Following God

Motivation for Bible study should be to help mold us into the person God wants us to become. Bible study is one way the indwelling Holy Spirit works on our hearts. While not the primary reason, an added result is that we gain personal encouragement. Yes, for the Christian we model Jesus and God is always first. Abraham had a similar attitude about following God. 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” (Genesis 12:1). God didn’t give Abram (later to be called Abraham) a detailed map or even show him the exact final destination. He basically said, “Abram, leave your comfort zone and go where I will show you.” The promise was that He would bless Abram and his descendants, if Abram obeyed him. Abram didn’t know the end destination or the pathway before him, but he knew and trusted God’s character, so he obeyed anyway. Abram’s pathway was revealed one step at a time. And with each step, Abram was directed a little more from God, and the pathway became more visible. As Christians we are expected to walk along our individual pathways learning more lessons as we walk through our individual journey. Like Abraham, God wants His servants to continually step out of any comfort zones and trust him with the unknowns. When we do that we leave room for God to guide us. But what does that guidance look like? If God were to specify the details of each step, we would be like automatons and God didn’t create us that way. Humans are free will individuals, who need to be molded because of information gained from good and bad choices. We are not molded by things for which we are not responsible. Abraham made poor choices and mistakes, but because he depended on God, a positive result was guaranteed. Abraham apparently struggled with some decisions, but God was his strength and power.
A second observation is possible. As we look at Abraham’s actions, we see a person who took one step at a time. On this pathway of unknowns, if we move too quickly, we might become overwhelmed and give up because the path ahead seems too hard. We might imagine the place we need to be, but don’t have even a clue about how to get there. When Abraham struggled with needing an heir, he didn’t know how best to overcome lack of a son. The solution he and Sarai chose had everlasting struggles. Then, resolution to the promised heir came after a very long wait. He needed to continue trusting God for many unproductive years. Finally, the promised heir was a reality and though the wait had been long and some struggles were encountered, the promise was finally fulfilled and another step was taken. Each step of his step-by-step attitude was made under the realization of the present moment. Like Abraham, all of us can take one step at a time.
Third, some steps become very confusing. In Abraham’s pathway, the next step was to defy all expectations and sacrifice the promised heir to the God he followed. Gone would be his joy and promise of a future lineage. During the time leading to the sacrifice of Isaac, Abraham could gain strength from remembering the results of past times when he had followed God’s directions more carefully. He didn’t understand what the final outcome would be, how the promise of a family would unfold, how he could do what he was asked to do. This was a difficult step. In his mind, Abraham completed the needed action, but he was prevented from actually following through completely. God needed a sacrifice, but he supplied another subject at the very end. Once Abraham’s obedience had been demonstrated, a different conclusion was revealed. This was another step which didn’t end the way it apparently would. As we experience formidable obstacles along our spiritual journey, the end may be very different than we expected. I we overanalyze and plan all our actions, when the detailed events don’t unfold as we expect, we can become worried and our actions slowed or even paralyzed. Taking small steps along a parallel, supporting path can ease these worries because the act of doing something takes on a life of its own. If we concentrate on the parallel task at hand, not the results that will come later, our minds may be calmed. Taking actions regularly is a way of living in the moment and often deletes some of the fears of the future and regrets of the past.
Like Abraham, your spiritual and physical journeys probably has had and will have twists and turns, hills and valleys, detours and recoveries.
Abraham was able to trust God in the not knowing because he believed that God was with him. Christians also have this assurance because the Holy Spirit dwells within us. Jesus said, “…be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”