Welcome to part 4 of this series. I’m hoping this is blessing you in some kind of way. Please if you haven’t seen part 1, 2 and 3, I encourage you to do so. This particular topic will be in 2 parts so it doesn’t become too long to read.

The father of faith was the next person to be mentioned in Hebrews 11.

It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going. ⁹ And even when he reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith—for he was like a foreigner, living in tents. Hebrews 11:8-9

We certainly cannot talk about faith without talking about Abraham. His faith in God was like no other. In Genesis 12:1-3, God told 75 years old Abram to leave his country and his father’s family to a place where He will show him. This instruction came with promises attached to it. In order not to make this blog too long I will go straight to the point.  But, it’s important we understand that Abram was a human being and that there could have been some form of dialogue between him and his mind; also between him and his family members. I’m not sure how he told them he was moving to a place he didn’t know. I’d like to think he would have received a lot of unpleasant words and mockery from any one who heard him.

Thank God for Sarai who was ready to move with her husband. In faith she sojourned with her husband to an unknown destination. As a wife, do you trust your husband enough to lead? Do you agree with him in spirit or do you talk him out of God’s will just because it doesn’t make sense to your carnal mind. I’m talking to myself as well.

The call of Abram is a prototype for the call we receive when we become christians. Abram had no choice but to listen and be attentive to God so he could hear him. He must have had to clear his mind and shut down anything that could distract him or hinder him from hearing the instructions of God. He knew that this journey was led by God and he had to yield and submit to His leading. As christians we’ve been called out of the familiar into a walk with God where He leads. We are called to cleave and to cling to God. All of this is done by faith. Abram’s world was different from ours. In his time, living close to family was normal because there was a sense of security that came with it. In this case, God was telling Abram to leave his idea of safety and begin a journey of establishing his security in God. He was to disconnect from the natural and move into the supernatural. He was to move from the normal into the abnormal so to speak.

Until we begin to function in a way that the carnal mind cannot understand, we aren’t really there yet in our walk of faith. If everything we do and every step we take is predictable, then we are just like everyone else.

What is God telling you to leave? Which lifestyle is He telling you to break out from? What relationship is He telling you to break? You clearly know that you shouldn’t be hooking up with that guy/girl. God has told you that what you both are doing isn’t right. Why are you still there? What idol is He telling you to move away from? Are you scared to leap into the unknown? I understand it can be very scary to leave the familiar. There is a saying that the devil you know is better than the angel you don’t know. But in our journey of faith that statement isn’t true. We can’t fully trust God when we are still in our comfort zone. God is saying come out from amongst ‘them’ and be separate unto me. Separation is needed in the manifestation of God’s glory in our lives. God cannot work fully in us when we are tied and surrounded by things that will pollute us. There has to be a great demarcation between righteousness and unrighteousness. Sometimes in this walk, we need to be alone so God can fix us. In our loneliness, we take our eyes off everything else and our eyes are finally fixed on us. This is when we are vulnerable enough to be worked on. We walk by faith and not by sight.

There is a song that says Abraham’s blessings are mine. However before the blessings there was an instruction. The blessing is connected to the obedience of that instruction. So if Abraham hadn’t obeyed, we wouldn’t be talking about him today and there wouldn’t be anything like Abrahamic covenant. Before claiming the blessing, have you obeyed? Have you sacrificed your flesh? Have you disconnected from that satanic tie? Or are you still comfortable with the old you thinking God will overlook that?

Putting myself in Abram’s shoes, the first challenge I would have had with this is the fact that I don’t know how long this journey was going to take so I could prepare mentally. It could take an hour or 10 years because no time frame was given.

There are occasions in our lives where we need to just move without knowing what the final outcome will be like. We sometimes ask too many questions. God where am I going? Which city is that located? What street? What house number? Who will be my neighbour? Do they have a cat or dog?… and the questioning never ends. To be honest, many times God is quiet when we are asking these questions because they have nothing to do with the task.

Abram didn’t do what I would have done. He obeyed without knowing everything.

Abram had to get used to new food, culture, and way of life. The god they served in Canaan (which is the land God brought him) was different from the god he knew. This must have been tough for him. Despite the uncertainty of life, he trusted the God who called him. He knew that with God on his side, he will be fine. He was ready to obey God regardless of the pain, the isolation, the mockery, the difficulties that were associated with his call.

Has God given you a task that you think doesn’t make sense? Do you think you don’t have the strength to embark on that journey? Are you thinking age is no longer on your side and that you can’t wait for the man/girl God is preparing for you? Are you saying no to school because you think you are too old? Are you shutting down the voice of God because you are frustrated of how your life is turning out?

In times of uncertainty, I always remind myself that faithful is He that has called me. God never embarks in a project that He abandons along the way. He completes anything He starts. So friends, trust Him with your life. Trust Him with your family, your marriage, your job, your relationship, your school, your future. Listen to Him. He knows better than that person you are depending on. God never fails. He never disappoints. He fulfilled all the promises He made to Abram because Abram obeyed in faith. God will not give you a second instruction if you haven’t obeyed the first. Listen to Him and act now.

My decisions based on this.

• To be ready to obey God even if it means walking alone
• To continue to support and be submissive to my husband as I allow him to lead in the role God has given him
• To stop asking God unnecessary questions.

Please let me know what your decisions are and what stood out to you in this post. Looking forward to having you again tomorrow as we continue this series on the amazing faith of Abraham and Sarah.

God bless you!

-Efua is a mentor and blogger.  You can read more from her on her blog Grace Over Pain.