HOW HUNGRY ARE YOU?

Posted on October 16, 2024 by randscallawayffm

“I’m so hungry I could eat a horse!”  “I’m so hungry I could the walls!” Our kids would come in from school famished and say ridiculous statements like this to indicate the seriousness of their hunger.  But when we would say, grab that apple or banana, they whined for a snack of cookies which was their choice.  Our response?  “I guess you’re not really as hungry as you thought, then.”  How hungry are you? 

Would you give all you had now and in the future for a bowl of stew?

Generations follow after the death of Abraham. Descendants are named that will be of concern later. Upon the death of Abraham, it is interesting to note that Ishmael, half-brother to Isaac, joined him to bury their father next to Sarah, his beloved wife.  God blessed Isaac and Rebekah with twins who fought for position from womb to grown men!  Now, we’re getting to what a good bowl of stew can do to a hungry, or should we say a “hangry” man.

Genesis 25

The Death of Abraham

Abraham had taken another wife, whose name was Keturah. 2 She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah. 3 Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan; the descendants of Dedan were the Ashurites, the Letushites and the Leummites. 4 The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanok, Abida and Eldaah. All these were descendants of Keturah.

5 Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac. 6 But while he was still living, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east.

7 Abraham lived a hundred and seventy-five years. 8 Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age, an old man and full of years; and he was gathered to his people. 9 His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah near Mamre, in the field of Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite, 10 the field Abraham had bought from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried with his wife Sarah. 11 After Abraham’s death, God blessed his son Isaac, who then lived near Beer Lahai Roi.

Ishmael’s Sons

12 This is the account of the family line of Abraham’s son Ishmael, whom Sarah’s slave, Hagar the Egyptian, bore to Abraham.

13 These are the names of the sons of Ishmael, listed in the order of their birth: Nebaioth the firstborn of Ishmael, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 15 Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish and Kedemah. 16 These were the sons of Ishmael, and these are the names of the twelve tribal rulers according to their settlements and camps. 17 Ishmael lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. He breathed his last and died, and he was gathered to his people. 18 His descendants settled in the area from Havilah to Shur, near the eastern border of Egypt, as you go toward Ashur. And they lived in hostility toward all the tribes related to them.

Jacob and Esau

19 This is the account of the family line of Abraham’s son Isaac.

Abraham became the father of Isaac, 20 and Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan Aram and sister of Laban the Aramean.

21 Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was childless. The Lord answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22 The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord.

23 The Lord said to her,

“Two nations are in your womb,
    and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
    and the older will serve the younger.”

24 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. 25 The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau. 26 After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them.

27 The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. 28 Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

29 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. 30 He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.)

31 Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.”

32 “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”

33 But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob.

34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left.

So Esau despised his birthright.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

The story of God in these twin boys, Jacob and Esau, doesn’t end here!  There’s way more to come! Rebekah, Isaac’s beloved wife, gave birth to Jacob and Esau. Even before they were even born, the boys were hostile to each other. Conflict between the two intensified throughout their lives. Eventually Esau threatened to kill Jacob—but that episode comes later. 

When Esau sold his rights as the firstborn son to Jacob for a bowl of stew, further dissension grew between the brothers. Jacob later stole Esau’s last remaining firstborn privilege: the blessing from his dying father!  More about that later, too.

These boys were angry with each other from birth.The parents ignited the fire of hostility between them by choosing their team favorites.  Isaac favored Esau who enjoyed hunting and Rebekah favored Jacob who stayed home and learned to cook with her.  Jealousy between the brothers gave birth to consistent bitter anger. 

Max Lucado writes;

“Anger. It’s easy to define: the noise of the soul. Anger. The unseen irritant of the heart. Anger. The relentless invader of silence.  The louder it gets the more desperate we become.”

Anger robs us and those around us of peace and calm.  Anger expands and gives birth to envy, arrogance, bitterness, hate, while entertaining thoughts to doing away with the one who makes you angry.  Where do these thoughts come from? —not from God!  God is the opposite of all these feelings and emotions displayed. Anger makes all parties miserable until anger is dealt with and confronted in a Godly way—in His love.

We can’t change yesterday’s display of anger; but we can run to God, ask forgiveness from who we hurt and from God in Jesus Name, requesting help from God to be transformed by the power of God’s Holy Spirit to avoid repetition of the sins our anger produces.  We cannot do this alone, but with God all things are possible! 

God’s Word reminds us that anger will well up within us, especially when we see injustice with no mercy being shown, but we must not sin in our anger.  Paul writes to the church;

“Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.” Ephesians 4:25-27

Anger can quickly escalate to hurtful hate—the “devil’s way in” to gain access to our hearts.  I don’t know which one comes first but hate and anger can join forces to tear down relationships in a flashfire of emotions that destroys everyone around the hater.

In the same chapter to the church, Paul writes of ways to avoid sinning in our anger by changing our thoughts, words, and actions;

“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”  Ephesians 4:29-

We can’t change yesterday but our reaction to yesterday can change.  We cannot change the past; but our response to our past can change. Avoid bitterness and grudge holding as this is a cancer to our being and hinders our health physically, emotionally, mentally, and most of all spiritually.

Anger. Is this our immediate response? Are we known for our quick temper? For our grudge? Are we known for desiring revenge?  Let us ask God to help us change our response to past hurts.

Forgiveness diffuses the anger in our hearts.  Getting rid of anger and all sins that accompany anger, brings the peace of Christ to rule our hearts, minds, and souls.

Lord,

Hallowed is Your Name.  May your Kingdom come, Your will be done in all the details of our lives in which you delight.  Give us this day all you know we will need to be first responders of your love, mercy, and grace.  Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us—and you.  Lead us not into temptations of evil but deliver us from evil and his schemes to destroy our relationship with you and with others.  May we love like you love us, devoid of hate.  To you be the glory for your continuing transformative work in us.

In Jesus Name, Amen

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GOD CREATED LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT!

Posted on October 15, 2024 by randscallawayffm

As believing parents, we pray for our children to meet that special someone that God as chosen to come into their lives to love and cherish them.  We pray for God’s will to be done. We pray that this person will love and adore your child as much as you do.  What we desire for our children is what Abraham wanted for his beloved Isaac—the kind of loving relationship bond that he and Sarah had with God and each other! 

Well, hang on—This is a love story for the ages!  This reading will take a bit longer than usual, but it is mesmerizing to watch God at work in and through Abraham, his senior assistant, Rebekah, her family, and Isaac. That “love at first sight” look between Isaac and Rebekah at the end of the story brings a well of emotion as we read it.  We can almost hear the beautiful crescendo of the orchestra when their eyes first meet. 

God—the greatest wedding planner on the planet! God, who is Love, arranged every detail of this moment in time. Abraham who loved and trusted God knew He would.  Notice that the faith of Abraham was also formed in his senior servant who prayed, obeyed, and worshiped God at every step of his journey.

Yes, God demonstrated His real love in this love story! God is amazing. Nothing is too hard for God. Abraham and Isaac knew God well and relied on His provision because God is faithful.

Genesis 24

Isaac and Rebekah

24 Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way. 2 He said to the senior servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh. 3 I want you to swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living, 4 but will go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.”

5 The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land? Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?”

6 “Make sure that you do not take my son back there,” Abraham said. 7 “The Lord, the God of heaven, who brought me out of my father’s household and my native land and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’—he will send his angel before you so that you can get a wife for my son from there. 8 If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.” 9 So the servant put his hand under the thigh of his master Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter.

10 Then the servant left, taking with him ten of his master’s camels loaded with all kinds of good things from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim and made his way to the town of Nahor. 11 He had the camels kneel down near the well outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water.

12 Then he prayed, “Lord, God of my master Abraham, make me successful today, and show kindness to my master Abraham. 13 See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water. 14 May it be that when I say to a young woman, ‘Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too’—let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.”

15 Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milkah, who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor. 16 The woman was very beautiful, a virgin; no man had ever slept with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again.

17 The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.”

18 “Drink, my lord,” she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink.

19 After she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels too, until they have had enough to drink.” 20 So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels. 21 Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the Lord had made his journey successful.

22 When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring weighing a beka and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels. 23 Then he asked, “Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?”

24 She answered him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milkah bore to Nahor.” 25 And she added, “We have plenty of straw and fodder, as well as room for you to spend the night.”

26 Then the man bowed down and worshiped the Lord, 27 saying, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness to my master. As for me, the Lord has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”

28 The young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things. 29 Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban, and he hurried out to the man at the spring. 30 As soon as he had seen the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s arms, and had heard Rebekah tell what the man said to her, he went out to the man and found him standing by the camels near the spring. 31 “Come, you who are blessed by the Lord,” he said. “Why are you standing out here? I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.”

32 So the man went to the house, and the camels were unloaded. Straw and fodder were brought for the camels, and water for him and his men to wash their feet. 33 Then food was set before him, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told you what I have to say.”

“Then tell us,” Laban said.

34 So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. 35 The Lord has blessed my master abundantly, and he has become wealthy. He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys. 36 My master’s wife Sarah has borne him a son in her old age, and he has given him everything he owns. 37 And my master made me swear an oath, and said, ‘You must not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live, 38 but go to my father’s family and to my own clan, and get a wife for my son.’

39 “Then I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not come back with me?’

40 “He replied, ‘The Lord, before whom I have walked faithfully, will send his angel with you and make your journey a success, so that you can get a wife for my son from my own clan and from my father’s family. 41 You will be released from my oath if, when you go to my clan, they refuse to give her to you—then you will be released from my oath.’

42 “When I came to the spring today, I said, ‘Lord, God of my master Abraham, if you will, please grant success to the journey on which I have come. 43 See, I am standing beside this spring. If a young woman comes out to draw water and I say to her, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar,” 44 and if she says to me, “Drink, and I’ll draw water for your camels too,” let her be the one the Lord has chosen for my master’s son.’

45 “Before I finished praying in my heart, Rebekah came out, with her jar on her shoulder. She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’

46 “She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too.’ So I drank, and she watered the camels also.

47 “I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’

“She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel son of Nahor, whom Milkah bore to him.’

“Then I put the ring in her nose and the bracelets on her arms, 48 and I bowed down and worshiped the Lord. I praised the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me on the right road to get the granddaughter of my master’s brother for his son. 49 Now if you will show kindness and faithfulness to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so I may know which way to turn.”

50 Laban and Bethuel answered, “This is from the Lord; we can say nothing to you one way or the other. 51 Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has directed.”

52 When Abraham’s servant heard what they said, he bowed down to the ground before the Lord. 53 Then the servant brought out gold and silver jewelry and articles of clothing and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave costly gifts to her brother and to her mother. 54 Then he and the men who were with him ate and drank and spent the night there.

When they got up the next morning, he said, “Send me on my way to my master.”

55 But her brother and her mother replied, “Let the young woman remain with us ten days or so; then you may go.”

56 But he said to them, “Do not detain me, now that the Lord has granted success to my journey. Send me on my way so I may go to my master.”

57 Then they said, “Let’s call the young woman and ask her about it.” 58 So they called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?”

“I will go,” she said.

59 So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way, along with her nurse and Abraham’s servant and his men. 60 And they blessed Rebekah and said to her,

“Our sister, may you increase
    to thousands upon thousands;
may your offspring possess
    the cities of their enemies.”

61 Then Rebekah and her attendants got ready and mounted the camels and went back with the man. So the servant took Rebekah and left.

62 Now Isaac had come from Beer Lahai Roi, for he was living in the Negev. 63 He went out to the field one evening to meditate, and as he looked up, he saw camels approaching. 64 Rebekah also looked up and saw Isaac. She got down from her camel 65 and asked the servant, “Who is that man in the field coming to meet us?”

“He is my master,” the servant answered. So she took her veil and covered herself.

66 Then the servant told Isaac all he had done. 67 Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he married Rebekah. So she became his wife, and he loved her; and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Abraham obeyed God’s plan. Abraham might have married Isaac to a local girl or sent him back to his family’s land to find a wife. That would have been easier.  But Abraham obeyed God by selecting the right wife from the right spot. Abraham’s loyal servant discerned God’s will and found the right wife—Rebekah, a woman of good heart and determination.

In God’s will we find successful living. God’s way may be harder than the world’s way—but he rewards obedience!  Trust and obey, for there’s no other way…

As we read the story of God in His Word;

Ask God to show you how your plans, goals, and directions are conforming to his will. 

Need help? Pray Romans 12:1-2 as worship to God;

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will.”

This prayer prepares our hearts, minds, and souls to yield to and receive the message from His Holy Spirit who stands ready to help us in all areas of our life that need correcting, comforting, convicting, consoling, while compelling us to seek discernment for His “good, pleasing and perfect will”. 

Lord,

I will meditate on your love demonstrated through Abraham, his servant, Isaac, and Rebekah all day long.  Help us to love each other like you love us.  Thank you for this beautiful love story produced by faith in You.

In Jesus Name, For Your Glory, Amen

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WHO WILL PAY?

Posted on October 14, 2024 by randscallawayffm

Most of us do it.  We go out to eat together with family or close friends.  At the end of the meal, we have a friendly argument over who will pay the check. It becomes a friendly game of “who’s going to get the check first and pay” before anyone else does! 

“Let me get that.” “No, let me get that this time.” And the game begins of who will slyly get the check first and pay the bill the server lays down before anyone else sees what is going on while conversation continues. It’s a fun game we play among those we love and want to serve.

There is dignity and respect when we pay our own way, not depending on others.  However, in our next passage, we learn the customs of the inhabitants of Canaan.  We can’t help but notice the respect the Hittites have for Abraham who is grieving over the death of his beloved Sarah, but they also know he is a weakened state of mind—or is he?  Who’s going to pay for a burial site for Sarah?  Why is Abraham so insistent?

Genesis 23

The Death of Sarah

Sarah lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old. 2 She died at Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep over her.

3 Then Abraham rose from beside his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites. He said, 4 “I am a foreigner and stranger among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead.”

5 The Hittites replied to Abraham, 6 “Sir, listen to us. You are a mighty prince among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will refuse you his tomb for burying your dead.”

7 Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites. 8 He said to them, “If you are willing to let me bury my dead, then listen to me and intercede with Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf 9 so he will sell me the cave of Machpelah, which belongs to him and is at the end of his field. Ask him to sell it to me for the full price as a burial site among you.”

10 Ephron the Hittite was sitting among his people and he replied to Abraham in the hearing of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city. 11 “No, my lord,” he said. “Listen to me; I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. I give it to you in the presence of my people. Bury your dead.”

12 Again Abraham bowed down before the people of the land 13 and he said to Ephron in their hearing, “Listen to me, if you will. I will pay the price of the field. Accept it from me so I can bury my dead there.”

14 Ephron answered Abraham, 15 “Listen to me, my lord; the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver, but what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.”

16 Abraham agreed to Ephron’s terms and weighed out for him the price he had named in the hearing of the Hittites: four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weight current among the merchants.

17 So Ephron’s field in Machpelah near Mamre—both the field and the cave in it, and all the trees within the borders of the field—was deeded 18 to Abraham as his property in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of the city. 19 Afterward Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah near Mamre (which is at Hebron) in the land of Canaan. 20 So the field and the cave in it were deeded to Abraham by the Hittites as a burial site.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Honoring Sarah

Sarah had been a good wife to Abraham and a good mother to Isaac. Yes, she had her faults, as we all do, but God called her a princess (the meaning of her name). 

“God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. 16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” Genesis 17:15-16

Sarah was listed with other heroes and heroines of faith.  “And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise.” Hebrews 11:11 –Even though she chuckled upon hearing the news! 

The apostle Peter named Sarah as a good example of inner beauty for Christian wives to follow:

“For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands, like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.” 1 Peter 3:1-6

Paul illustrates the grace of God in the life of the believer with Sarah’s life:

“Now you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise…”  (Read Galatian 4 to get the full picture of the grace of God.  Grace, not earned works, is the gift of salvation to us because of Jesus.  Judaizers taught that Gentile believers had to obey Jewish laws to be saved. Paul wrote to correct this false teaching. As a result of God’s promise, Christ followers are children of God. As adopted children, believers can enjoy all the benefits of being in God’s family. One of those benefits is freedom from the bondage of legalism.

Sarah carried the promise of God because her faithfulness to God.

Like Abraham and Sarah, God’s people today are foreigners in this present world (See 1 Peter 1:1; 2:11). We live in temporary “tents” (2 Corinthians 5:1–8) which one day will be taken down when we move to glory! 

Who will pay the bill?

This was an artful manipulation by the Hittite leader to a grieving Abraham, a foreigner who he knew was rich and blessed.   Following the custom of the East, Ephron offered to give Abraham not only the cave but the whole field in which the cave was located. Of course, this was only a clever maneuver on his part, for he had no intentions of giving away a valuable piece of property, especially to a man as wealthy as Abraham. But Ephron’s reply gave Abraham two pieces of information: Ephron was willing to sell, but he wanted to sell the whole field and not just the cave. This sly negotiation allowed both men to achieve their objectives. 

There is more going on here as we dig deeper!

Abraham did not ignore the body but gave it a proper burial in view of the promised resurrection. When God saves us, He saves the whole person, not just “the soul.” The body has a future, and burial bears witness to our faith in the return of Christ and the resurrection of the body.  Scripture tells us that resurrection is not “reconstruction.” God will not reassemble the dust of the body and restore the body to its previous state. God promises us a new body! (1 Corinthians 15) Christian burial bears witness that we believe in a future resurrection!

Who ultimately paid the bill, in full, once and for all, for our salvation?  Jesus!

“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep”. 1 Corinthians 15:3-6

We must respond with the deep faith of Abraham and Sarahwho stood firm in their obedience to God.  Abraham’s weeping over his beloved Sarah displayed His love for her, not his lack of faith.  Buying a field to bury her, and later himself, displayed his hope of resurrection by God because of his relentless faith in God.  Abraham knew more than we think at first reading. Abraham was a Friend of God.

“And the scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,’ and he was called God’s friend.’” James 2:23

Therefore,

“‘Where, O death, is your victory?
    Where, O death, is your sting?’

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:55-58

Savior and Lord,

Thank you, thank you, thank you for saving me—all of me for all of you! Great is thy faithfulness!

In Jesus Name, for Your glory, Amen

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“BECAUSE YOU OBEYED…”

Posted on October 13, 2024 by randscallawayffm

“Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.” 1 Samuel 15:22

“…the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you:
to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8, NLT

When God calls our name and tells us specifically what to do; what is our first thought?  Do we immediately respond with simple obedience?  Do we lay down what is most important to us to do what God has asked us to do?  Do we trade obedience that seems too hard for working harder at “doing good”?  Or do we simple trust God?

How many of us have had to “lay our Isaac down” in an act of humbled, faithful obedience? Only then can we fully understand what God was asking Abraham to do.

Genesis 22

Abraham Tested

Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he replied.

2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”

3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”

6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”

“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”

8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

9 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he replied.

12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”

13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”

15 The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”

19 Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba. And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.

Nahor’s Sons

20 Some time later Abraham was told, “Milkah is also a mother; she has borne sons to your brother Nahor: 21 Uz the firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel (the father of Aram), 22 Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph and Bethuel.” 23 Bethuel became the father of Rebekah. Milkah bore these eight sons to Abraham’s brother Nahor. 24 His concubine, whose name was Reumah, also had sons: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash and Maakah.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

We have read and observed the growing faith in God of a man and his wife.  Their behaviors and attitudes are changing right before our eyes.  God has blessed them in their old age with a baby boy, the one and only son they will have biologically.  Abraham wondered how and Sarah doubted but God provided.  God fulfilled his promises when conditions appeared hopeless. God will fulfill his promises, no matter how difficult our problems. Even when we don’t know how God will act, we must trust that he watches over us.

God’s Word records the greatest test that Abraham ever faced. As believers in Jesus, we also see the beautiful picture of our Lord’s sacrifice at Calvary, but the main lesson is obedient faith that overcomes in the trials of life. Abraham teaches us how to face and handle the tests of life to the glory of God.  Abraham’s faith in God reached a new peak on the mountain that day.  So much so, that he named the place; “The Lord Will Provide.”  Imagine the testimony of God later!  Imagine telling the story down through the generations of the miracle of provision graciously given by God to Abraham because of his obedience to God.  He was willing to lay down his Isaac, his one and only son, on the altar before the Lord God! 

This same God is our God!  This same God wants our faithful obedience to Him.  This same God still provides all we need to obey and be blessed in the obedience!  Whatever God asks us to be and do—do it!  The Lord Will Provide.

Pause to pray—

What is God asking me to do?  How quickly will I put down what my hands are holding onto tightly for what God wants to provide in my life? Take all the time you need—I am.

Know the difference between a test and temptation.  Temptations come from our desires within us (James 1:12–16) while trials come from the Lord who has a special purpose to fulfill. Temptations are used by the devil to bring out the worst in us, but trials are used by the Holy Spirit to bring out the best in us (James 1:1–6). Temptations seem logical while trials seem very unreasonable. Why would God give Abraham a son and then ask Abraham to kill him?

Warren Wiersbe, Bible Commentator, writes; “God told Abraham to sacrifice his son. Consider how unreasonable God’s request was. Isaac was Abraham’s only son, and the future of the covenant rested in him. Isaac was a miracle child, the gift of God to Abraham and Sarah in response to their faith. Abraham and Sarah loved Isaac very much and had built their whole future around him. When God asked Abraham to offer his son, He was testing Abraham’s faith, hope, and love, and it looked like God was wiping out everything Abraham and Sarah had lived for.”

“Two statements reveal the emphasis of this passage: “God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering”; and “Yahweh-Yireh”, which means, “The LORD will see to it,” that is, “The LORD will provide.” As he climbed Mount Moriah with his son, Abraham was confident that God would meet every need.”

“Abraham could depend on the promise and provision of the Lord. He had already experienced the resurrection power of God in his own body (Romans 4:19–21), so he knew that God could raise Isaac from the dead if that was His plan. Apparently, no resurrections had taken place before that time, so Abraham was exercising great faith in God. According to Ephesians 1:19, 20 and 3:20, 21, believers today have Christ’s resurrection power available in their own bodies as they yield to the Spirit of God. We can know “the mighty power that raised Him from the dead” (Philippians 3:10) as we face the daily demands and trials of life.”

In times of testing, it is easy to think only about our needs and our burdens; instead, we should be focusing on bringing glory to Jesus Christ. We find ourselves asking “How can I get out of this?” instead of “What can I get out of this that will honor the Lord?” –Wiersbe, Study Bible

If ever two suffering people revealed Jesus Christ, it was Abraham and Isaac on Mount Moriah. Their experience is a picture of the Father and the Son and the Cross.  From Genesis to Revelation Jesus is present and represented!  Jesus said to the Jews, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad” (John 8:56). In Isaac’s miraculous birth, Abraham saw the day of Christ’s birth, and in Isaac’s marriage (Genesis 24), he saw the day of Christ’s coming for His bride.

But on Mount Moriah, when Isaac willingly put himself on the altar, Abraham saw the day of Christ’s death and resurrection.  Wow.

The greatest thing that can happen as we experience the trials God sends is that we grow closer to our Father and become more like the Lord Jesus Christ. Calvary is not only the place where Jesus died for our sins, but it is also the place where He sanctified suffering and, by His resurrection, transformed suffering into glory.

We must seek to glorify the Lord, and He will do the rest. The Lord Will Provide!

Lord,

Thank you, thank you, thank you for drawing me closer to you this morning as I realize the depths of your love and the lengths you went through to save me.  I am grateful.  So very grateful.  Thank you for all you have provided, are providing, and will provide as my faith grows in You.  To you be the glory!

In Jesus Name, Amen! Yes, and Amen!

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TEDIOUS RELATIONSHIPS?

Posted on October 12, 2024 by randscallawayffm

The quality of our relationships with each other; those outside our family, those in our workplaces, and those with the church family begins with and depends on the quality of our relationship with God. 

God is the creator of relationship.  God is the sustainer of the relationship between God and mankind.  Sin cannot be a part of this relationship.  Sin must be removed from the equation of God and mankind in relationship.  So, God created a Plan for the reconciliation of relationship with Him.  Jesus, who is alpha and omega, from the beginning to end was that Plan.

Although God’s prophets proclaimed the importance of relationship with God, many refused to hear and live it.  Jesus was sent to show others how to be in relationship with God.  Throughout His time on earth, Jesus tenaciously explained in detail the depth of God’s desire to be in relationship with us—a relentlessly loving, intimate, wholly devoted relationship!  God wants us to love Him back purely because He first loved us!  (1 John 4:19) Jesus demonstrated the love of God daily as He related to all of humanity. 

Abraham’s relationship with God is extremely vital as he relies on God to lead him through some challenging and tedious moments with others. He will discover the joy and peace of going to God for direction and wisdom.

Genesis 21

The Birth of Isaac

Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. 2 Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. 3 Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him. 4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him. 5 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

6 Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” 7 And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Hagar and Ishmael Sent Away

8 The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. 9 But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking, 10 and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.”

11 The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. 12 But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. 13 I will make the son of the slave into a nation also, because he is your offspring.”

14 Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba.

15 When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she began to sob.

17 God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18 Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”

19 Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.

20 God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. 21 While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt.

The Treaty at Beersheba

22 At that time Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do. 23 Now swear to me here before God that you will not deal falsely with me or my children or my descendants. Show to me and the country where you now reside as a foreigner the same kindness I have shown to you.”

24 Abraham said, “I swear it.”

25 Then Abraham complained to Abimelek about a well of water that Abimelek’s servants had seized. 26 But Abimelek said, “I don’t know who has done this. You did not tell me, and I heard about it only today.”

27 So Abraham brought sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelek, and the two men made a treaty. 28 Abraham set apart seven ewe lambs from the flock, 29 and Abimelek asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs you have set apart by themselves?”

30 He replied, “Accept these seven lambs from my hand as a witness that I dug this well.”

31 So that place was called Beersheba, because the two men swore an oath there.

32 After the treaty had been made at Beersheba, Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces returned to the land of the Philistines. 33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the Lord, the Eternal God. 34 And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for a long time.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Watching from the sidelines, we enjoy reading the story of God’s relationship with Abraham.  Abraham is growing in his faithful relationship with God while displaying his obedience to God.  Faith, love, and obedience are important, vital components of a relationship with God!

A great relationship with God must also include intimate communion and constant conversation.  Notice that Abraham has special places where He can meet with God, get direction from God, as He worships God! 

God helps Abraham with wisdom in family squabbles produced by resentment and bitterness, and guides him to make land treaties with surrounding inhabitants, while enjoying and celebrating God’s promised blessing of the birth of Abraham and Sarah’s one and only son, Isaac!  All in day’s work for God!

Our relationship with God through believing in Jesus, His Son is the most important relationship we will ever have!  God knows us from the inside out and outside in because he formed us in our mothers’ wombs.  He created each one of us to be in relationship with Him and with each other.  This relationship gives us blessed assurance that He is with us always, through good times and bad because His love, mercy and grace never changes for us. 

Even though Sarah doubted, God demonstrated his faithfulness by providing a son for her. God also took care of Hagar after she was forced to leave Abraham’s camp. God fulfilled his promises when conditions appeared hopeless.  God still does that for us today.  God will fulfill His promises, no matter how difficult our problems. Even when we don’t know how God will act, we must trust that He watches over us and is always at work.  When doubts arise, go to God.  When we make big mistakes and life appears to be headed for shipwreck, we must depend on our relationship with God who is already at work on our behalf! 

Seriously, are there any promises more comforting than God’s? When you feel anxious today, pause to pray in the Name of Jesus; “Lord, I trust in your faithfulness to change both my attitude and my circumstances. But even if you don’t change the circumstance, transform me; for my hope is in You.”

Lord,

Thank you for relationship.  Cleanse our hearts, renew our minds to think more like you, refresh our souls with you tender new mercies for today.  May our relationship be so tight and unwavering that we know instinctively that your Presence is with us always even when we don’t “feel” it.  May our hearts, minds, and souls be so in tune and in step with you that we hear the mere whisper of your voice as all other voices fade into the background. Yes, continually replenish the joy of your salvation at work within us.  We need you every hour of every day.  We can do nothing without you.  We don’t want to anything without you!  What a friend we have in you!  Lead us, Lord.

In Jesus Name, Amen 

God sent His One and Only Son, Jesus to reemphasize this loving relationship.  God’s Son also demonstrated how much we need God in relationship as the director of our lives!  Jesus also showed the world how to live in relationship with each other as He came “not to be served, but to serve.” (See Matthew 5-7) Eventually, according to Plan, Jesus also willingly sacrificed his life for ours so that our relationship with God could be reestablished forever.

God, in His mercy, gave all He had to “recreate” the relationship He desires with us.  How deep the Father’s love for us indeed!  Who we are in relationship to God affects all other relationships we will have with others. We are all created “in the image and likeness of God.” 

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TALKING AND LISTENING TO SELF

Posted on October 11, 2024 by randscallawayffm

“So, I said to myself, this is how it really is and this is how I will fix it.”  How many times in our lives does the fear of the unknown drive us to think, say, and do things that are weirdly irrational and commonly false.  Fear drives us to do crazy things.  Abraham is strong enough in his faith to stop and listen to God, strong enough to worship God along the way in his journey, but weak when it comes to going to God first for the things that causes fear as he travels as a stranger through new lands.

We all do it.  Self-talk dangerously relies on our own wisdom that the writers of Proverbs so aptly point out. Self-talk is foolish and leads to folly in following God who made us in his own image.  When we do it again and again, how God must heave a huge sigh—but He never gives up on us!

Genesis 20

Abraham and Abimelek

Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar, 2 and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” Then Abimelek king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her.

3 But God came to Abimelek in a dream one night and said to him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.”

4 Now Abimelek had not gone near her, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? 5 Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister,’ and didn’t she also say, ‘He is my brother’? I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands.”

6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her. 7 Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die.”

8 Early the next morning Abimelek summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid. 9 Then Abimelek called Abraham in and said, “What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should never be done.” 10 And Abimelek asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?”

11 Abraham replied, “I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’ 12 Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And when God had me wander from my father’s household, I said to her, ‘This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.”’”

14 Then Abimelek brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah his wife to him. 15 And Abimelek said, “My land is before you; live wherever you like.”

16 To Sarah he said, “I am giving your brother a thousand shekels of silver. This is to cover the offense against you before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated.”

17 Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, 18 for the Lord had kept all the women in Abimelek’s household from conceiving because of Abraham’s wife Sarah.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Though God’s people often forgot their God, God didn’t forget them. He kept his word. He could have given up. He could have turned his back. He could have walked away from the wretched mess, but he didn’t.  Even though Abraham did it again, saying his wife was his sister to avoid assumed trouble, God did not give up on his chosen prophet.  God led him through it to the other side.  God still does that.

“How great in our God”, we sing in worship with gladness; but stop to realize how really great is our God who does not give up on us!  Instead God sent His Son, Jesus, as the Way out of our foolish sins caused by self-talk and self-control.

When Abimelek asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?” Abraham’s first, seeming lame response was, “I said to myself.”  We all do it.  We rationalize with pretense, with lies seen and unseen, resulting in behaviors which ultimately hinders our trust while highlighting our fears as we walk with God.  Our faith falters until God, who never gives up on us, bends down to intervene on the behalf of his beloved.

How great is our God?  Beyond what our minds can conceive!  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17

God did not and does not give up on His beloved.  Instead, like a loving Father, He disciplines us with lessons the turn our messes into messages of Truth.  God sent His Son to clean up our mess as a demonstration of his love and everlasting faithfulness.  Max Lucado beautifully emphases God’s patience and faithfulness for us as he writes;

“When God (Jesus) became flesh and was the victim of an assassination attempt before he was two years old, he didn’t give up.

When the people from his own hometown tried to push him over a cliff, he didn’t give up.

When his brothers ridiculed him, he didn’t give up.

When he was accused of blaspheming God by people who didn’t fear God, he didn’t give up.

When Peter worshiped him at the supper and cursed him at the fire, he didn’t give up.

When people spat in his face, he didn’t spit back. When the bystanders slapped him, he didn’t slap them. When a whip ripped his sides, he didn’t turn and command the awaiting angels to stuff that whip down that soldier’s throat.

And when human hands fastened the divine hands to a cross with spikes, it wasn’t the soldiers who held the hands of Jesus steady. It was God who held them steady. For those wounded hands were the same hands that had brought light into thick and dreadful darkness. They had come to do it again.” Lucado, Encouraging Word Bible

Our response?

Trust God. Seriously and committedly, trust God. 

Avoid self-talk that hinders hearing the Voice of God. 

Possess a healthy fear and awe of God.  Come to Him with humbled obedience that grows our faith in God who knows us better than we know ourselves for it is He who created us—in His own image.

When we create a mess, admit it to yourself and confess it to God who forgives and disciplines His children in ways that are for our good and His glory.  Abraham’s lie cost him dearly. His character was damaged by loss of personal integrity. His testimony about God to his neighbors was severely damaged. And his ministry as someone who was to bring about God’s blessing in people’s lives was also hindered.  When believers sin, they are disciplined by God until they come to a place of repentance and confession. This discipline is not enjoyable, but it is profitable, and in the end, it produces peace, joy and holiness to the glory of God.

Lord,

I truly stand in awe of your unfailing love and faithfulness to us!  You are God—I am not.

Cleanse my heart of my sins.  Renew my mind with your higher ground Kingdom thinking.  Refresh my soul with your new mercies for today.  Restore the joy of you in me and me in you as you mold and shape me to be all you created me to be.  May I reflect your glory so others will know you, too.

In Jesus Name, Amen

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DON’T LOOK BACK…

Posted on October 10, 2024 by randscallawayffm

How bad can it get?  How worse will life get?  What will it take for things to turn around?  Will there be better days ahead?  When we find ourselves in the middle of raging wildfires of hate, arrogance, degradation, deprivation, perversion, horrific abuse of the weak brought on by selfishness and self-satisfaction, with no regard for anyone’s life but their own, evil seems to be an unsurmountable enemy. 

If you remember yesterday’s passage, Abraham had a discussion with the Lord about the city, Sodom, where is nephew Lot and his family resided.  The Lord and the men with him look toward Sodom before leaving Abraham.  The Lord turned to the men and said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?” (See Genesis 18) “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous…”

In a cautious rebuttal, knowing Lot lived there, Abraham became an advocate for his family, pleading for them to be spared.  “Will you spare the city of there a few who believe in you?”   The Lord assured him he would spare those who believed.  I wonder; Are we passionate advocates for those who need rescuing by Jesus?

Genesis 19

Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed

The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. 2 “My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.”

“No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”

3 But he insisted so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house. He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast, and they ate. 4 Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. 5 They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”

6 Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him 7 and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. 8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”

9 “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play the judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.

10 But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. 11 Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door.

12 The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, 13 because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.”

14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters. He said, “Hurry and get out of this place, because the Lord is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.

15 With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.”

16 When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the Lord was merciful to them. 17 As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!”

18 But Lot said to them, “No, my lords, please! 19 Your servant has found favor in your eyes, and you have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. 20 Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”

21 He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. 22 But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar.)

23 By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. 24 Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the Lord out of the heavens. 25 Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. 26 But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.

27 Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the Lord. 28 He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.

29 So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.

Lot and His Daughters

30 Lot and his two daughters left Zoar and settled in the mountains, for he was afraid to stay in Zoar. He and his two daughters lived in a cave. 31 One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man around here to give us children—as is the custom all over the earth. 32 Let’s get our father to drink wine and then sleep with him and preserve our family line through our father.”

33 That night they got their father to drink wine, and the older daughter went in and slept with him. He was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up.

34 The next day the older daughter said to the younger, “Last night I slept with my father. Let’s get him to drink wine again tonight, and you go in and sleep with him so we can preserve our family line through our father.” 35 So they got their father to drink wine that night also, and the younger daughter went in and slept with him. Again he was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up.

36 So both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father. 37 The older daughter had a son, and she named him Moab; he is the father of the Moabites of today. 38 The younger daughter also had a son, and she named him Ben-Ammi; he is the father of the Ammonites of today.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

The Lord did indeed spare Lot and his immediate family but did not spare the city of evil perversion.  Evil was overcome by the Overcomer, God, while His angels of mercy protected Lot.  These hands of mercy reached out to grab the hands of Lot, his wife, and daughters when they hesitated!  How did this hit your heart?  What great compassion and love was extended through those hands! 

The command was to “Run and don’t look back!”  But one of them did. We don’t know why Lot’s wife turned to look back at this evil city.  Curiosity? Regret? Wonder over where their next meal would come from? Grieving the loss of friends?  Grieving over the loss of all their accumulated stuff of life as it was?  Even though living in this evil environment was extremely challenging and abusive; she looked back at what was her life, as evil was overcome and destroyed once and for all by the Overcomer. 

We are appalled at Lot’s wife’s response and judge her for looking back.  We might even think; “She deserved what she got—no life at all—just a salt statue!”  “Why didn’t she just obey what the Lord said?” Frankly, I’m surprised I wasn’t turned into a “salt lick” for animals when I looked back from time to time at what I thought was an easier life before following the call of God! We all do it.  Paul reminds us, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God!” (Romans 3:23) The better life is to follow the Call of God.

Paul followed God’s call to leave sin behind and don’t look back with new goals:

“But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:7-14

The enemy is great but “greater is He (Jesus) who is in us than he (evil) who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4)  Evil works hard to change our minds about God and what He says in His word to us.  It all began with Adam and Eve whose minds were changed about who God is and was.  Since the “fall” of deceptive manipulation, the battle has been raging between God and evil for our souls.  We needed a rescue!

Jesus was sent by God to earth to seek and to save the lost.  (Luke 19:10) Jesus is our Rescuer and Overcomer who daily reminds us to run from the Enemy of God whose goal is to distract, deceive and destroy our relationship with God.  God’s Holy Spirit is our constant Helper in this for we cannot do it alone.  We need God’s power to overcome.  He supplies all we need.

The call of God:

Believe in Jesus who died and rose again to rescue us. Colossians 1:13-14

Confess our sins to Jesus who redeems us from our sins “our sins to be remembered no more”! 1 John 1:9

Tell others that Jesus is the Savior and Lord they have been seeking.  Matthew 28:20

Live the Truth as we tell the Truth.  (Romans 12)  Don’t fake it.

How will we respond?

Jesus is reaching out to grab our hands and rescue us from the darkness of evil. 

Will we grab his hand and follow him out of darkness into the Light?  Will we obey His command to flee to higher ground Kingdom thinking?  Will we seek His protection and follow His plan for protection?  Or will we longingly look back at what was? 

“Resist the devil and he will flee from you” is the promise of overcoming. (James 4:7) 

Cling to the Hand who forgives, heals, renews, restores, and loves us forever.

Run from evil and don’t look back.

Lord,

Thank you for all the ways you have rescued me in my life over the years.  Many lessons were learned and there are more to come for I am a work in progress.  Thank you for saving my soul, making me whole, renewing my mind, cleansing my heart daily of what is not of you, while restoring the joy of you in me and me in you.  Thank you for opportunities, like this daily writing, to tell others about you.  Thank you for not giving up on me.

In Jesus Name, Amen

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GOD KNOWS WHEN IS BEST!

Posted on October 9, 2024 by randscallawayffm

Sometimes I wonder if we put off God’s blessings by our delayed response or our arrogant disobedience.  Abram and Sarai wanted a son so badly that Sarai came up with a plan to help God’s plan be executed sooner rather than later.  After all, her biological clock is past ticking!  Abram agreed with the plan to sleep with Hagar the servant so a son could be produced—but it was not the son God promised to give them—according to His timing.  Misery followed the human response to God’s promise of taking the matter into their own hands.  But then God shows up…

God shows His unfailing, compassionate love by cleaning up the mess Abram and Sarai made along with the relationship between Hagar and Sarai.  God was faithful to His Chosen Abram and Sarai, even in their unfaithfulness.  On this new day, with new names and restored relationships with God, learning from the mistakes of the past, Abraham is found by the Lord who is ready to fulfill His promise. 

This conversation between the Lord and Abraham is precious to me and touches my heart deeply.  We have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God! I’ve messed up from time to time, gone my own way while thinking I was helping God out. This only served to postponed what God wanted to do in and through me.  But there is a Way back to God.  God forgives with power given to us to change our ways in Jesus Name.  He resumes the work of turning ashes of defeat caused by arrogance into the beauty of loving and serving Him once more. 

Yes, this powerful, loving, informative conversation between Abraham and His Lord demonstrates God’s compassionate, merciful nature toward all who bow down before Him and serve Him with gladness.   

Genesis 18

The Three Visitors

18 The Lord appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day. 2 Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.

3 He said, “If I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, do not pass your servant by. 4 Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet and rest under this tree. 5 Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way—now that you have come to your servant.”

“Very well,” they answered, “do as you say.”

6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. “Quick,” he said, “get three seahs of the finest flour and knead it and bake some bread.”

7 Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calf and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it. 8 He then brought some curds and milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set these before them. While they ate, he stood near them under a tree.

9 “Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him.

“There, in the tent,” he said.

10 Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.”

Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. 11 Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. 12 So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”

13 Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ 14 Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”

15 Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”

But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”

Abraham Pleads for Sodom

16 When the men got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. 17 Then the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? 18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him. 19 For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just, so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”

20 Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous 21 that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.”

22 The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the Lord. 23 Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it? 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”

26 The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”

27 Then Abraham spoke up again: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes, 28 what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?”

“If I find forty-five there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.”

29 Once again he spoke to him, “What if only forty are found there?”

He said, “For the sake of forty, I will not do it.”

30 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found there?”

He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”

31 Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?”

He said, “For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.”

32 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?”

He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.”

33 When the Lord had finished speaking with Abraham, he left, and Abraham returned home.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

The relationship between Abraham and his Lord—prompted by Lord as He appeared to Him—seems to be in restoration mode.  Abraham has learned a valuable lesson—He is not God.  Only God is God.  We bow down before Him.  We demonstrate our love for Him by serving Him.  We show our faith with believing and obeying what He says is best in His timing!

Speaking of timing; Abraham wasted no time in serving the Lord and the visitors with Him.  “If I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, do not pass your servant by. Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet and rest under this tree. Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way—now that you have come to your servant.”  Was Abraham missing the communion of relationship with the Lord?  Did Abraham feel like he was in “time out” for misbehaving badly?  I know how I feel when a loved one we haven’t seen for a while comes to visit—we are giddy with excitement.  We pull food from the cabinets and fridge to serve them.  We put out fresh towels in the bathroom.  We do this naturally because of our love for them.  We have missed them and we want to know it as we show it!

Did Abraham’s response to quickly serve with obedience pleasing to the Lord?  Apparently so such so that the Lord warmed up to Abraham’s love and service and let him in on what He had planned—with a birth announcement!!  What a treat to be back in communion with the Lord and to be shown His favor and blessing once more.  Abraham walking faithfully with the Lord again. He went back to His tent a happy man.

This passage serves as reminders to us:

There is NOTHING we have done that God will not forgive in Jesus Name. 

There is NOTHING too hard for the Lord. 

There is NOTHING that God does not already know. 

Upon repenting of all our sins to God; There is NOTHING that stands in the way of a loving, growing, intimate relationship with God, the Father through Jesus, His Son.

There is NO ONE who can come to the Father, except through Jesus our Lord and Savior who died in our place for our sins then rose again to give us hope of eternal life with Him in relationship to Him—forever! 

So, there’s NOTHING better than a relationship with God!

All because of JESUS who truly turns “Graves into Gardens,” from ashes to beauty.  This is the relationship we all seek—unfailing, relentless, unconditional, unchanging love.  Let’s pause to bow down and praise Him…

… I searched the world
But it couldn’t fill me
Man’s empty praise
And treasures that fade
Are never enough

… Then You came along
And put me back together
And every desire
Is now satisfied
Here in Your love

… Oh, there’s nothing better than You
There’s nothing better than You
Lord, there’s nothing
Nothing is better than You

… I’m not afraid
To show You my weakness
My failures and flaws
Lord, You’ve seen ’em all
And You still call me friend

… ‘Cause the God of the mountain
Is the God of the valley
There’s not a place
Your mercy and grace
Won’t find me again

… Oh, there’s nothing better than You
There’s nothing better than You
Lord, there’s nothing
Nothing is better than You

… You turn mourning to dancing
You give beauty for ashes
You turn shame into glory
You’re the only one who can

… You turn graves into garden
You turn bones into armies
You turn seas into highways
You’re the only one who can
You’re the only one who can

… Oh, there’s nothing better than You
There’s nothing better than You…

(Graves Into Gardens, Brandon Lake, Elevation Worship, Songwriters: Christopher Joel Brown / Steven Furtick / Brandon Lake / Tiffany Hammer)

Lord,

Thank you for saving my soul and making me whole again.

In Jesus Name, For Your Glory, Amen

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THE COVENANT DETAILS REVEALED

Posted on October 8, 2024 by randscallawayffm

In the world of law and lawyers, contracts are written between two parties to assure fairness in the workplace, in business and in personal transactions.  Adherence is important in keeping the contract. Contracts have specific “line items” indicating how the contract must be adhered to for a contract is binding and irrevocable—unless you find a “loophole” which seems to be the main work of lawyers today—to find a way out of doing what was originally agreed upon. 

It seems to be human nature to look for loopholes in life with God and others.  There are tasks that we think are highly offensive, take up too much time, or requires just too much from us.  So, we question God with why along with, “God, is this really necessary?”  All because we do not want to do what it takes to fully trust and obey the One who has our best interests at heart. Yikes. I am so grateful that God forgive us when we think we know what is best for us and fail miserably.

God’s covenant with Aram has new “line items” that required of Abram’s adherence of obedience.  The Lord appears to Him.  God then declares who He is with the call to “walk before me faithfully and be blameless.”  No problem for Abram.  He has learned his faith lessons well and has succeed to grow in faith so far. 

But then God asks him to do a specific task as a sign of the covenant between God and Abram and all his descendants after him.  “You want me to do what, now?”  Did Abram look for a loophole in the contract that day?

Genesis 17

The Covenant of Circumcision

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. 2 Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”

3 Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, 4 “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. 5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8 The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”

9 Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. 10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. 13 Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. 14 Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”

15 God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. 16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”

17 Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” 18 And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!”

19 Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. 20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation. 21 But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year.” 22 When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him.

23 On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him. 24 Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised, 25 and his son Ishmael was thirteen; 26 Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that very day. 27 And every male in Abraham’s household, including those born in his household or bought from a foreigner, was circumcised with him.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Real faith doesn’t seek loopholes around God’s call or in the fulfillment of His call. “On that very day Abraham…” Abraham quickly obeyed the covenant promise between them without questioning the why of circumcision.  But, Abram did wonder how a child could be born in their advanced age—with a chuckle.    

Real faith walks humbly with God consistently.  The word “blameless” is sometimes translated “perfect,” but it does not mean “sinless,” for that would be an impossible goal for anyone to reach. It means “single-hearted, without blame, sincere, wholly devoted to the Lord.” It was a call for integrity.  Abraham’s proves his faith is sincere in his prompt obedience to God. God keeps his promises and rewards our obedient faith. When God promises to direct our paths, we can be confident he will carefully lead us.

Real faith is a relationship with God that is sincere as we respond to God.  The phrase “My covenant” is used often in this chapter and defines God’s relationship with Abram.  Imagine Abraham returning to his camp to inform the people of God’s covenant stipulations, (especially the men), that he had a new name with purpose and promise! Some of them must have smiled and said, “Father of a multitude! Why, he and his wife are too old to have children!”

No matter what others said or believed, he looked at the dust beneath his feet or the stars in the heavens, and whenever anyone called him by name, Abraham was reminded of God’s gracious promise to give him many descendants.

God’s covenant with Abraham also includes us! All who trust Jesus Christ as Savior are spiritual children of Abraham (Galatians 3:6–9), and that will be a vast multitude (Revelation 7:9). God’s covenant promises to redeem us and be with us always is accomplished in Jesus, His Son.  Jesus is the promise of salvation delivered by God to us.  God’s love and commitment to His created culminates and is demonstrated through His Son, Jesus. Why?  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”  John 3:16-17

CIRCUMCISION’S DEEPER MEANING—

When God commanded Abraham to circumcise all the males, this wasn’t the shock we all think it was at that time.  Warren Wiersbe, theologian and Bible commentator writes;

“Circumcision was not a new rite, for other nations practiced it in Abraham’s time; but God now gave it new importance and special meaning. For the descendants of Abraham, circumcision was not an option; it was an obligation.”

“Since God’s covenant involved Abraham’s descendants or his ‘seed,’ it was fitting that the mark of the covenant was to be on the male organ of generation. Since all people are conceived in sin (Psalm 51:5), this special mark would remind them that they were accepted by God because of His gracious covenant.”

“The Jewish people eventually made this ritual a means of salvation; circumcision was a guarantee that they were accepted by God. They did not realize that circumcision stood for something much deeper: the person’s relationship to God. God wants to “circumcise our hearts” so that we are totally devoted to him in love and obedience (Deuteronomy 10:16; 30:6; Jeremiah 4:4; Romans 2:28, 29; 4:9–12). This “spiritual circumcision” is accomplished at conversion when the sinner believes in Christ and is baptized by the Spirit into the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13). This baptism identifies the believer with Christ in his death, burial, resurrection, and ascension, and also in his circumcision (Colossians 2:11, 12; Luke 2:21). It is not ‘the circumcision of Moses’ but ‘the circumcision of Christ’ that is important to the Christian believer.”—Wiersbe, Wiersbe Study Bible

Later, the Jewish leaders were confronted by God’s Son, Jesus on this issue of the circumcision of the heart.  And they had Him killed.  God knew they would.  But through Jesus death AND resurrection, we are made new in our relationship to God!—God’s Plan all along.

Sarai got a new name with a promise, too.  She will now be called Sarah, the mother of many nations.”  How did she respond? –with a chuckle.  More to come…stay tuned!

Lord,

Cleanse our hearts by removing all that offends you by cutting away our sins by your love, mercy, and grace.  Renew our minds with your higher ground thinking.  Refresh our souls with your tender new mercies for today.  Restore the joy of your salvation at work within us as we enjoy a wholly committed relationship with you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

In Jesus Name, Amen

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BLESSINGS DERAILED BY IMPATIENCE

Posted on October 7, 2024 by randscallawayffm

There shall be showers of blessing:
  This is the promise of love;
There shall be seasons refreshing,
  Sent from the Savior above.

 Showers of blessing,
  Showers of blessing we need;
Mercy-drops round us are falling,
    But for the showers we plead.

How many times have we impatiently jumped in to humanly correct a problem that our Sovereign God has already promised to solve?  What are we thinking?  Do we think that our idea would save God time and move His work along a bit faster?  Maybe we even rationalized that our way is what God wanted all along?  Is this what prompts our arrogant prayers at times with the plea, “Lord, bless our plans;” instead of the humble prayer of, “Lord, what is your plan?”

We must learn to stick to the prayer Jesus taught us to pray believing that God will answer for our good and His glory.  We must pray to God, The Father with honest, sincere, patient hearts and plead, “May your will be done, in your time, in your way.”  Showers of blessings that our Father wants to pour out over us are derailed or postponed at times by our impatient self-will. Impatient living affects everyone around us.  Oh Lord, help us all, In Jesus Name, Amen.

There shall be showers of blessing—
  Precious reviving again;
Over the hills and the valleys,
  Sound of abundance of rain.

Showers of blessing,
  Showers of blessing we need;
Mercy-drops round us are falling,
    But for the showers we plead.

Not too long ago, Abram was assured and reminded by God that He would bless him with offspring.  (Genesis 15) But the aging Abram and Sarai faltered in their faith and just couldn’t see how, so they came up with a plan…a human plan.

Genesis 16

Hagar and Ishmael

16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar; 2 so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”

Abram agreed to what Sarai said. 3 So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. 4 He slept with Hagar, and she conceived.

When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress. 5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.”

6 “Your slave is in your hands,” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her.

7 The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. 8 And he said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”

“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.

9 Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” 10 The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.”

11 The angel of the Lord also said to her:

“You are now pregnant
    and you will give birth to a son.
You shall name him Ishmael,
    for the Lord has heard of your misery.
12 He will be a wild donkey of a man;
    his hand will be against everyone
    and everyone’s hand against him,
and he will live in hostility
    toward all his brothers.”

13 She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” 14 That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi; it is still there, between Kadesh and Bered.

15 So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. 16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.


WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

There shall be showers of blessing;
  Send them upon us, O Lord!
Grant to us now a refreshing;
  Come, and now honor Thy Word.

Showers of blessing,
  Showers of blessing we need;
Mercy-drops round us are falling,
    But for the showers we plead.

In this story of God, God reveals His love and compassion to Hagar, who was used and abused by Sarai who she served with obedience.  Note that God sought her out and found her.  He saw her hurt and misery and gave her what no one else did—love, attention, and care with a way forward.  This Egyptian, who knew nothing of God except through Abram and Sarai, know knew God for herself— “I have now seen the One who sees me.”  God comes to all who call out for mercy. 

There shall be showers of blessing;
  O that today they might fall,
Now as to God we’re confessing,
  Now as on Jesus we call!

Showers of blessing,
  Showers of blessing we need;
Mercy-drops round us are falling,
    But for the showers we plead.

God gives purpose with a plan for Hagar who has run away.  “Where do you come from and where are you going?” Did that hit your heart?  It did mine.  What a God we have that helps us see the fruitlessness our plan that is no plan at all that can save us!  God gives direction to Hagar that won’t be easy but doable with His help.  “Go back to Sarai and submit to her.”  Wow, go back where the abuse began?  God, there must be a better way!  But Hagar did what “the God who sees her” said to do for she now has a relationship with God.  He is the God who saved her. God changes everything in Hagar.

God rescues those who are caught up in the human, sinful plans of others.  Then God steps in to correct and redirect His humans back to His perfect plan.  God loves us that much! God is unfailing even when we fail Him.  God’s love is unchanging even though we change our minds about how we love Him back.  God is faithful—always—even when we are not.  Our God is amazing!  To God be the glory! 

Abram and Sarai lost patience with God and decided to do life on their own for a time. We learn that life didn’t’ go well for them and all those around them. Peace alluded the household.  The relationship between Abram and Sarai was tense and intense.

But then God stepped in to do what He does best—He made a way through it all.  God displays His perfect patience and delivers what He promises no matter what humans try to do to derail His Plan.  The blessing over Abram is fulfilled.  Stay tuned…there’s more!

There shall be showers of blessing,
  If we but trust and obey;
There shall be seasons refreshing,
  If we let God have His way.

Lord,

Forgive us our sins of impatience that lead to bad behaviors that are not of you. Cleanse our hearts, renew our minds, refresh our souls with your tender new mercies daily, and restore the joy of your salvation at work within us to be and do all that pleases you.  I believe for you have seen me.

In Jesus Name, Amen

Showers of blessing,
  Showers of blessing we need;
Mercy-drops round us are falling,
    But for the showers we plead.

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