Old Testament passage for Saturday, January 5, 2012: Genesis 11:1-13:4
1 Now the Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. 2 I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Genesis 21:1-3 (NKJV)
As we begin 2013, we think of things that God wants to do in this new year. We look forward to the ways He will lead us, the people who will be touched and affected, the ground we want to take for the Kingdom of God. God is always leading each of to higher ground. Perhaps you are at a crucial point in your life. It is time for change. You are on the brink of a new era. You are praying for God to give you breakthrough in the coming year.
God will give you vision of what He has for you. He will open your eyes to the places He wants to take you. It is exciting to hear from God. But it then requires steps to fulfill that vision.
The story of Abram speaks to us. God had powerful plans for this man hidden away in corner of the Chaldean empire. Abram (he later became Abraham) is a pattern for us of how to take new ground in our lives. There are four steps that were basic to the way God led Abram. The same steps apply to us.
1. God's call will PROPEL you in new directions. Vision is that way. It PROPELS you forward. God said, "Get out of your country." He calls us to get out of our comfort zones -- out of the safe places -- and out into the new territory He has for us. This requires simple OBEDIENCE.
2. God's vision for you it PROGRESSIVE. It does not come in one big epiphany. It somes progressively as you follow God's direction. God told Abram to go to "a land that I will show you." In other words, Abram would not know where it was until he actually walked into it. In fact, Abram initially went in the wrong direction. He went upstream to Haran which was northwest when all along he should have been traveling due west. Sometimes we don't know which way to go, we just need to get moving. God's will unfolds PROGRESSIVELY.
3. God's plan is always a PROCESS in your life. God told Abram that He would "make you a great nation." Abram was anything but a great nation when God said that. God told Abram that He was working in his life to make him into a different man. This is important. We often think that the end result is all God is after. He also is at work IN YOU to make you into a different person.
4. God's plan always POINTS beyond just you. It's not just about getting you to a better place. It's about the world that God loves. He tells Abram, "in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." God's will and call for you is not just about personal fulfillment. It is about touching a word in need of God's blessing.
This is the way vision works. This is the way God's call works. He is calling each of to do great things for Him in the new year. As He speaks to you, be ready to obey. Abraham was the father of faith. He moved out believing God. "THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."
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