Joseph was asked really to pack up and leave. Literally, it's like asking you or me to leave our jobs and to leave our friends and the things that we're familiar with, the places where we, churches where we go to worship, family, loved ones, all these things, to leave them and literally go into a country like Iraq or Iran or Afghanistan, a place where really you're a target, a place really of great hostility and oppression of God's people, where you really are an infidel if you're a Christian, a place where they persecute Christians and Egypt has been a dark place for God's people. The Lord's people, of course, for many years were in bondage in Egypt and were oppressed by the Egyptians and by Pharaoh. And so this is the context. Joseph was asked to go into Egypt. They just had miraculously had the babe Lord Jesus. And they were asked had to go into a dangerous country for that. And yet we see here Joseph's obedience in listening. He doesn't complain, he doesn't murmur, but he believes in the Lord, and he departs, and he leaves. And we see here the Lord's guiding and providing, the Lord's divine guiding and providing, because a few verses before, in verses 11, the gifts presented by the wise men to the Lord Jesus Christ were not only presented to the Lord but they really they were provision from the Lord to Joseph and Mary because of course Joseph had to leave his job as a carpenter and carpenters in those days according were not well off at all, you more than likely had no extra cash, that's why they were in some lowly stable or inn, and so they weren't well off at all, but yet the Lord providentially provides for them, the gold, the frankincense and the myrrh, that would sustain them whilst in Egypt Of course it would be very hard for Joseph to get a job whilst in Egypt, with the great hostility they have towards God's people. And so these gifts would sustain them. The scripture doesn't furnish us, as far as I know, from the amount of time. There's a lot of speculation behind it. But scripture doesn't furnish us for how long they were in Egypt for. a few years, but it was for some time. But you see, I just want to bring home this principle that the Lord, when he asks us to do something by his word, if we will obey his voice and cry unto him, he will guide us and provide for us. He not only guides, he provides. And often the Lord God guides by degrees. And what I mean by degrees is a dedicated space of time, a specific space of time. Often God guides by degrees. Now, yes, the Lord can answer our prayers very quickly. He is a present, a very present help in danger and in trouble. And if you've been a Christian for any length of time, and you're praying for someone or someone's praying for you and there's something urgent that you bring before the Lord and one of those arrow prayers is very urgent, it's very quick and you cry unto the Lord and before you finish your prayer a doorbell goes or an email comes in or telephone call happens and miraculously before you even finish praying that the Lord amazingly answers your prayer. Now yes the Lord can answer prayers like that and guide in such a way but more often than not the Lord does guide us by degrees and so I just really want to bring home that principle in scripture and there is a purpose behind why the Lord guides by degrees. You know the world that we live in everything is based around convenience and you know people often make the and they can't wait for guidance. Everything has to be immediate in our inpatient culture that we live in, but not so with God. We are told to wait upon the Lord, to look to Him, to look to His Word. It is the living Word. God's Word speaks to our circumstances. All His prophecies came true. And so I just really want to bring home that principle in Scripture, that the Lord often answers our prayers and guides us by degrees, by spaces of time, and says, this is the way, walk ye in. This is the way. Believe in my Word, believe in what I have put down in my word in the bible and God will be faithful to his word. It says in God's word lean not on your own understanding but in all your ways acknowledge him and he shall direct your path. Don't look to yourself and You know, so often, and I've heard it so much in the last few months, that so many people are looking to the government or to the National Health Service or to so many other things, and so many people are ending up being so disappointed because, to begin with, the government are saying, well, you know yes we'll provide for you whatever it takes you know we'll we'll get you through this and now really the government are saying that we can't provide for everyone that that's going to be difficult times ahead you know and we can't the nhs can't save everyone and and so really i just want to uh encourage you to cry to the lord in your in in your difficulties that you may be going through and uncertainties, there is absolute certainty with the Lord. There's a purpose to why God does guide by degrees and that is because he wants us to depend upon him and to walk by faith and not just live like the rest of the world does in unbelief. wanting a sign or wanting some outward thing. He wants us to walk by faith, believing and trusting in his promises and in his word. And he tells Joseph, go into this place, into this hostile place, into Egypt, and I will bring you word again. He's already provided for him the means of income. He's already provided for him those things. And I can say, dear friends, the Lord will guide and provide you. And you just got to trust in his word.