Giving up our way of doing things is easier said than done. We try over and over again to bring things to pass on our own ignoring the need to rest in God allowing his promises to simply come to pass. When we are do things according to our own understanding, we try, work, toil, and do various different things on our own to bring things to pass that are already given to us and promised to us.
When we choose to put our trust in the Lord though it doesn’t make any sense to us, God always comes through and provides.
Recently, I’ve been meditating on the story of Issac and Abraham when Abraham was asked to sacrifice his son. It took faith and a putting off of his own understanding to get his son of promise. We all know that Abraham was old approximately 99 when he had his child Issac. His natural situation along with his wife’s was pretty much dead. There would be no producing of a child without the supernatural intervention of God.
Similar to many of our situations: Some of our situations are dead. We have tried all types of things to produce God’s promise in our lives on our own to no avail. When we get tired of doing things our way and decide to rest in God’s covenant and just obey him even when it doesn’t make good sense, we can expect God to move on our behalf.
Abraham is a man in the Bible marked by faith. The Bible says when God first told Abraham about a child of promise, he believed. Abraham’s faith and trust grew more in the Lord and he was finally granted his son. Now that he had gotten that thing that he had so patiently waited on. It was time for a test. Abraham, “Do you still love me more than anything? Are you still willing to obey me more than anything now that you have gotten your promise?”
God tests Abraham asking him to sacrifice his son. Abraham again responds in faith knowing God’s character he trusts the Lord all the way saying that God will provide a sacrifice and my son and I will come back (Genesis 22:5). He gets everything ready to sacrifice his son and an angel from heaven yells stop, do not harm the boy. God says, “Now I know you still fear me (reverence me, hold me in high esteem) because you have not held back your son your only son.
That thing that was most precious to Abraham that he had believed God for, God wanted Abraham to not get so caught up in it that he would forget and no longer reverence the Lord. After God was able to see that Abraham was still willing to honor and obey God despite the promise he provided Abraham with more.
The whole ordeal ends with Abraham saying that God will provide. The reality is God will provide everything that he has promised us. That is his character and who he is. He keeps his word, but he wants more importantly to fellowship with us which can only be done when we reverence him. He wanted to make sure he still had Abraham’s heart after the gift had been given, and it was so.
When we are willing to let go from our way of doing things and rest in God following and trusting closely in him, we too will experience seeing God’s fulfilling of his promises in our lives and that along with a deeper intimacy and faith toward the Lord like Abraham.
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