senseless.

We we understand this for our lives, we will also be in a position to help others interpret their lives as well.

Genesis 41:41-42

“Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the entire land of Egypt.” Then Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his hand and placed it on Joseph’s finger. He dressed him in fine linen clothing and hung a gold chain around his neck.”

Joseph got a new coat.

Given by Pharoah, but prepared by God.

Because clarity in his calling, dreams, desires, gave him the confident to persevere until God promoted.

Don’t give up, get clarity.

God help me interpret!

Holy Spirit I look to you.