just because God doesn't give us all of the details doesn't mean we can't give him all of our trust...
Four years ago today I did the most rebellious thing I've done to date. One of those things that I said I would never do. And then I did. I didn't really think about it, and that's why I went through with it. Things are easier if you act without thinking. But let me just say that I wouldn't recommend that practice. I firmly believe that you should actually think about your actions before you carry them out because when you don't, you typically end up with a boat load of regret. But I didn't really think (much), I quickly acted, and honestly, I still don't have any regrets about it. Getting a tattoo, that is.
Certain things in life prompt us to action. I still remember why I threw my cautious ways to the wind and stuck my arm out for two whole minutes while a teeny tiny butterfly was etched forever into my skin. Truthfully, it was kind of a silly reason, but it made perfectly logical sense to me at the time. And despite the bad reputations that are often associated with tattoos, I haven't been flirting with darkness or danger since. I wasn't at the time, either. There's a movie called Juno about a teenage girl who gets pregnant, and during the movie she tells somebody, "I'm already pregnant. What other shenanigans am I going to get into?" I kind of felt like that. Like hey, my life has already been kind of ruined, so why not? I've already gone through something I swore up and down would never happen, so what's one more thing?
In Genesis 22 God called Abraham to do this wildly crazy thing and take his only son, Isaac, and sacrifice him. Come again? This is so bizarre and slightly disturbing. Why this, of all things, right? Why would God ask Abraham to walk a really difficult and unwanted road for what appears to be no good reason? Well, the beauty of being on this side of the story is we know exactly why. We know that God is testing Abraham's faith. He doesn't want his son, he wants Abraham's heart. And so spoiler alert, God provides a ram when it gets down to the wire, which takes Isaac's place on the alter. Because of his obedience and faith, God blesses Abraham immensely. God also sets the stage with a beautiful foreshadowing of what would happen years later when he would send his one and only son to be the sacrifice for your sins and mine. Of course, no one knew this but God himself. In fact, He is the only one who ever knows the full story.
God brought me back to Abraham and Isaac's story recently, and as I poured over the story praying for a fresh, new perspective, God did exactly that. Being a story I love dearly for many reasons, the Lord began showing me new things about this story. He began revealing new truths and reminding me of some that I had forgotten. And as I read the chapter over and over and over again, I realized this. Just because God doesn't give us all of the details doesn't mean we can't give him all of our trust. Just because we don't know the story doesn't mean we should stop living it out. Just because we aren't sure what the next chapter says doesn't mean we just give up and stop reading. Because if we do, if we stop, give up, quit moving forward, we miss out on the miracle. On the spectacular. We miss out on the incredible blessing God has in store for us.
I remember sitting in my car inspecting my new tattoo. I chose to get it on my left wrist a few inches from my ring finger. I was hopeful. Trusting that God wouldn't allow me to walk through devastating circumstances for no good reason. I was trusting that there was more to this story. That the one thing my heart really desired wouldn't be forever taken away from me. But I didn't know the whole story. I just knew the part I was living out. I had no idea what God would do. Neither did Abraham.
And so we have to make the choice to follow Who we know no matter what we know. To keep trusting him even if the only part of the story we know is the bad part. We have to seek Him regardless of how many details He shares, and we have to remember that He knows the whole story. He is writing it. He is the author and the perfector, so you don't need to worry about what to do next. He's gone before, and He's preparing the way. You just need to keep your eyes on Him and wherever he leads, you go because He is writing a story that is well worth the read.
"So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided." - Genesis 22:14
Certain things in life prompt us to action. I still remember why I threw my cautious ways to the wind and stuck my arm out for two whole minutes while a teeny tiny butterfly was etched forever into my skin. Truthfully, it was kind of a silly reason, but it made perfectly logical sense to me at the time. And despite the bad reputations that are often associated with tattoos, I haven't been flirting with darkness or danger since. I wasn't at the time, either. There's a movie called Juno about a teenage girl who gets pregnant, and during the movie she tells somebody, "I'm already pregnant. What other shenanigans am I going to get into?" I kind of felt like that. Like hey, my life has already been kind of ruined, so why not? I've already gone through something I swore up and down would never happen, so what's one more thing?
In Genesis 22 God called Abraham to do this wildly crazy thing and take his only son, Isaac, and sacrifice him. Come again? This is so bizarre and slightly disturbing. Why this, of all things, right? Why would God ask Abraham to walk a really difficult and unwanted road for what appears to be no good reason? Well, the beauty of being on this side of the story is we know exactly why. We know that God is testing Abraham's faith. He doesn't want his son, he wants Abraham's heart. And so spoiler alert, God provides a ram when it gets down to the wire, which takes Isaac's place on the alter. Because of his obedience and faith, God blesses Abraham immensely. God also sets the stage with a beautiful foreshadowing of what would happen years later when he would send his one and only son to be the sacrifice for your sins and mine. Of course, no one knew this but God himself. In fact, He is the only one who ever knows the full story.
God brought me back to Abraham and Isaac's story recently, and as I poured over the story praying for a fresh, new perspective, God did exactly that. Being a story I love dearly for many reasons, the Lord began showing me new things about this story. He began revealing new truths and reminding me of some that I had forgotten. And as I read the chapter over and over and over again, I realized this. Just because God doesn't give us all of the details doesn't mean we can't give him all of our trust. Just because we don't know the story doesn't mean we should stop living it out. Just because we aren't sure what the next chapter says doesn't mean we just give up and stop reading. Because if we do, if we stop, give up, quit moving forward, we miss out on the miracle. On the spectacular. We miss out on the incredible blessing God has in store for us.
I remember sitting in my car inspecting my new tattoo. I chose to get it on my left wrist a few inches from my ring finger. I was hopeful. Trusting that God wouldn't allow me to walk through devastating circumstances for no good reason. I was trusting that there was more to this story. That the one thing my heart really desired wouldn't be forever taken away from me. But I didn't know the whole story. I just knew the part I was living out. I had no idea what God would do. Neither did Abraham.
And so we have to make the choice to follow Who we know no matter what we know. To keep trusting him even if the only part of the story we know is the bad part. We have to seek Him regardless of how many details He shares, and we have to remember that He knows the whole story. He is writing it. He is the author and the perfector, so you don't need to worry about what to do next. He's gone before, and He's preparing the way. You just need to keep your eyes on Him and wherever he leads, you go because He is writing a story that is well worth the read.
"So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided." - Genesis 22:14
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