Genesis 12:1-7

Spend time in prayer and silence with God asking him to meet you and speak to you.

Bible Reading

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. “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse, and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you. So Abram left, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran. He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all of the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.

Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land. So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him.

– Genesis 12:1-7

Devotion

This passage reminds us of God’s unfailing faithfulness, even though some of the great patriarchs told half-truths and repeatedly engaged in deception, even over generations. It is often easier to dwell on the negative and stay in the valleys of life than it is to see God’s blessings in and around our lives. Satan wants to remind us of our failures and keep us discouraged so that we don’t get back up and climb the mountain of God’s rich promises and blessings, even when those blessings greatly out-weigh the failures. Abram did obey God. He walked away from his home for God’s promise of even greater blessings in the future. Maybe God is trying to lead you to a place of greater service and usefulness for him. I truly hope we don’t let the comfort and security of our present positions make us miss out on God’s better plan for our lives. Let’s live entirely for God.

The Big Question

What are a couple of specific things (experiences) that can keep you in that “defeated” area of your life?

How can you use God’s faithfulness to Abram and his family to restore you and again bring joy and fullness to your life?

Conclude in prayer and silence reflecting on what you’ve learned.