The other day, I began thinking about 2 very different journeys described in the Bible. The first journey was that of Abraham. At the end of Genesis 11, we get a quick intro about who Abraham is and then bam . . . Gen 12:1 The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you.” How would you respond to that? How did Abraham respond? The answer comes quickly in Gen 12:4 So Abram left, as the Lord had told him . . .
Now, if you read through Genesis 12-25 you will find that Abraham’s journey was not always easy. He didn’t always make the best choices and he really blew it sometimes. Things were not always great. However, one thing you will see is Abraham’s faith and obedience. God called him on some pretty difficult journeys. He had to move away to a new land. He had to wait a long time to see God begin to fulfill His promises (and Abraham didn’t even see the promises completely fulfilled in his lifetime)! Abraham also had to choose to believe and obey God when he was asked to give up his one and only son Isaac. In the end, Abraham was blessed for his faith and became known as the Father of Nations.
The other journey that came to mind was that of the Israelites. They had been slaves in Egypt for over 400 years when God told Pharaoh “let my people go.” The Israelites watched the Egyptians suffer through the 10 plagues. They saw with their own eyes the power of their God. They were finally set free from slavery and Moses led them out of Egypt. This was just the beginning of their journey. The Israelites faced many obstacles. The first major problem was crossing the Red Sea. Things were looking bad and instead of trusting God to provide for them on this journey they freaked out. They told Moses he should have left them in Egypt. Then they watched the miracle of the Red Sea parting before their very eyes. God had called the Israelites to this journey. Of course he would provide for them. Unfortunately, the Israelites did not get this.
As they continued on their journey they began to complain. “If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.” (Exodus 16:3) What was their deal? The Israelites did not trust God. They did not believe that He really was taking them to the Promised Land. Instead, they were stuck in the past. By the way, they were stuck in a past that didn’t exist. They were remembering things way better than they ever were in Egypt. The people were oppressed and beaten. They had no freedom. God brought them on a journey to freedom. He loved them. They were His people. He wanted to bring them into the Promised Land—a land flowing with milk and honey.
The Israelites continued to blow it. They continually looked around at other nations and looked back at their past. When their journey was nearly complete, they blew it again. Moses sent 12 spies into Canaan to report on the land. The spies confirmed that Canaan was indeed a land flowing with milk and honey. However, they also reported that there were giants in the land and many powerful people and large, fortified cities. Two of the spies (Joshua and Caleb) wanted go and take possession of the land. They trusted God when He said He would give it to them. The other ten spies and the rest of the Israelites were afraid. They wept and even wanted to pick a new leader to take them back to Egypt. God was very displeased. As a result, only Joshua and Caleb were allowed to eventually enter the Promised Land. The Israelites lack of trust and obedience resulted in missing out on the blessings and the abundant life that God had for them.
So, why the mini-sermon? You are each on a journey—your own journey. Not one of you will walk the same exact path. Along the way, you will experience unique joys and hardships, but God also has special blessings and an abundant life planned especially for you. The question . . . how will you journey? Will you be like Abraham and embrace the journey God has for you? Will you trust him even when the road seems long and hard? Will you believe him even when you don’t understand and will you praise him for moving you along? Or will you be like the Israelites? Will you continually look back and complain that life was better before? Will you look around and compare your journey to those around you? Will you look ahead with fear and not trust God to always be with you?
My prayer for each one of you is that you will embrace the journey God has for you. I pray that you will allow God to continually lead you, guide you, and shape you into the woman he has created you to be. From my own journey, I can tell you that He is completely faithful and so worthy of your trust.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 3:5-6
