Developing Faith...

"Jesus is so much more than a logical proof. His life is the starting point of where ours actually begins." -pg 20 UnChristian by David Kinnaman

Abram.

A man best known for his faithfulness. I don't know about you, but sometimes when I think about those known for having great faith I seem to elevate them in my mind. They are the individuals that my heart longs to be but my reason pulls back into line. Yet, this morning I was reading in Genesis about Abram and after God had called him away from his homeland, he landed himself in Egypt. There Abram's faith was tested, and he actually failed pretty badly.

Sarai, his wife was very beautiful and Abram knew that the Pharaoh would want to take her into his harem of women. If he knew that they were married, Abram was basically a dead man (so he thought). So Abram lied and said she was his sister. Where was his great faith then? Pharaoh was not a dumb man however, and when his household began to experience plagues he knew that something was up. It didn't take him long to figure out that Abram's God was punishing him so he banished Abram and Sarai.

Abram's servants probably had it good in Egypt. They had come to a land of plenty and thrived there until Abram unwisely made a decision on his own without consulting God. In their eyes his integrity was probably put to question.

But Abram didn't stop listening to God after he failed that time to trust that God his hand in the situation. The next story we read is of Abram and his nephew Lot needing to split up....

"So Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev, with his wife and everything he had, and Lot went with him. Abram had become very wealthy in livestock and in silver and gold. From the Negev he went from place to place until he came to Bethel, to the place between Bethel an Ai where his tent had been earlier and where he had first built an altar. There Abram called on the name of the Lord. Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. But the land could not support them while they stayed together. And quarreling arose between Abram's herdsmen and the herdsmen of Lot. The Canaanites an Perizzites were also living in the land at that time.
So Abram said to Lot, "Let's not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herdsmen and mine, for we are brother. Is not the whole land before you? Let's part company. If you go to the left, I'll go to the right; if you go to the right, I'll go to the left."
Lot looked up and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan was well watered, like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, toward Zoar. So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company. Abram lived int eh land of Canaan, while Lot lived among the cities of the plain and pitched his tents near Sodom. Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the Lord."

Do you remember the scene in Finding Nemo where Dory and Marlin come upon the dark dike and they have the choice of going through or swimming over? Dory knew that for some reason they were supposed to swim through, but due to her short memory she could not remember why. Marlin looked at both choices and for him it was a no-brainer; swim over top- it looked much less ominous. Little did Marlin know that his lack of trust in his friend would get them both in very dangerous situation with hundreds of jellyfish. He trusted in his instinct over trusting in a friend.

When Abram and Lot were looking at the lands, there was one that looked much more fertile then the next. Abram had been promised by God that He would take care of him and all he had to do was have faith. Earlier in Egypt Abram had looked at the circumstances and used his own instinct to determine his actions. I'm sure that this situation was tempting to do the same in. Lot and him needed to split up; there was not room for the both of them. If God said that Abram was going to prosper than he would need a fertile land to live on, so shouldn't he have chosen the fertile land right away?

Abram's integrity probably was significantly lowered in the eyes of his servants after the incident in Egypt. Allowing Lot to choose the land first might have been a thoughtful gesture, but probably wasn't too reassuring for his servants. But this time Abram chose to trust that no matter what choice befell him, God would be with him and take care of him. Consequently, Abram drew what seemed to be the short end of the stick. However, after he allowed Lot to choose first, God blessed him and said, "Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you."

What is encouraging to me about this story is Abram's developing faith. He initially had messed up and allowed his distrust of God to direct his actions, but he learned from his mistake and the next time, even though it was tempting to assume that God had the fertile land waiting for him, he decided to allow his brother-in-law choose and trust that God had Abram's best interest in mind no matter what the outcome.

I pray that we all would have a developing faith. We are going to have times where we don't trust God in the way that we should, and God will be disappointed with us. But that is not how he wants us to live our lives. He wants us to develop in our trust of him. He has a purpose, plan, and future for us. (Jeremiah 29:11)

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1) "By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made is home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God." (Hebrews 11:9-10)



God is building a foundation and future for each of us. Trust. Have a developing faith in Him. Wait and watch Him work in incredible ways in your lives.