Abram's journey with God really began after he got to the promised land. It is hard to tell how much time has elapsed but the next section of Genesis 12 tells of a man not entirely certain about this whole thing. God has appeared to him and promised this land to his descendants, he has built and altar and worshiped and then moved on.
Because of a famine in the land, he and his company, including his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot, are compelled to go down to Egypt. At least in Egypt there are fertile plains along the Nile and therefore in times of famine and drought elsewhere those who were bedouin like Abram knew that there would be food in Egypt. Abram, however, sees a problem. The problem, in his eyes, is that his wife is a beautiful woman, too beautiful perhaps for safety. He concocts a plan for them to keep them safe, posing as brother and sister so that the Egyptians won't kill him in order that they might have her for themselves.
Abram was right in his suspicions but wrong in his lack of faith. Surely the God who had promised all the land to him and that he would be the father of nations would be able to keep he and Sarai safe from harm. God said He would bless Abram and so He does while in Egypt, we are told of all the possessions Abram has there. Abram, however, isn't ready to fully trust God as being there in all things, he is still somewhat self-reliant, relying on his survival instinct and his wits.
One of the difficult things about this journey with God is abandoning our self-reliance and that whole survival instinct thing. If He were always at our side we would be a lot more comfortable in trusting Him, but there are times when we feel alone and vulnerable and it seems like we have to take matters into our own hands just to make sure. This is all new to Abram and times are tough, and tough times call for creative measures. We like the comfort and security of being in control, and God seems to have an agenda that takes us out of our comfort and security and into places where we have to learn to trust Him.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
Welcome to the Journey
When Jesus called his disciples he called them to a journey called life. No big surprise there, God always invited people to life together with him. When He called a man named Abram in Genesis 12 it was to leave the familiar behind and come to a land God would show him and give to Abram's descendants. God calls him in verse 1 and they arrive in verse 5, short journey, but the journey only began with a trip to Canaan, the real journey was life together with God over the next 50 or so years. Every other personal story in the Bible begins with God calling someone or some group of people to a journey. The destination was always important but the journey was more important.
Over the next 25 years Abram would get a new name, becoming Abraham, father of many nations. He would have many adventures, prosper in all that he did, and learn about this God who first called him to the journey. He would learn to trust God enough to do whatever he asked but from time to time his faith would fail him and he would do something from doubt. He wasn't perfect, far from it, but God took Abram, imperfections and all, and used him to build a people.
The amazing thing is that this man, Abram, was a complete nobody until God called him and he agreed to follow. At the end of his life he had fathered two sons and that was it. If not for God's plan for those children, no one should ever have heard of Abram. At the end of his life he owned exactly enough of the land God had promised to be buried there in a cave. His mark on the world was insignificant at the time of his death. He was somewhat well known in the region but there is no reason on earth that we should know who he was today, except for the fact that God kept His promise to Abram.
The Journey is a worship service, a place to begin the journey of life with God, a place to ask questions, to seek to know more about God, to express your doubts and to join others on the journey. Life can be more than a series of random events leading to death, life with God can be world changing.
Over the next 25 years Abram would get a new name, becoming Abraham, father of many nations. He would have many adventures, prosper in all that he did, and learn about this God who first called him to the journey. He would learn to trust God enough to do whatever he asked but from time to time his faith would fail him and he would do something from doubt. He wasn't perfect, far from it, but God took Abram, imperfections and all, and used him to build a people.
The amazing thing is that this man, Abram, was a complete nobody until God called him and he agreed to follow. At the end of his life he had fathered two sons and that was it. If not for God's plan for those children, no one should ever have heard of Abram. At the end of his life he owned exactly enough of the land God had promised to be buried there in a cave. His mark on the world was insignificant at the time of his death. He was somewhat well known in the region but there is no reason on earth that we should know who he was today, except for the fact that God kept His promise to Abram.
The Journey is a worship service, a place to begin the journey of life with God, a place to ask questions, to seek to know more about God, to express your doubts and to join others on the journey. Life can be more than a series of random events leading to death, life with God can be world changing.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)