I’ll be preaching on “faith to go” in Bishops Stortford, UK, this Sunday, and have been struck in my preparation about the challenges before Abraham and Sarah in obeying God’s call: they left his father (his identity and family name), they left their family (those closest to them and their circle of support) and they left their land (their source of food and provision). Their obedience cost them everything, but God promised He would give them a name, provision, offspring and protection. God knows our needs better than we do.
God promises that when we sacrifice for Him, though it costs us hugely, that He will give back to us and care for us. This, ultimately, is the source of our faith: the fact that God promises to look after us as we look after His mission. It reminds me of David – as he felt a desire to build God a house in Jerusalem, God came to him and promised David that God would build him a house. I love the way David responds to God: “Is this the way you normally treat a man..?”
God’s purposes are so much larger than our individual lives, and yet our lives are very much a part of His purposes, and He is knows every intimate detail of our lives. What an awesome God! We can go, across the street, across the office, across the world, on His mission, knowing that He has us in His hand and that He cares for us.
