It's Not All About the Money

Scripture Reading (this is a long one, folks... get comfy!)

So Abram left Egypt and traveled north into the Negev, along with his wife and Lot and all that they owned. (Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold.) From the Negev, they continued traveling by stages toward Bethel, and they pitched their tents between Bethel and Ai, where they had camped before. This was the same place where Abram had built the altar, and there he worshiped the LORD again.

Lot, who was traveling with Abram, had also become very wealthy with flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, and many tents. But the land could not support both Abram and Lot with all their flocks and herds living so close together. So disputes broke out between the herdsmen of Abram and Lot. (At that time Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land.)

Finally Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not allow this conflict to come between us or our herdsmen. After all, we are close relatives! The whole countryside is open to you. Take your choice of any section of the land you want, and we will separate. If you want the land to the left, then I’ll take the land on the right. If you prefer the land on the right, then I’ll go to the left.”

Lot took a long look at the fertile plains of the Jordan Valley in the direction of Zoar. The whole area was well watered everywhere, like the garden of the LORD or the beautiful land of Egypt. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) Lot chose for himself the whole Jordan Valley to the east of them. He went there with his flocks and servants and parted company with his uncle Abram. So Abram settled in the land of Canaan, and Lot moved his tents to a place near Sodom and settled among the cities of the plain. But the people of this area were extremely wicked and constantly sinned against the LORD.

After Lot had gone, the LORD said to Abram, “Look as far as you can see in every direction—north and south, east and west. I am giving all this land, as far as you can see, to you and your descendants^[a] as a permanent possession. And I will give you so many descendants that, like the dust of the earth, they cannot be counted! Go and walk through the land in every direction, for I am giving it to you.”

So Abram moved his camp to Hebron and settled near the oak grove belonging to Mamre. There he built another altar to the LORD.

~ Genesis 13, New Living Translation

Reflection

As both Abram and his nephew Lot accumulate wealth, the two men show very different attitudes towards possessions.  Abram, secure in God's promise to make a great nation of his descendants, surrenders his right to the first pick of territory for his estate.  Lot is opportunistic and chooses what he believes to be the most fertile, well-watered terrain for himself.

The results?  Lot made a choice for material wealth based on what his physical eyes could see.  But pay attention to the almost inconspicuous side note: "...Lot moved his tents to a place near... the cities of the plan.  But the people of this area were extremely wicked and constantly sinned against the Lord."

In contrast, Abram's trust in God is rewarded by God re-affirming His earlier promise to him.  

Abram displayed an understanding that his wealth did not come from the land where he would settle, nor from the flocks he owned, but from the God who was leading him and providing for him.  Because he knew God and was secure in God's promise, he did not need to greedily grasp everything around for himself.

Personal Application

Have you ever made a decision that was all about money?  In hindsight, did that build your relationship with the Lord, or did it pull you away from Him? 

Are you at that crossroads now?  Then ask yourself the following questions: Do I really trust the Lord to provide for my material needs?  Or do I put my trust in what I can see, like my job?  Do I assume that every open door of seeming opportunity is mine to take?  Or do I pray and ask God to lead me, trusting that His way will be best for me?

Prayer

"Dear Lord, I struggle with trusting you with my financial security.  Please forgive me for the times I have put my trust in what I can see with my own understanding, instead of trusting in You.  Please teach me how to rely on You. Help me to truly understand that YOU are my provider, that You are reliable, and that You will never break your promise to provide for my needs.  Help me to pray to You and look to Your word for guidance about my financial needs and strategies... and to obey You when You show me what to do."


Action


Join me in asking the Lord to make me God-centered and not materialistic ("me-centered") in my decisions.  These are the concrete steps I'm trying to take: will you join me?

• Set aside a portion of my earnings and financial gifts, to give to my church as a tithe or offering to the Lord
• Make it a habit to ask God to show me  HOW He wants me to spend money.  Maybe there's someone in need whom I can help this week.  Or maybe I lent someone some money and the Lord is gently encouraging me not to collect on that loan.  In other words, I want to practise being mindful of God in my financial decision-making.
• Whenever I start to worry about my financial security, I will pray about it instead, remembering all the times in the past that the Lord has provided for me in practical and many times miraculous ways.

God's Call... My Way?

Scripture Reading

 At that time a severe famine struck the land of Canaan, forcing Abram to go down to Egypt, where he lived as a foreigner.  As he was approaching the border of Egypt, Abram said to his wife, Sarai, “Look, you are a very beautiful woman.  When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife. Let’s kill him; then we can have her!’  So please tell them you are my sister. Then they will spare my life and treat me well because of their interest in you.”  

And sure enough, when Abram arrived in Egypt, everyone noticed Sarai’s beauty.  When the palace officials saw her, they sang her praises to Pharaoh, their king, and Sarai was taken into his palace.  Then Pharaoh gave Abram many gifts because of her—sheep, goats, cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels.

But the LORD sent terrible plagues upon Pharaoh and his household because of Sarai, Abram’s wife.  So Pharaoh summoned Abram and accused him sharply. “What have you done to me?” he demanded. “Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife?  Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ and allow me to take her as my wife?  Now then, here is your wife. Take her and get out of here!”

Pharaoh ordered some of his men to escort them, and he sent Abram out of the country, along with his wife and all his possessions.

~ Genesis 12:10-20,  New Living Translation

Reflection

Abram, called by God and on a journey ordained, sanctioned and led by God, takes matters into his own hands when he encounters a major obstacle: his own fear.  As he is about to take up temporary residence in Egypt to escape widespread famine, he instructs his wife, Sarai, to lie by saying that she is his sister, not his wife.  Abram fears that her beauty will drive men to kill him in order to get to her.

As a result, Sarai is taken into the Pharaoh's harem... And the Lord sends judgment to Pharaoh.  

In the end, Abram's sin has consequences that far outreach his own personal safety, which is what he was trying to protect in the first place.  In the process of obeying the big picture of God's call, he disobeys God and falls into sin in the everyday details as he tries to negotiate what seems to be an insurmountable difficulty.

Personal Application

How many times have I come up with my own solutions to the inevitable obstacles that arise as I pursue God's call on my life?  Do I trust God with the details, as well as the big picture?  

The path of righteousness is not a path of ease.  Jesus says: "The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way.  But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it." (Matthew 7:13-14, New International Version 1984).  

When I encounter obstacles, setbacks, difficulty, discomfort, I must look to God for the solution.  He wants me to fulfil His call, in His way.

Prayer

"Dear Lord, please forgive me for the times that I have stepped outside of Your will, even when I was in pursuit of Your call.  Help me to understand that even when I am doing Your will, many times it will be uncomfortable, fearsome, even painful.  Please remind me that, during those times, I need to come to You, hide in You, and rely on Your strength and wisdom instead of my own.  Then I will experience for myself that Your grace WILL take me safely through any storm that comes my way."

Action

Think about an obstacle or a difficulty you're facing right now.  Have you prayed about it?  Or are you already in the middle of executing your own rescue plan, without asking God for His guidance?  

• Stop and pray.  Tell God what's going on, including your fear and confusion.  
• Ask Him for His guidance, for strength to endure, and to boost your faith that He WILL make a way.  
• Write it down in your journal.  
• Tell a trusted friend or mentor and ask them to pray with and for you.    Then... 
• Expect God to answer in His own way, as you go about your daily life.  And, when He does, give Him thanks and praise!

Comfort with the Unfamiliar

Scripture Reading

The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you.I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others.  I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”

So Abram departed as the LORD had instructed, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.He took his wife, Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all his wealth—his livestock and all the people he had taken into his household at Haran—and headed for the land of Canaan.

~ Genesis 12:1-5, New Living Translation

Reflection

The Lord made wonderful, mind-blowing promises to Abram - promises to create a great nation from His descendants, to give him influence and power.  BUT in order for these promises to be fulfilled, Abram had to pay a price: the Lord called him away from everything that was familiar to him, to leave the land of his fathers and to go on a journey to a destination that the Lord had not yet revealed to him.

Personal Application

Do I have the kind of faith that will propel me to obey God's call, even though that call requires me to journey through unfamiliar, uncomfortable territory?

Prayer

Dear Lord, help me to follow You, despite my questions, despite the uncertainty of the unknown. Help me to keep putting my faith in You, knowing that You are my Shepherd, that You have promised to lead me along the paths that You have set for me.  You have promised never to leave me alone, and I will take You at Your word.  In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Action

Is there a step you're supposed to take, a new door that's been opened to you, or even just a strong desire and urgency to make a change you believe the Lord wants you to make?  Pray about it, seek wise counsel from a trusted mentor, then... Take the first step.  Then... see what happens next!