September 29 | Genesis 15:1-6

DAILY READING

Genesis 15:1-6

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REFLECTION

Abraham Believed God, So Should We

by Elaine Pierce

"Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness." (Gen. 15:6)

Consider Abraham: "He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." (Galatians 3:9)

What does scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." (Romans 4:3)

Are you sensing a pattern? Something important that God needs to tell us, over and over? I have to admit I understand Abram's questioning God. He and Sarai had no children, and his wife was way past what would be considered childbearing years. He knew in his head that God had made this promise to make him the father of a great nation, but in his heart it did not seem like it would ever happen.

As Paul says in I Corinthians, we don't see the full picture, do we?

"Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known." (I Corinthians 13:12)

Yes, my friends, God's got the whole world in his hands.....the whole wide world. We only see a small part of it, and we often question God's goodness and mercy. He points us to the stars in the sky, and He reminds us that He is the creator, not us. Take heart that his timing is perfect, and one day we will stand in his glory and we will be welcomed home. And then, only then, we will fully grasp how wide and long and deep and high his love is.

PRAYER

Lord, I question you just like Abram did. I try to take control, and that is a recipe for disaster. Help me to sit at your feet and to learn every day to trust you and only you. Thank you for the gift of life, and help me to live it a day at a time, walking in the light of the holy spirit. Amen.

September 28 | Romans 4:17-22

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DAILY READING

Roman 4:17-22

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REFLECTION

Reason for Hope

by Mary Alice McGinnis

If you had a “hope” thermometer, what would it reveal about the measure of hope you have right now?

Let’s level set first. The word hope in the original language of the Bible is different than our modern-day version of hope. We think of hope as wishful thinking. Such as, “I sure hope it rains tomorrow”, or “I hope I get that new job.” The definition of hope from the Bible is different. It means “confident expectation.”

Ask yourself, “How confident are my expectations?”

As humans, we tend to only be confident in the things we can see. “Seeing is believing,” right? But Abraham hoped against hope. He saw the hopelessness of his body being able to conceive a child. He looked it square in the face and acknowledged it was impossible.

Yet, he confidently expected God’s promise of being the father of many nations to be fulfilled.

Why?

He did not depend upon circumstances for such confidence.  He grounded his confidence in God. The God who has the power over life and death, and “calls into being things that were not." Abraham was “fully persuaded that God had power to do what He had promised.”

We can have this same grounded confidence. We can be confident in our expectations that God will deliver on every single thing He has promised.

Ephesians 2:1, 4-5 says, “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.”

The God of Abraham and Sarah, who was able to bring LIFE through the dead womb of Sarah, is also able to keep His promise to make us ALIVE in Jesus Christ. If God can do that, we can have confidence in His All Loving, All Powerful ability to do what is best for us.

Where are you looking for hope? What circumstances are you tempted to rely upon to feel confident about the future? Where is God challenging you to ground your confident expectations on Him and to simply BELIEVE.

What better HOPE can there be than one grounded on the sure and certain hope of the Almighty God who loves us!

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank You for our father Abraham who confidently expected you to keep Your promises to him. He was not perfect, yet he did ground his confidence in YOU and not in the shaky things of this world. You are the ONLY One who has ALL power to do everything You have promised. Thank You for bringing us back from death to life through Jesus. Fill us to overflowing with boundless HOPE - confidently grounded in Your endless grace and mercy.

September 27 | Genesis 14:17-24

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DAILY READING

Genesis 14:17-24

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REFLECTION

God Cares

by  Kathleen Serio

I struggled with this passage and ended up going down a very interesting rabbit hole looking into the history and importance of Lot, Abram, and this period in the Bible. Eventually I felt overly stuck and stepped away. Coming back to read the passage again I felt so silly because what God wanted me to see became so clear. The point was not for me to look deeply into Abram, Lot, and the history, but to look at Abram’s relationship with God. I can forget how often the Bible is truly teaching us about relationships even when relationships don’t appear to be the focus of the passage. After all isn’t our relationship with God the most important aspect of our faith?

Abram and Melchizedek both praise God, knowing that the victory over Kedorlaomer belonged to God. But where Melchizedek wishes to reward Abram and his men with worldly goods, Abram denies anything gained from the battle. He keeps faith in knowing that God will take care of him in all things. Abram wants it to be clear that all of the success, possessions, wealth, and good fortune that he has comes from God and God alone. By denying anything from the battle, Abram is acknowledging his faith in the covenant God made to him to care for him and his descendants (Genesis 12). Abram refuses to give credit to anyone but God, so that no one can lay claim to the glory that God will bring forth though him. By this point, Abram knows that he is to play a large part in God’s plan and his faith allows him to hold strong and deny the temptation from Melchizedek. Oh, to have a faith that so quickly allows us to deny worldly goods, to deny things that we feel we have earned, to deny such gifts that come with hidden strings attached.

PRAYER

God give us the strength to have faith like Abram – to be so sure knowing that you will keep each promise you make to us. God help us to turn from things in this world that you have told us to deny despite the appeal they may have. God help us keep our relationship with you at the forefront of our mind and let all of our actions be guided by our faith and trust in you and your promises. Amen