“font-size: 9pt; font-family: Verdana;”>“The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your fathers household and go to the land I will show you. 2 “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you;
“font-style: italic;”> you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you”. 3 So Abram left, as the Lord had told him…..” (Gen. 12: 1-4) “font-family: Verdana;”>
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Imagine this. It’s forth and long. Two minutes left in the game. The starting quarterback has just been carted off the field with a broken leg. Your team is down by two, with the ball on your own 20 yard line.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>You’re the back up quarterback; and as soon as the injury cart clears the field, the coach looks at you and tells you to get in the game. Excitedly, you motion to a teammate to play catch with you so that you can get loose; but the coach looks at you once again and yells, “Get in the game! We don’t have time for warm up tosses. It’s time to play”
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>When God sequestered Abram’s attention to follow him in the scripture noted in Genesis, He did so without allowing him the luxury of gaining comfort with his assignment. According to the call, Abram can’t try his assignment on for size, and send it in for alterations if he feels that it doesn’t quite fit him. Nor is he at liberty to commute back and forth between his comfort zone and this abstract, unspecified, mysterious place of eventual blessing to which God is calling him.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Rather, God calls for an immediate commitment. Play now, or get off the field! There is no time to think about it. No time to pray about it, and no time to follow up with God in a few days after he’s considered it with his prayer partner. No, Abram must immediately assess and act upon the validity of God’s word now; and his decision to act or to abstain from action will set the course for both his life and his legacy.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>As with Abram, God is constantly presenting opportunities for us to yield our lives to Him in ways that will increase our faith capacity to both believe in, and act on his word. Human faith and divine response is a reciprocal two-way process, and is the only established transactional currency accepted as legal tender between God and man; because our faith honors God, and God in turn honors our faith.
“font-size: 9.0pt; font-family: Verdana;”>Whether you’re hearing God’s voice for the first time, or trying God out for the first time, or even boldly trusting God with everything for the first time, it doesn’t matter. God requires faith and obedience as raw materials for building a relationship with Himself. Confused, nervous, uncertain, or afraid, if God says go, go anyway! Abram did!
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