(This is an peek inside my journal from January 9th.)
I’m finishing the life of Abraham in my devotional reading plan and had all these thoughts rolling through my head.
“Abraham lived for 175 years, and he died at a ripe old age, having lived a long and satisfying life.” Genesis 25:8
We have no history of him before he was 75. Then God suddenly appears to him and tells him to leave all he’s ever known based on nothing but a word, a promise of blessing and a child. (Genesis 12)
He heard a word. That’s all. The Lord said. Not a vision. There was no appearance. Just a voice. A Word from heaven.
What were those conversations like with His family?
Abe: Dad, God told me to go.
Dad: Go? Go where?
Abe: I have no idea. God didn’t tell me where I’d end up. He only told me where to start.
Dad: Seems crazy to me, son. Why?
Abe: He promised to bless me and make me a blessing. A child. He said He’d give us child. And you know how desperate we are for a son, dad.
Dad: You’re crazy son. You heard a voice and now you’re just up and leaving?
Abe: I can’t explain it. There was something so compelling in His voice. I just know if I don’t go, I’ll regret it.
His entire family knew what he was doing and why. Aunts. Uncles. Cousins. Did they think he was crazy? Would I if I didn’t know God? Probably.
But Abraham obeyed. And thank God he did!
It wasn’t a life without trials. Without pain or discouragement. Drama and mess ups abounded. It took trust and obedience to start the journey and just as much to stay the course. But in the end, he experienced the faithfulness of God in abundance.
He could have played it safe. Not taken the adventure. He could have stayed put with his wife, married someone else and had a few kids and a decent life. God would have used someone else, but Sarah would never have had a baby.
Obedience brings blessings.
At the end of his life, when he sent his servant to his homeland to get a wife for Isaac, everything came full circle and his family got to know the fruits of his obedience. They knew Sarah was barren, and now they knew God gave her at least one son.
“Would you look at that. Old Abram wasn’t crazy after all, although he did change his name. Calling himself Abraham now! He and Sarah had kids. And they’re rich! Who would have thought?”
Obedience brings blessing and he died at a good old age, fully satisfied.
But I don’t think the reason he died satisfied was because of the blessings or fulfilled promises. It wasn’t because of sons and heirs or land.
I believe it was because of this. Because of how he describes God in Genesis 24:40.
“The Lord, in whose presence I have lived.”
He didn’t say:
- The Lord who blessed me with a son.
- The Lord who protected me all those times.
- The Lord who fixed my messes.
- The Lord who made me rich.
- The Lord who kept His Word.
- The Lord who answered my prayers.
He said, “The Lord in whose presence I have lived.”
Don’t get me wrong. The blessings are nice. They may even add to the enjoyment of life. But they can never fully satisfy the heart.
It was God’s presence that satisfied. It was all about the relationship. It was all about God’s presence. And the longer Abraham walked with God, the deeper the intimacy got.
We have God’s presence with us in a measure all the time, even if we sit comfortably by and never step out on His plans for our lives. Do we take it for granted? Selah –
But we will never know the full measure of His presence, active and working in and for and through us, until we step out of our comfort zone, take a chance, and obey.
It’s scary. I know. He doesn’t tell us where we’ll end up. He only tells us where to start.
But it’s more than our obedience He’s after. It’s intimacy. It’s the mystery of Himself that He wants to reveal to us with each step.
What is He prompting you to step out and do on your faith journey? Take a bold step. Live the adventure. The depth of His presence you’ll experience as you do will astound you.