Elevation with Steven Furtick - The Power of Interpretation

Episode Date: August 22, 2025

Your situation is not as important as your interpretation of it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. I'm the pastor of Elevation Church, and this is our podcast. I wanted to thank you for joining us today. Hope this inspires you. Hope it builds your faith. Hope it gives you perspective to see God is moving in your life.

Enjoy the message. Let's go in our Bibles now to Genesis chapter 40 for the final week of our series Trigger. At least I think it's the final week, but we'll preach it and see what happens. I have been preaching about taking back your mind in the age of anxiety, but looking at you, you seem to be completely now free of stress. And it seems as if you have gotten the message and we can call it quits after today. But this last message that I want to bring to you, I hope will be as profound to you hearing it as it was to me as I studied for it and ask that you consider it prayerfully because it's one of those messages where if you try to understand it with your mind, you won't get the most out of it. But if you'll listen at a different level and see what God wants to speak to you today, I believe that he will. Welcome to every single location.

I pray that you would lean into this word wherever you are and receive something from the Lord. Genesis chapter 40, verse 5. Let's jump right into the middle of it. And one night they both dreamed the cup bearer and the baker and the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison, each his own dream and each dream with its own interpretation. When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they were trouble. So he asked Pharaoh's officers who were with him in custody in his master's house, why are your faces downcast today? And they said to him, we have had dreams and there is no one to interpret them.

And Joseph said to them, do not interpretations belong to God. That was the question that got me started on this quest to preach this message today. They do not interpretations belong to God. Please tell them to me. Now I'm going to do something kind of weird. I'm going to go to a New Testament scripture, one verse of scripture, that doesn't seem to go together on the surface with the one I just read, but it does. It seems like peanut butter and mayonnaise, but it's really jelly. So go to 1st Corinthians 14.3.

And here Paul is giving some instructions to the Corinthian Church about orderly one. worship. And he says, therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray for the power to interpret. Again, therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray for the power to interpret. I want to lift that phrase from my message title today and talk to you about the power of interpretation. Very, very, very good stuff coming your way today from the Word of God, not from me, but from God. And that's really the starting point for me. I realize that you come to church not to hear my opinion, but to hear a correct interpretation of the Word of God for your life and an application so that it is not only a historical document, but so that it becomes flesh and so that the Spirit of God would breathe into your situation. Now, understanding this, I've already mentioned that many backgrounds attend church.

And when I read 1 Corinthians 14 verse 13 and Paul is talking about speaking in tongues, you know, half the church had flashbacks. And if you really want to start a good YouTube food fight, just talk about tongues in the church because some people have a private prayer language where they speak in tongues and it is very beautiful and helpful to many of us who believe. in Jesus to pray that way, but yet other people have been told, well, if you don't speak in tongues, you're not full of the Holy Spirit. Never mind the fact that Paul here is saying that every spiritual gift is only given to

build others up, not to showcase your status and how much more spiritual you are. I mean, spiritual gifts are just that. They are gifts. And what's far more important to God than us going around condescending to others because of our spiritual gift is that we would cultivate the fruit of the spirit in our lives. Things like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are the graces God would have us to grow in. But right now, if I really preached on 1st Corinthians 1413, the Elevation Church YouTube comment section would get

busier than it ever has in the history. I don't know how you type in tongues on a YouTube comment, but Paul is saying here, what really matters isn't what is said as much as, the interpretation of it because you know what's true here about this spiritual gift of speaking in tongues where one person may speak in a heavenly language and someone needs to interpret it so that it can be understood it is not only true about languages it is true about life to really live successfully or maybe we could say a more biblical word faithfully for God, I need the correct interpretation. Touch somebody next to you and say, I need an interpretation.

Yeah, I need an interpretation to be a good husband because men and women are different. And if I don't learn to interpret, if I don't learn to understand that nothing is wrong does not mean literally on the surface, nothing is wrong. And by the way, most people, when they say literally, it doesn't mean literally. I literally died. I think you mean figuratively. Touch somebody say, I need an interpretation. I need an interpretation to be able to raise my kids, you know, because I'll be thinking they're ungrateful when really they're just adolescent.

And if you want to play back the tape from when I was their age, well, let's don't do that. Touch somebody say, I need an interpretation. That's what Paul is talking about, and really no one's life illustrates this more than the Old Testament character, Joseph. I mentioned him, and I read this scripture that I want to revisit now in Genesis chapter 40, concerning the power of interpretation. You know, Joseph's life could be used to illustrate injustice. He was abused and actually survived. a near assassination from his brothers.

And years later in his life, he was dealing with false allegations of sexual misconduct. And that landed him in prison, which is what put him in this position in Genesis chapter 40, the situation he was in. Okay, principle number one, and this is not coming up on the screen, so, you know, write it down if it seems like it's worth writing down to you. If you just got to write something down, write this down. My situation is not as important as my interpretation of my situation. I don't mean to sound like Dr. Seuss to you, but what I'm trying to say is a lot of times we want an intervention from God in our situation. Instead of that, God will often give us a different interpretation of the situation, and he won't necessarily change it.

He will change us in the way we see our situation. And one of the reasons we fight in church is because we don't respect that other believers could read the same scripture that we read and have a different interpretation. And other people could watch the same news stories that we watch and have a different interpretation. Because interpretation is based on many different things and filtered through the lens of your life experiences and your cultural background and even your intellectual ability. And some of us don't have as much to work with.

And so, you know, we see things more simple than they really are and they're really complex. And, you know, somebody says this about evolution and somebody says this about creation. But we're reading the same story with a different interpretation. And it doesn't necessarily mean that you're wrong and I'm right and you're going to hell and I'm going to heaven. And we get so triggered going off on people who believe in the same God. But just because I have a different interpretation doesn't give you the right to be God and tell me that my interpretation is, not valid. Come on clap like that blessed you, even though I know it stepped on your toes a little bit. All right. So Joseph is in prison, and he should be in a bad move. He should be having

pity party, day number 743 of his pity party, since Potipher's wife said, you know, that he tried to rape her, and he should be reflecting on all of his brothers trying to kill him. And yet he He had the presence of mine, like Reggie Miller in the 30 for 30 dot, where he says to these men who are in prison with him, what's wrong? You look sad. Now imagine you've had his life, but you still are looking at others through the lens of what's wrong with them. And imagine you have so much resentment and you're in prison, but yet you were able to still release empathy instead of living in your own. resentment. Y'all, I am preaching so hard right now and I don't even have to raise my voice to do it. He said, what's the matter with you? You may. And they said to him, we've had dreams and there's

no one to interpret them. Joseph said, do not interpretations belong to God? Now, notice what he didn't say, I have the power of grace skull. I have the power of interpretation. He said, God can make sense of this. I believe deep down in your soul, that's why you came to church, because only God can make sense of some of the things that I feel and that I'm going through. And I need God to make sense of this. So Joseph said, look how polite he is. Please tell them to me. Please, I want to help you. And the chief cupbearer who used to bring Pharaoh his wine said, well, it's weird, man. I'm going to just tell you like I dreamed it because in the Old Testament, you know, they put a lot more stock in their dreams than we do today.

And I don't think that you should necessarily think every dream that you have comes from God either, okay? It's pizza a lot of the times. It has nothing to do with the Lord or your purpose in life. But when the man started talking, he said, it was a vine that I saw in my dream. And then there were like three branches coming off the vine. And then the branches, they were like ripe right away. And all three of them were filled with grapes.

So I started squeezing the grapes, and I was holding Pharaoh's cup, and I handed it back to him. What does that mean? Joseph's like three branches, three days. In three days, we could preach about that, couldn't we, from the perspective of something else that happened after three days. But we're not going to do that today. He said, three days, Pharaoh's going to lift your head, put you back in your rightful position. This is the interpretation. Now, remember, there were two men, and they both had dreams, and the other one standing over,

and he hears the interpretation that Joseph gave to the cup bearer, but he's the Pharaoh's chief baker. And apparently, Pharaoh is easily triggered because he threw both of them in prison, but we don't know what for. He maybe brought him pumpernickel, and he really wanted rye or something like that, or the yest rolls weren't hot. And so when he brings it out, the bread, maybe Pharaoh flies off the handle. And Joseph's life can be understood through many different constructs. But one way to look at it is there are three major interpretations. This is the first one. He tells the cup bearer, three days, Pharaoh's going to put you back in your position.

The baker hears this while Joseph is saying, and when you get out of here, mention me to Pharaoh. Because I don't deserve to be here. So don't forget your boy who came. who came through when you get out. And the baker, now he's waiting his turn in line because he wants out of Shawshank as well. And so he says, ooh, ooh, do mine. Do my dream. I had a dream too. Can you do my dream? And Joseph says, tell me your dream. Do not interpretations belong to God? And so he's expecting a favorable interpretation. and he has a similar dream that's different in just a small, tiny little way.

He says, okay, I had three, not three branches on a vine, because I don't do the cup air thing, I had three baskets of bread, and they were all full of bread, and then some birds came in my dream. I know it sounds weird, but they started eating the bread off my head, and Joseph said, oh, no. And he said, oh, no, he said, yeah, it means this is the interpretation. This is what it means. three days, Pharaoh's going to lift up your head, and cut it off, and then the birds are going to eat your flesh.

And then Joseph took up an offering. But see, he didn't have the power to make the dream mean what he wanted it to mean. What he had to do was seek God to say, what does this mean? And one meaning was, you're going to be restored to your position. That's the stuff that preach is good. And one meaning is, you're actually going to be dead three days from now. But it was the same power that enabled him to interpret both dreams. And it happened just like Joseph predicted.

The interpretation was accurate. Three days later, the baker was dead and the cupbearer was free. Only he forgot about Joseph. Have you ever done something for somebody? Have you ever helped somebody move when they moved out of their apartment into their house? And when it came time for you to move, their truck was having some issues. Has it ever happened to you? Have you ever raised your kids and then they got out of the house and acted like they were too busy for you and the cats in the cradle?

Well, you can relate to Joseph because he was forgotten in prison until one day, Pharaoh, this is the second interpretation. And there are three. This one gets more difficult. It kind of goes in stages of interpretation, where Pharaoh has a dream, and he gathers all of the magicians in his court to interpret his dream. Watch what the Bible says. I believe this, Genesis 41, yeah, verse 15. Pharaoh said to Joseph, I have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream, you can interpret it. Now, how did Joseph get in front of Pharaoh? I thought he was in prison. Well, here's what happened.

When Pharaoh had a problem, Joseph had an opportunity. I must say that again. When Pharaoh came upon something that he could not solve with his resources, it created an opportunity for someone who knew how to interpret the times, the situation, and to bring forth the solution. Here's why I pointed that out. Because sometimes we run from stuff that God has introduced in order to bring us into the opportunity that we were praying for. When Pharaoh had a dream, it was a strange dream.

And he brought Joseph and said, man, I heard about you. And Joseph said, it's about time. That dude was supposed to tell you about me two years ago. But see, sometimes God will allow people to forget about you because he knows where you need to be for the moment you need to come forth. And if you don't have a relationship with God, you won't know what to do with yourself in those times where you feel imprisoned and confined. All right, so he said, I heard about you. There's no one who can interpret my dream, but I have heard it said of you that you are. you are really, really brilliant at this dream interpretation stuff.

So give it a shot. And Joseph answered Pharaoh, it's not in me. What a way to start. Your opportunity. Go for a job interview talking about I'm not the one. But he said something similar to what he said in verse 40, and you start to see a pattern. He said, it's not in me. God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.

So let's hear it because the power of interpretation is not. in me. I'll get it wrong. I've learned that about myself. I'll get it wrong every time. Even preaching, I will mess the whole thing up if I preach from the perspective of how I interpret that you are receiving the message. I'll start getting nervous because really when you're listening the most, you look angry. I'm going to tell you that about yourself. When I'm really doing good, your eyebrows start making a cue up there and you start to you start. You start hunching forward and even when I'm really preaching good you cross your arms because I just offended something that you've been clinging to that God really wanted to pry out of your heart So when you start leaning back and stuff

Doing all this one woman one time looked like she was sleeping in my sermon. I realized she was praying for me It took me 20 minutes in the sermon. I was so offended and I've learned this about myself. I will interpret it wrong every time because the power of interpretation is to get into the presence of God and I was so offended and I've learned this about myself. I will interpret it wrong every time because the power of interpretation is to get into the presence of God and Watch this and say, God, what are you saying? What are you doing? What do you want to speak? And Joseph, from that place of humility, here is Pharaoh's dream. And Pharaoh starts talking about cows.

He's like, oh, there were seven fat cows and seven skinny cows. I don't know why Pharaoh's talking like this. It must be southern Egypt. He's like, the fat cows. First came to fat cows, then came to skinny cows, and skinny cows ate the fat cows, and there were fat stalks and skinny stalks. It's a great story you can read sometime. But Joseph said, oh, that's easy.

Seven years of plenty, that's the fat cows, seven years of famine, that's skinny cows. And if you save up during the fat years, you can make it in the lean years. And Pharaoh said, I need somebody smart to put in charge of saving up during the fat years. I need somebody to manage my fat cows. And Joseph said, well, hey, if you need somebody to manage your fat cows, maybe the guy who told you about the fat cows would be the one to manage the fat cows. And Pharaoh said, you're the man, and he's second in command of all of Egypt. Because of what? The power of.

And if he would have given his opinion in that moment, or if he would have interpreted that opportunity through the lens of his own pain, he would not have had the clarity to see God and see what God is doing. The second interpretation, and here's the third one. There's a pattern here. There is three branches on the vine. It's three interpretations in Joseph's life. And this one, this last one that I want to show you, is going to be the most difficult of all. Because now Joseph has to interpret, not the prisoner's dream, the cup baker.

Cup baker is a new thing. It's cup baker. It bakes cups. The cup bearer and the baker. But the second interpretation of Pharaoh's dream was easy in comparison. to Joseph's final test when he had to interpret his own dream. And to do that, he had to face his own pain, because remember I told you when he was 17 years old, he had a dream, where he saw all these sheaves of grain that his brothers were out in the field harvesting,

and his was at the middle, and they all bowed down to him. And perhaps in his immature eagerness to be important, he went and told his brothers what he saw. And that's one of the reasons they hated him. I mean, there were many reasons. His father liked him better because he came from the wife, Rachel, that Jacob really loved. And his dad gave him this Gucci coat. And so many reasons why he was hated.

And there's her from Target. But it's crazy because now he's standing in front of him. I'm going to read you the passage, and you imagine how emotional this would have been because the famine that Joseph predicted is now in full swing. It's been seven years of plenty. Joseph has stored up all the supplies, and so they're ready for it. But he wasn't ready for this, because two years into the famine, seven years of plenty and two years into the seven year famine, Jacob sends all of his boys, Joseph's brothers, to Egypt because he heard there was grain there. And Joseph is the one who's in control of the pantry.

Now, sometimes God will test you by putting you in a position to see how you will deal with somebody who hurt you. And how you interpret that moment has everything to do with what happens next. and how much God can trust you. And I'm going to read it to you, just like it says it in verse one, start from verse one of Genesis 45. He's been with his brothers. This is the second time that he's seen them. He's been dealing with a wide array, I'm sure, of different instincts and impulses of how he should deal with them. He hasn't let them know yet who he is because he's dressed like an Egyptian.

and so they don't recognize him. Some people in your life don't recognize the you that you are now. Not only because of what you've been through in life, but because God has taken you to a different place. And what he did, this is very interesting. In Genesis 42, it says he spoke to them through an interpreter. So he pretended like he couldn't understand them. And he played tricks on him.

It's an epic story. We can't preach it today because this is one principle I'm trying to illustrate. But it would be well worth your time to invest about 45 minutes and read the whole thing. But when he finally decided to reveal himself to his brothers, it triggered that trauma of the day when he was so hated by them that they dipped his robe in animal blood and sold him to the Ishma like caravan. And he ended up separated from everything that he knew. And in the Bible says in verse one, Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by him. And so he cried, make everyone go out from me, so no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. He's all alone, in front of the thing that hurt him, in front of the unfair situation that started this whole chain of events in his life.

And now he has to decide how to interpret this encounter. I'm preaching right to your life today because you're standing in front of something that hurt. you. You're standing in front of some things that happened to you or didn't happen for you that should have. And standing before his brothers, Joseph has a decision to make. What is the interpretation of this? And now, perhaps he remembers his dream that he had over 20 years ago where he saw all of his brothers bowing down to him, but he realized they would not be bowing down to him so that he could show off in front of them, but so that he could serve them in this moment.

It's very powerful. It's very powerful what happens next. He's crying and he's hurting. And finally he reveals himself in verse three. Joseph said to his brothers, I am Joseph. Is my father still alive? But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence. And so Joseph said to his brothers.

Come near to me, please. Because you really can't interpret what God is doing in your life from a distance. And he has to call the thing that has caused him so much pain closer in order to see what God would have him to do. And when they come closer, he identifies himself again and said, I am your brother Joseph. He doesn't disassociate himself from them. He acknowledges his position before them.

And then he mentions what they did to him. whom you sold into Egypt. In other words, it's your fault I'm here. Verse 5. And now, do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here. For God sent me before you to preserve life. I'm going to be honest with you.

I really had to pray about that verse because it seemed like such a contradiction. He said, on one hand, And please put it on the screen for just another moment. You sold me. Do you see that? You sold me. So he is placing the blame for his situation on his brothers who stand before him.

He's not denying their hand in bringing him into this situation, nor is he denying the dysfunction of it. You sold me. And it was wrong. You sold me out. You let me down. You are the reason on one hand that you sold me. I'm here. I would not be in Egypt. I would be back home if it were not for you. But watch the shift.

This is the message that God gave me for somebody today, and I pray that you'll have ears to hear it, and that God will enlighten your spirit to receive it. He said, you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. And what I was praying about is which one is it? Did they sell you? Or did God send you? And I kept praying about that because it sounds like he's talking out of both sides of his mouth. You sold me for God sent me. Notice the construct. He doesn't say you sold me but God sent me.

It's not even that he's contrasting the two. The second is a continuation of the first. God help me preach this Bible verse right now. This is the most anointed verse I've read all year. He said, you sold me and it hurt me. You sold me for God sent me. Don't be mad about it. Don't even punish yourself.

And don't cower in my presence. You don't need to spend another day tormented by it because now I see through it. It's been a lot of years since you pushed me in that pit. It's been a lot of years since you broke my heart. It's been a lot of years since my dad left me. It's been a lot of years since they walked out. It's been a lot of years since I went down. It's been a lot of years since they lied on me.

It's been a lot of years since they said I did it. It's been a lot of years. And now I've got an interpretation of the event. I've been studying about this, and I realize it is not the event that determines the outcome. It is your interpretation of the event that determines the outcome. And so, watch this. Y'all be good. Sit down.

The first one is the event. You sold me. The second one is the interpretation. God sent me. Which one are you going to live in? The event or the interpretation. Here's a better question. Here's a better question.

Who is your interpreter? Are you interpreting your God through your life or your life through your God. Because see, your interpreter, sometimes it's not what's happening. It's how you are interpreting what's happening, right? I thought she was sleeping, but she was really praying. I thought they didn't love me, but really they just couldn't be there for me because they were going through some of their own issues.

It's not the event, it's the interpretation. I thought the fire came to kill me, but I found out God was using the fire that I thought was going to kill me to refine me. So God will use a fire that Nebuchadnezzar started to refine me and bring me forth this goal. I don't just need the spirit of God to help me interpret tongues. I need God to help me interpret trauma and trouble and trials. And so I'm praying like Paul told the church to pray for the power to interpret. I need the power. to interpret. How many of you need the power to interpret by the wisdom of the Spirit of God? Listen, you don't need the Spirit of God to give you goosebumps. A lot of things can give you goosebumps. You know, if you put on Mariah Carey, I can make it through the rain right now. It's one of her lesser known hits.

It's off the album with the rainbow on it where she's not wearing enough clothes, so I never looked at the cover when I was a teenager. Well, anyway, the problem with it can give you a feeling. I don't need it. I need the Spirit of God just to give me a feeling. If it's a feeling great, but I need the Spirit of God to give me focus. The unique property of the Spirit of God, you know, you got the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Father, that's the legislative branch of the government of God. He's the one who makes the laws.

You've got the son who is the executive branch of the government of heaven. who enforces the grace of God and takes the penalty of your sin because you can't keep the law. And then you've got the judicial branch, which is the Holy Spirit, which lives inside of you, that helps you to get in a situation and say, I don't know what to do, I don't know what to say. But God, will you give me an interpretation of what the people in my life need right now, this season I'm in right now? I need the Holy Spirit. Or I'll get it wrong.

I'll get it wrong. And some of us have the wrong interpreter. We are interpreting our present through our past. We are interpreting our purpose through our pain. We are interpreting our entire life through one little situation. We are interpreting our future through our flaws. When you have the wrong interpreter, it messes everything up. The first time I went to speak in a country where they didn't speak English, the first international

speaking trip that I remember was Australia, that they speak kind of English. I have to pick on the Aussies. They shorten everything. They kind of speak English, but they nickname everything. They call praise songs praises, and that's weird. And when I go over there, they don't call me Stephen, they call me Steve. And there's an in on my name for a reason. My mom put it there.

Would you please let my consonants come through customs and put the end on the end of my name? I love Australia. I've been there many times. One time I went to preach in a place where they didn't speak English, and I called a wiser minister who had preached many times in international settings and said, give me some just different things I need to know about preaching through an interpreter. Translator is for written, interpreter is for spoken. I said, I need some of your wisdom on speaking through an interpreter.

He gave me a few things, but one thing he said that stood out, he said, first pray that you get a good one. He said, because you'll think that he's saying what you said. And sometimes you can tell. I said, how will I tell if I have a bad interpreter? He said, one thing, he'll talk longer than you when you finish your sentence. He'll say three sentences. That means he's putting something in that you didn't intend to say.

Can I tell you something? The devil has been putting some stuff in. Come on. Between what God has spoken to you, he puts thoughts in people's minds about you in your mind that they weren't even thinking about you? Makes you paranoid? Oh man, look how they're looking at me. They don't like me.

No. They actually don't like their husband. And they came to work in a bad mood because of something else that had nothing to do with you. But the devil will make you think that they don't like you because he's an interpreter that likes to add. He puts all the... Have you ever had this happen before in a situation where you start interpreting it wrong?

And now all of a sudden you're thinking that they said things or thought things that they didn't say or think. He said the other extreme you've got to look out for, sometimes they won't say everything that you just said, they'll cut it short. He said, sometimes they'll leave stuff out. And that's what the enemy will do when you let him interpret your life. He'll only show you what's wrong with you. But he won't let you see how God is going to use everything that you consider to be a deficiency

to bring you into your destiny. So he will only keep you confined. Come on, church. That golf clap, that's not even worth doing. If you're going to praise God, worship God for what he's spoken over your life and the fact that no man can add to it or subtract from it if he said it'll happen if he said in three days he will rise I might be on a cross now baby but resurrection power is in my future so before we leave this place today I just want

to give you five things to pray for don't get nervous we're we are now approaching our initial dissent. Make sure your Bibles are securely open. But I thought we would just spell out the word dream because Joseph interpreted not only the dream of the prisoners, not only the dream of Pharaoh, but his own dream that he had at 17 years old, not through the lens of what he had lost in his life. You know how you keep doing it? You keep focusing so much on who left you and the opportunity that you wasted, that you keep bringing you to you that forward with you into the next opportunity. And it's messing with you. And you need the Holy Spirit. This is what the Holy Spirit does. Speak in tongues. That's awesome. Shout at the top of your lungs. That's

awesome. Get a goosebumps. I'll get one with you. We'll rub our goosebumps together. It's all wonderful. But what I really need the Spirit of God for is for those groans that words can express. And I'll give them to you and we'll go and we'll call it a day and we'll call it a series. But the first one that I'm praying for the power to interpret, like Paul said, because I know that interpretations belong to God. So I need God. God help me to interpret my desires. I don't sometimes know why I want what I want. And neither did Paul. He was like, what I want to do, I don't do, what I don't want to do, I don't do, that doesn't make any sense.

If you want to do it, you want to do it. What do you mean you want to do it if you don't do it? It's like, well, there's flesh, there's the spirit. I got a new nature. I love God. and then four minutes later, I really still love God, but I love something that's the opposite of God too, and I don't know what to do. And I need the Holy Spirit to show me why I want what I want.

Because if the Holy Spirit doesn't interpret my desires, I will run around my whole life trying to get what I want, and then when I get it, I won't even want what I've got. God, help me interpret my desires. Because sometimes what will happen is, it's not like one desire is divine and one is demonic and, you know, there's no devil and no angel. Sometimes what the enemy will do to me is he'll take a God-given desire and distort it. And what I really want is not a bad thing. It's not a bad desire.

I notice a lot of people these days seem to want to be famous. Famous for what? famous so I could be famous. Have you noticed that fame is like the number one cultural value now? And I was thinking about that as to why everybody wants to be famous. I mean, you think about it, famous is kind of a weird thing. People aren't really built to receive that amount of attention. And when you see the number of famous people who are famous and don't even want to go on living,

it should cause you to question, what is the real thing that I want? Is it really fame? Is it really followers on some platform full of people who don't even know me, but only the presentation and projection that I choose to stage the props that I put in my life? Is that really what I want? Do I really want to be noticed or do I really want to be known? Because I think a lot of times we're trying to be noticed and the real desire is we want to be known. And the spirit of God can show you your real desire to say, I know that you're doing all this to try to get people to notice you. But I'm the only one who really knows you. And see, when people know you from a distance and they notice things about you, but they don't know the real you and you still feel lonely, it's so important that you ask the Spirit of God things like this. What am I really spending 14, 16 hours a day working for? Is it really to give my kids the life that they...

Is it really that? Are you really trying to prove something to somebody who's not even paying attention? Like early in Joseph's life, he's like, you were all bowing down to me. It was awesome. 20 years later, he's the one crumbling on his knees because he realizes that the desire God gave him was not so he could be important, but so that he could have influence. Not so he could have status, but so that he could be a servant. So, God, show me my desires. Show me which ones come from you.

And help me. I used to always pray Psalm 37 for it says, Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. And an immature interpretation of that is God's going to give me what I want. You know, God's just peeling them off. You know, what you want, what you want? What you want? Now I look at it like, He will give me the right desires.

He will give me, impart unto me, the right desires. So I don't just come up wanting to impress people, but I start asking God, how can I be a blessing? Because I cannot simultaneously be a blessing if I'm trying to be impressive. So I want to get out of my own way and ask God to interpret my desires. God, I want you. I want your presence in my life. God, I want your pleasure, your smile. God, I want harmony and peace with you, even if it costs me sometimes position with people.

God, I don't want to just be popular. I want to live a life of purpose. I want to know that this matters and means something at the end of it all. So I need the power of interpretation for my desires. And see, you can't really have that if you don't get past rejection. So the second thing is, God, will you help me interpret my rejection? Will you help me look at my brothers, not just through the lens of what they did to me, but through the lens of what you want to do through me? I did not expect an amen right there, but I didn't expect that level of silence.

I'll tell you that right now. That was, that was just over the top. Praise the Lord. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. All of them.

Yeah, because he says two things. He says, you rejected me, but God protected me. You see it? You know, see it again on the screen? Do you? I can show it to you on the screen. That push a button, it'll come right up on the screen. Genesis 45-5.

You sold me? God sent me to preserve life. So when I was 17, it felt like rejection. But now that I've grown, and now that I've experienced the grace of God, and now that I've let go of the resentment and I refuse to hold on to it, I see that what man calls rejection, sometimes God calls protection. Some of the people who left you, God was removing them. God wanted to do some things for you that only he could do.

And if he had let them say yes, you wouldn't have been ready for what was much. I'm going to come back to these and preach a whole series on them, each one. I'm going to preach a series on dream. I promise you, I will do it. If you stay here long enough, I will do it. I might be 93 years old. I'm going to preach this thing. Because I've got to get God to help me interpret what?

My desires and rejection. And then I got to make sure that God filters my emotions. So God help me interpret my emotions because I know what I feel. Well, let me be honest. As a man, sometimes I don't even know what I feel. And being married has helped me so much with interpretation. I really love my wife. I jokingly call Holly the Holly Spirit.

It's only half joking. She's a great interpreter. She interprets things. One time we were fighting about a baby. bill. I think it was like $3,243.003. And guess what I didn't have in the bank account? $3,240, whatever I said, dollars. And I got so angry. I'm not the kind of guy that goes around yelling at his wife, but I was yelling at her this day. This was years ago. This was like, you know, early stages of marriage. And so, you know, you'll forgive me for being angry.

But she at one point in the argument goes, why are you so angry? I said, I'm not going. Head spins around. You know what I was telling the truth? I wasn't really angry. I was afraid. And it was expressing itself as anger. But she was able to interpret the fear that was driving my anger.

And when she realized that I wasn't mad at her, I was mad at the attorney. who sent that bill and mad at BB&T for not having enough money in my bank account to pay the attorney who sent the bill. See how an interpretation can change everything? She was able to realize it's not me versus you in this moment. It's us versus this bill and let's figure it out together. But if you don't pray for the power to interpret, you will just live at the level of the emotion and never know what is beneath the surface and you will repeat the emotion on the next

person who steps into the line of fire. of your unfiltered experiences. Okay, I'm going to download this podcast myself, I think, all right? So, God, help me interpret my emotions. So I say, I'm depressed. I'm in depression right now. Well, maybe you are depressed. Or maybe, you know, sometimes it's just Monday.

You always feel this way on Monday. Just hadn't been outside yet. But if you don't ask God, God, see, do not interpretations belong to God? That's what Joseph knew. That's what Joseph knew because on one hand emotionally he's angry, he's crying, and he sends everybody out of his presence. But then beneath the emotion, he realized the reason. Now, here's a good question. Are you living at the level of reaction or reason?

Because if you always just react, react, react, but never ask God, what is the reason I'm reacting this way? You will fix the wrong factors. And this is where a lot of preaching gets so mean and hateful and impossible. because we're correcting behaviors, but not addressing the beliefs that drive the behaviors. So you'll hear a preacher sometimes preach against addiction, but why is she drinking six classes? Or you'll hear it preached against, you know, pornography or sexual addiction, and the preacher will never address the fact that you're reaching out for God when you log on that site. You just don't know it's God that you're reaching out for, so you're trying to fill it with something that leaves you more empty,

but you're really reaching out for God, but what you really want isn't sex, it's connection. So you run around for sex, but you don't get connection because it's empty, because you never ask God. Why? And this takes reflection. And this takes sitting along with God and even other people that you trust and joining an e-group and sharing some stuff that makes you uncomfortable. Shameless plug. Today, there's tents outside. Join an e-group. She can interpret.

Pharaoh said, I need someone to interpret my dream. The prisoner said, I need someone to interpret the dream. But really, I need God to help me interpret not only the hard things I've been through. But look at Joseph now. He's in a position of power. Not only does he have the power of interpretation that God has given him, but he has the power to punish his brothers or provide for them. And what's he going to do with his advantage? That's the fourth one.

God, show me the advantages that you've given me and show me why you gave them to me. Because when people receive advantages, but they think that the purpose for the advantage is so that they can call attention to themselves, that's when leaders become toxic, that's when rich people become oppressive. The hard thing is sometimes recognizing the advantage because remember when David killed Goliath and Bible says that after he killed him, he took his sword. I always thought that was an illustration of how today's attack can become tomorrow's advantage. You sold me, for God sent me. And the whole time that people were pushing me in a pit, God was preparing me so that I could

provide with the power that he's given me. And maybe the reason that he's given me, and maybe the reason that that you went through the attack is so that you could have an advantage. Do you hear me? Just forget I'm talking. Hear this from God. He wanted to say this to you and he's just using me to do it. Quit calling it an attack. It's an advantage.

Quit calling it a weakness because it is in your weakness that he is strong. Quit being ashamed of it. Quit trying to run from it, hide it and numb it and cover it up. The attack is the advantage. And you know what Paul said? He said, I am convinced that the sufferings of this present time are not even worthy to be compared with the glory that will be revealed. So I interpret my pain through the lens of God's purpose and my feelings through my faith. So, God, give me the power to interpret.

Not just to interpret when I get there. not just to interpret when it's all better. But God, help me to interpret when I'm in the middle. I'm in the middle. Joseph spent 20 years with a dream that contradicted everything he was facing in his situation. And yet the most frequent line that is repeated in the account of his life is this. The Lord was with Joseph.

You know, that's not something you always feel. That's not something that you can always prove. That's not something that you always have facts to back it up. But I don't need facts. I got faith. I don't need feelings. I've got faith. God, I want to interpret my life as it unfolds through the lens that you love me,

and that you're with me. And I need a faith interpretation because, you know, church, the world is trying to give us a fear interpretation every single day. And if you read the paper, it's a fear interpretation. But when I come to God, I can look at everything in my life and look at it through the lens of what he's spoken to me. And the power of interpretation is to confess the presence of God in every situation, whether you feel it or not. And if you need God to show you something right now in your life, stand to your

feet so I can pray for you because this message was not meant for those who just want to live by your five senses. And this message was not intended for those who just want to spend the rest of their life blaming people. And this message was not for those who everything is easy and you can always explain it and you understand it all. This message is for someone who needs an interpretation. God, I don't need you to explain everything to me. You're God and I'm not. But I need to know, God, what you are doing in this moment of my life. I don't want to spend the rest of my life projecting stuff. I need an interpretation.

Paul said, pray for the power of interpretation. You can't get this on your own. You can't get this by logic. You can't see this on a spreadsheet. You cannot consult bank accounts and other people and books In a library, this only comes from God. God, I need an interpretation. I need to know why my kids are acting crazy right now.

I need to know God why my money is acting funny right now. I need to know why they said no. I need to know why this keeps happening. I need to know why this pattern keeps emerging. And I need to know more than anything that you are with me in this moment, even when I don't feel it. I need an interpretation. Do not interpretations belong to God? Doesn't he have the power to show you why he made you?

Doesn't he have the power to comfort you in all of your trouble? Doesn't he have the power to assure you of his presence in this moment? Father, thank you for your word and thank you for your people. And I pray that today I have been a faithful interpreter of what you said through Joseph and what you said through Paul and what you're saying to each life represented in this place. today. I ask God that you would interpret the message exactly as each hearer needs to receive it. In fact, if you would, just lift your hands right now and show the Lord that you're listening. We'll receive from you in this moment as you speak to us.

Thank you for joining us. Special thanks to those of you who give generously to this ministry. It's because of you that this ministry is possible. You can click the link in the description to give now or visit Elevation. Thank you, ElevationChurch.org slash podcast for more information. And if you enjoyed the podcast, you can subscribe, you can share it with your friends. You can click the share button, take a screenshot, and share it on your social stories and tag us at Elevation Church. Thanks again for listening. God bless you. This is an IHeart podcast.

Guaranteed Human.