• Egyptian homes were made from bricks of sun-dried mud, called adobe, because wood was scarce. Mud bricks lasted along time in Egypt because there was so little rain to wear them away.

• In the cities, a commoner’s home was often 2-3 levels to make use of the limited land. The lower floor was often reserved for business and the family lived on the upper floors.  Wealthy families, like Potiphar, however would have had large single level homes which they surrounded with private, beautiful gardens full of palm trees and flowers.
• The most common piece of furniture in Potiphar’s home would have been the stool.  They had very short legs, sometimes carved, and could easily be moved from room to room.
• In the courtyard of the wealthy, there was often a water clock.  It was made from a clay pot and had a small hole in the bottom.  It had lines that were marked on the inside.  Time was measured against these levels as the water dripped out through the bottom.
• Most wealthy people had bathrooms. Often each bedroom would have its own toilet. You would have a stone seat with a hole in it. Underneath the seat would be a large urn filled with sand. The lower servants would be responsible for emptying the pot.
• You would have had a pet.  Cats were the favorite pet. Other pets include geese, goats and baboons, and the wealthy, like Potiphar, would have had dogs used for hunting. When a pet died, the owner would save its collar, and later when the owner died, the collar would be buried with them, so that the family and their pet could be together.

 

  

 

 

Today the kids made a new friend named Egbert.” Egbert is absolutely terrified about getting smashed which is a reasonable fear considering Egbert is an egg. The teacher used Egbert to help the children understand that we all have fears and some of them are very reasonable. But we serve a God who is more powerful than all our fears and He has promised to protect us. A volunteer was chosen to use a wooden spoon to try and “smash” Egbert. They could only use the spoon and not touch Egbert in any way. Right before the deed was to be done, the teacher covered Egbert up with a metal pan. Even though they tried to “smash” him, the egg was unharmed. Nahum 1:7 says “The Lord is good, a refuge in time of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him.” We are like little Egbert. We sometimes feel afraid and have worries. But God is our protector in our times of trouble. Nothing can happen to us that God does not allow. (Tomorrow we will learn that God sometime allows difficult thing to come into our lives to make us more like His Son, Jesus or to prepare us for service.) God can protect you because he is all powerful-he is omnipotent. Omnipotent is a “college word.” Omni means all or totally. Potent means powerful. So Omnipotent means totally powerful. It can only be used for God. No one else is more powerful than any thing in the world. Isn’t it excited this powerful God promises to protect you?