Faith — The Gift - Monday
TODAY’S VERSE
Genesis 13:1
So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb. (ESV)
As we jump into Genesis 13 this week, we find Abram packing up from his detour in Egypt and attempting to shift back towards obedience. He went down to Egypt because he feared famine, doubted God’s provision, and took matters into his own hands. As Matt walked us through on Sunday, one thing worth noting is that we aren’t told that Abram received an update that the famine is over. From what we see, he doesn’t wait for a “sign” or to feel “ready” or even wait to be certain that he’s spiritually back in God’s grace after his recent disobedience. He packs up and steps out in faith. Traveling right back to where he built his first altar (the Negeb), he calls on the name of the Lord again. Basically, Abram (as the kids say) “runs it back” to where he started and gives it a fresh go. Leaving the detour often requires walking by faith before you can see how everything is going to turn out.
I’m reminded of my twenties. The immaturity of my faith and the culmination of my bad decisions came to bear. Saying I took a detour seems to be downplaying it a bit. I basically lashed out at God for the consequences my friends and family had been warning me about for a long, long time. So I decided that the only “wise” thing to do was double down, take matters fully into my own hands, and let God ride in the back seat a while. In a story for another day, I ended up stacking up further brokenness and eventually decided to run faith back. Even though I wasn’t certain or even confident that the whole church thing would change anything, I jumped in wholesale.
As I steered out of my detour and dug deep into my faith, I also started serving with a group of third-grade boys. I had no clue what I was doing. A lot of days, the unclear outcome ranged from “What do I even have to offer these boys?” to "Will I mentally survive these elementary-aged boys' attention spans?” But as I kept showing up and moving in obedience despite my doubts, God showed up in those moments as well as the subsequent ~10 years I was blessed to serve with those boys. Like Abram, I had to move before the outcome was clear or obvious, and doing so radically changed my life.
APPLICATION
Matt gave us some really clear ways to lean into what God wants to do in our lives, and each day I’m going to offer them back to you and make taking a step available right in your inbox. Volunteering is for everyone (take it from me!). Click here to find out how you can start.
PRAYER
Take your past or current detours to God today. Thank Him that they don’t disqualify you from His purpose. Ask for courage to take a step towards Him in obedience today and any time you can’t see the whole road ahead.
