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And all who went out of the gate of his city listened to Hamor and his son Shechem, and every male was circumcised, all who went out of the gate of his city. Genesis 24:34

Dinah, Jacob’s daughter, has been raped by the son of the king of Shechem. Her brothers are bent on revenge. Their plan is to compromise the physical strength of the men of Shechem so that they will be able to do them harm without risking their own lives. Specifically, they will feign making a treaty, suggesting that all the men of Shechem be circumcised, leading them to believe that both tribes will share the sacred rite of brotherhood. The trouble is, that circumcision, the sign of the covenant between Jewish people and their God, is being used as a weapon.

To understand how serious this is, think of it this way. You invite a certain person to share communion with you on Sunday and after the service, you take advantage of his proximity to kill him. Shocking to think of it this way.

There are lesser acts of treachery too; praying with someone to learn their secrets, buttering up the pastor for personal gain, marrying someone for money, and making a promise with your fingers crossed behind your back.

Simeon and Levi are the two sons of Jacob that mastermind this scheme. Later, Jacob will give his final blessing to his sons and each will be given land as an inheritance. All except Simeon and Levi. Jacob will not be able to forget what is in the heart of his sons.  He will be right to question their loyalty.  These two brothers will go on to plot unthinkable things against their own brother, Joseph. They will seize him, and toy with murdering him, but instead, will sell him into slavery. They’ll dip his clothes in the blood of an animal and proceed to massacre the heart of their father by saying that a wild beast killed him.

When I perpetrate deceitful acts, even small ones, they corrupt my heart. My response to wrongdoing is deadened. The next time around, it will be easier to do it again. I will not be in touch with the regression. Not until it’s too late.

It is a courageous thing to search my heart and ask some tough questions.  What is being done in the name of Jesus that God would consider treacherous? Where, in the name of God, am I manipulating others and justifying it?

Don’t let me read the stories in scripture, be shocked by their evil, and fail to see my own sin. Let the stories in Your Word be my teacher, Lord. Amen

“Please tell me whose daughter you are. Is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?” She said to him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah. We have plenty of both straw and fodder, and room to spend the night.” The man bowed his head and worshiped the Lord and said, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken his steadfast love and his faithfulness toward my master. As for me, the Lord has led me in the way to the house of my master’s kinsmen.”   Genesis 24:23-27

For the most part, we are consumed with ourselves.  Any passion we feel about life has to do with something that directly affects us or our family.  It goes against our nature to fight self-centeredness.  I don’t recall getting something I really wanted as a child and willingly offering it to someone else instead.  I’m sure I clutched it to myself and said, “Mine!” 

What strikes me today about Eleazar is the spontaneous burst of praise that erupted when God confirmed that Rebekah was His choice for Isaac.  Though Isaac was not Eleazar’s own child, he was so elated for his master that he stopped to worship.  It would have been easy to check this mission off his list.

How many people am I this invested in?  Jesus defined discipleship as this:  believing on Him, picking up our cross, then loving His Father and loving others. “No greater love hath any man than this, that he lay down his life for his friend.”  Eleazar’s whole life revolved around serving Abraham.  It was not done begrudgingly ~ as evidenced by this specific part of the story.  Playing a part in the covenant promise to Abraham and his line of descendants was a high priority and he proved it when he set off on an arduous journey, followed by making a high-stakes choice of a bride for the next patriarch.  Amid this difficult mission, he celebrated as if the success had benefitted him personally.  What love and devotion in action!

Change my selfish heart.   Amen

Then the servant ran to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water to drink from your jar.” She said, “Drink, my lord.” And she quickly let down her jar upon her hand and gave him a drink. When she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking.” So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough and ran again to the well to draw water, and she drew for all his camels.  Genesis 24:17-20

I will tell you that my past is riddled with the fallout from having been a bad judge of character.  Though I am by nature an intuitive person, I have been naïve about evil.  If someone claimed to be a Christian, I trusted them beyond a point that was prudent.  This came from a lack of instruction in my home.  My parents were also naïve, though I came to understand that they had reservations about people they failed to act upon.

God has been growing me up over the course of my adult life to understand that it’s the little things that give a person away.  And it’s the little things I can easily discount, or excuse, that will get me into trouble.

Eleazer was looking for a girl with good character and a good heart.  It was the little gesture from Rebekah that allowed him to discern that she was qualified to be Isaac’s wife.   Though Eleazar only asked her for a drink for himself, she went above his request by offering to water his entire group of camels.  This meant considerable physical labor for her.

How many have made bad choices in marriage by ignoring the little signs?  If a man (or woman) is guilty of angry outbursts in their twenties, you can be sure that left unchecked, it will only escalate.  To say, “Oh, he just had a bad day!” is to be naïve.  Everyone has bad days but many show restraint and model patience.

In these end times, it is imperative that each one in God’s family asks for wisdom and discernment.  There are many out to deceive and draw the flock away from Jesus.  They look good, even sound good, but it’s the little things that will give them away.  If you’re looking for a pastor, business partner, marriage partner, or prayer partner, be careful.  Excusing bad behavior, even in the mundane, will prove disastrous.

So many of us have been burned because we trusted without wisdom.  Teach us by showing us the signs that we missed.   Amen

Let the young woman to whom I shall say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who shall say, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels’ – let her be the one whom you have appointed for your servant Isaac.  By this I shall know that you have shown steadfast love to my master.”  Genesis 24:14

Because of Jesus’ harsh words in the Gospels about asking for a sign, I can wrongly conclude that asking for such a thing is displeasing to God.  But this story is just one passage in the Old Testament that proves God gladly gives signs.  The difference between an acceptable request and an unacceptable one is the reason behind the person making it.

Eleazar was on a mission for his master, Abraham.  Not just any girl would do for a wife for Isaac.  Eleazar knew that her life would be blessed but very difficult.  It would require unusual character and stamina, someone who would go the extra mile and not take shortcuts.  While other young women might offer a stranger a drink and be done with it, there would perhaps be one who would go above what was asked, such as extending the invitation to drink to all Eleazer’s weary camels.

There is a great difference between asking for a sign and making a demand. The first comes from trust and dependence and the latter comes from unbelief.   In a dark period of anger and unbelief, I remember putting God in a corner. “If you love me, You’ll reveal Yourself supernaturally to me in the next 24 hours.”  He didn’t and my anger grew.  Accusations abounded.  Humility was removed from the forefront.

 If signs were evil, then why would God give Jesus as a sign?  Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.  Is.7:14   When His people, in the context of relationship, looked longingly for salvation, God gave the best sign of all.  His only Son!

Perhaps God has spoken to you about your future.  You know that He is a covenant-keeping God.  You are standing in faith, watching for the fulfillment of what He has promised.  Along the journey, there have been some discouraging days but you cried out to God to strengthen your weakened heart. God knows what plagues you while you wait.  He is the one who sent angels to minister to Jesus in the wilderness when He was depleted and weary.  Only heaven will reveal the many ways He quietly held you and gave you spiritual wind for another day.  

I anticipate the stories of Your faithfulness to me.  I see them now with eyes of faith. Amen 

Now Abraham was old, well advanced in years. And the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things. And Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his household, who had charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh, that I may make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell, but will go to my country and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son Isaac.”  Genesis 24:1-4

Who near you is willing to serve as a spiritual ally for your family?  I’m speaking of someone who loves members of your family just because you love them.  Someone who will invest in their future as a parent would.  Think of how many deathbed requests along this line have been made.  “Please take care of my child, or my wife, in my absence.”  Even Jesus, though near death on the cross, couldn’t stop thinking about his mother and asked John to consider her as his own mother.  For the rest of Mary’s life, she was in John’s household.

Abraham knew he was at the end of his life.  He believed God for the promise of future generations.  As long as he was alive, he could obey God and see the line blessed.  But soon out of the picture, the outcome seemed fragile.  For instance, his son, Isaac, now living near the Canaanites, could marry one of their women. How many families have taken a bad spiritual detour because of a bad marriage!

There was one man nearby to whom Abraham could entrust this critical situation.  Eleazar, the long-time steward of his household.  What a comfort for this old father to know that Eleazar would accept the challenge and responsibility for Isaac’s future.

Some have large families and know the benefits of having many blood relatives who will nurture the spiritual lives of their children.  Others have little family, so they lean into the relationships inside of God’s family.  With a chosen few, they enjoy a bond like that of Abraham and Eleazar. 

How many mentors have raised other children and kept them on God’s path?  A lot.  The promise Eleazar made to Abraham would mean a long journey to find Isaac’s wife.  Love for God and love for Abraham fueled his journey and he saw it through to its righteous conclusion.

Order my steps to last beyond my own life.  Amen

            The servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman may not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I then take your son back to the land from which you came?”     Abraham said to him, “See to it that you do not take my son back there. The Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my kindred, and who spoke to me and swore to me, ‘To your offspring I will give this land,’ he will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.  Genesis 23:5-7

By nature, I could be a chronically fearful person.  My father was.  So was his mother.  I can remember visiting my grandmother often as a kid and seeing her wring her hands with a far off look in her eyes.  Eaten alive by the what ifs has been a family trait.  Fighting for faith instead of fear is hard work, especially because each what if seems so logical.  If it didn’t seem feasible, the thoughts wouldn’t stick.

Abraham models how to handle the uncertainties of the future.  He’s about to send Eleazar on a long journey.  He wants him to visit the land of Ur, his home country, to secure a wife for Isaac from the Jewish line.  But Eleazar sees one huge obstacle.  What if the potential bride refuses to return with him?  What then?

Abraham won’t even consider that.  His response is that God will go before him and make all things possible.  His trust that God will protect His line of descendants is rock solid.  He had a string of miracles to prove it.

A close friend of mine is eight years older than I am.  She models this kind of faith well and I’m amazed by it.  I know her life and it hasn’t been easy at all.  It still isn’t.  She has been the recipient of grim news many times throughout the time we’ve been friends.  The what ifs could have eaten her alive, but I’ve never seen it happen.  Though momentarily stunned, she digs deeply into her spirit and moves beyond unbelief. She’s trusted God in the dark, and to this day, she lives in peace.  Circumstantially, her life is not dependably peaceful.

No wonder scripture begs us to take every thought captive.  It implores us to reign them in.  Don’t feed them.  Not only do I think of many what ifs but so does my enemy.  He’s right there to feed the likelihood of dismal outcomes. 

I can worry about the future as if You won’t be in it.  Not only do You promise to be there, but You are preparing every sandaled footprint from here to there.  Let this slow the beating of my heart.  Amen 

Sarah lived 127 years; And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.  Genesis 23:1-2

It is only right and fair to remember Sarah’s life today.  She lived 127 years and survived many hardships.  Her struggles were public as many of her triumphs and failures were captured for all of us to read.  She was named as an example of one who trusted in Yahweh.  Isaiah 51:2  She was mentioned as one whose faith was counted as righteousness.  Romans 4:19  She did a lot wrong but, oh, she did a lot right.  What can I learn from her?

1. She persevered.  Abraham loved her but he was anything but a perfect husband.  He betrayed her badly when he tricked two kings into believing that she was his sibling, not his wife.  A pawn in Abraham’s hands, she was given over to be part of the kings’ harem.  It was God who had to step in to guard her chastity.  Despite this treachery in her marriage, she appeared to stay emotionally engaged with Abraham until the end. 
2. She grew in her faith over her long life.  Refusing to coast, she ultimately believed God for the birth of the promised child, Isaac, at age 90.  In her old age, God renamed her for her faith.  When I wonder if God forgets the aged, I remember her story. 
3. But she was also imperfect.  She gave her slave girl to be a concubine to Abraham.  Sarah was desperate and caved into doubt instead of faith.  Despite this and the catastrophic outcome of the birth of Ishmael, their marriage lasted, and Abraham mourned her death.  Forgiveness, not bitterness, triumphed in their marital relationship.

I’m halfway to Sarah’s age.  I often fight the urge to coast instead of to engage.  I’m aware today that there is so much life to live yet.  God’s greatest work in me is ahead of me, not behind me.  On a good day, I feel the joy and am in touch with His purpose for my life.  On a bad day, I persevere until the battle passes.

No coasting for me.  By your grace, I’ll be faithful to the end. Amen

And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”  Genesis 22:7

Can you feel this pivotal moment between Isaac and Abraham?  Isaac knows there’s going to be some kind of sacrifice.  The wood is ready, but where is the lamb?   With this question on his mind, he turns to ask his father.  Was it a casual inquiry or was he beginning to probe the unthinkable?

These kinds of moments are awful to live through.  Our gut knows that something is dreadfully wrong and we look to someone wise to tell us that this isn’t what we fear it is.  We feel like a child.  And we are.  We turn to the only wise Father to voice our questions.  Like Abraham, He welcomes us.  He understands our frame.  We are safe to need Him.

To live childlike with Him, even on good days, is to secure a posture that prepares us for the hard moments when we will cry out, “Abba, Daddy!”  We know it won’t feel awkward on our tongues.  With the right theology, it will be instinctive to run home for strength. 

The world says that maturity is to become independent.  From the full context of scripture, God says that maturity is to become more childlike.  The cynicism and fear that comes with age begs us to move us away from dependence on anyone.  We must intentionally cultivate childlike faith.  Life may seem like it is unraveling but God holds the threads. 

Our family has had some dark moments.  Perhaps none was more difficult than the knock at our door, one summer night, at 3:00 a.m.  It was June 16^th, 2019.  A friend, and a security officer from our son’s place of employment, told us that our son had taken his own life.  Nothing could have prepared us for the shock of that.  But we discovered yet again, in the most profound way possible, that it’s possible to be tethered to the Rock of Ages.  How strong the cords of Love that held us fast! 

I need nothing, and no one, more than I need You, Lord.  Amen

And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together.  Genesis 22:6

As parents, we know what it’s like to see our children come face to face with hardship.  As we watch them struggle, there will be moments we agonize.  “Lord, it’s too much for them!”

As we watch them come to the end of their resources, just as Jesus did in the desert of His testing, we will do about anything to end their suffering.  The worst part of divine shaping is not the physical pain but the spiritual anguish.  To see childlike faith crack into pieces rocks a parent’s heart.  We pray constantly and ask God to preserve our children’s confidence in His love and promises. 

If ever a book could be written from a single verse, today’s scripture would be one of them.  What are not reflected in today’s passage are the thoughts of this father’s heart.  He appears he was calm, standing in faith for Isaac, but he was still a father.  And though my faith is intact, I am still a mother.

The tears of our children’s darkest moments cannot define our perspective.  The stunning, end-result of their testing cannot be seen yet.  We need to trust God and hold on.  In the meantime, we must not afflict our children with platitudes.  This will alienate them from us – the very ones they need to walk with them through the experience.  What can we do, then?  Share our tears, pray their stories out loud with our arms around them, and assure them that God loves them. 

As a parent, we must ‘build the bridges of friendship strong enough to support the truth.’  We may squirm as we enter in to their doubts, their questions, and their tears, but we are to be willing to engage in their grueling faith walk if invited.  Nothing binds families together like spiritual pilgrimage.

My child, on the other side of this desert, will be radiant and full of iron.  Amen

So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac.  And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.  Genesis 22:3

The nighttime is often dreaded if you’re a chronic worrier.  I am one by nature and I have lived much of my life obsessing over things from every angle.  In an hour or two, I managed to work myself up into a crisis.  I made the mistake of looking down the road and imagining everything I thought I’d have to go through. I declared to myself, and to God, that it was all too much.  What I didn’t understand was that the way through any painful journey, including the one Abraham made up the mountain with Isaac, is one grace-filled step at a time.

Let’s walk with Abraham this morning.  He knows the ultimate test that awaits him at the top of Mt. Moriah.  Isaac will be sacrificed.  There are many steps still ahead of him before he will be asked to place his son on the altar.  He began the arduous emotional journey earlier that morning, preparing for the trip.  He woke up early, got his team together, cut the wood, saddled his donkey, and said goodbye to Sarah.  He is learning that God gives momentary manna for difficult days.  He is leaning into it with every step he takes. 

Abraham would have a lot to teach me about fear vs. faith.  He would tell me that to battle for faith means to trust God with one moment after another.  God never gives enough strength, enough grace, for a week or a month.  There’s no such thing as collecting courage that will last the breadth of my journey.  He gives only what I need for this hour. 

For today’s challenges, the wind of the Spirit will strengthen me as the scriptures come alive and saturate my fearful heart.  I will find courage as I remember that Jesus is with me ~ all powerful, all knowing, moving outside of time.  He sees what I need now, and He’s provided what I will need tomorrow.  He promises to infuse my spirit with the same faith that carried Abraham to that very moment when he saw God’s provision of a lamb. 

You and I cannot carry the load of all our tomorrows.  We start with the next step in front of us. What is it?   Prepare to move. 

Ask for grace. 

Arm with scripture. 

Meditate on the words. 

Take Jesus’ by the hand and move. 

This is the recipe for the way of the cross.

I’m no longer immobilized. Thank you. Amen