.png?width=1070&height=600&mode=crop)
"The Divine Move"
The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you. (Genesis 12:1-3)
My family and I have been in a whirlwind since January when the announcement came about my new appointment. Personally, I had to deal with the emotions and break the news to my wife and then to the children and then what next? The congratulations and best wishes followed from colleagues and friends and well-wishers. Hidden in all of this was the reality that we were moving after ten years of ministry in my previous appointment. The last time this happened was ten years ago when we moved from another appointment little knowing what the future held for us, but trusting God as always for his faithfulness.
Many of my colleagues can attest to how things shape up with moving after being in a place for quite some time. It is one arduous task that takes time, energy, and all that is needed to get ready for it. The preparations from thinking about how much stuff we have accumulated and what to take with you and what you do not need anymore can even drain you mentally. Then, you must pack in a way that you can remember where things are once you get to your new place. The decisions that go into moving aren't always as easy as we would like them to be.
Such was how Abram may have felt back then when the call came for him to leave his kindred and go to a place where God would show him. In contrast to ours and others, we know where we are going, but he did not. All he could do was rely on God’s word and promise. We have a better deal too in our age where we cannot get lost with the GPS’s we have today. But for Abram at that time, all he could rely on was God’s direction in navigating through the land to this unknown destination. No wonder we give him the accolade of being the Father of Faith as he believed in an unseen God with a hope for a future.
Many of us have experienced moving in our lives in many ways from one place to another for a variety of reasons. Our preparations have always been a chore in getting rid of things, leaving the place that has become home for many years, and the great memories that we have come to cherish. But how have we responded to the divine call to move? It comes with specific instructions about what to take and what not to take. That could be quite a challenge for many of us, given what we are used to in our normal lives. Whether it is with our normal move or a divine move, it is always a time to reflect upon what we need to get rid of from our lives. As you ponder over these two moves, I think we can both take a lesson from using our normal move preparations to appreciate the divine move, where we solely rely on God as Abram did in obedience and was rewarded with blessings. Amen.