Leave Your Land
Read: Genesis 12:1-4a
The LORD said to Abram, “Leave your land, your family, and your father’s household for the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation and will bless you. I will make your name respected, and you will be a blessing” – Genesis 12:1-2, CEB
“Leave your land…” The first words of Genesis 12 immediately catch our attention. In the aftermath of the Tower of Babel, God chooses to covenant with Abram. God does so, because it is God’s choice. Abram is unaware of this call until it occurs. He has lived his life without any inkling of such a possibility. For the people of Abram’s time, you were born in your family’s land. You lived in your family’s land. You died and were buried in your family’s land. But God is a God of new opportunities. God is a God of change. And here now, God is calling Abram to a new land, a land where his descendant would live to become a great nation and be a blessing to others. It seems almost too good to be true, except for the “having to leave my family and my family’s land” part. That may be difficult. Also, Sarah, his wife, doesn’t know anything about this yet. This will lead to an interesting dinner conversation.
And, this may be important, too. They’re old, and they’re childless. When their family and friends look at them, they don’t exactly see “future” in them.
But here’s the thing… God sees the future in them and through them, and that, my friends, is enough. So, it begs the question: What does God see in us that we can’t see yet? How might a future blessing be unfolding among us and through us? When God calls, will we be able to say “Yes” like Abram and Sarah?
Prayer: God of new possibilities, God of new ways, may we never trap ourselves in the status quo. Give us a vision to see the future blessings that you will be unleashing through us. Give us the courage to trust you and your holy way, even when You call us into new experiences, new learnings, and new places. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
Rev. David Eardley
