The Lord Takes Care of His Own

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.  I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him’” (Lamentations 3:22-24 NIV).

   I have accepted Jesus as my Savior, so I am one of His own.  He takes good care of me even when I don’t deserve it.  He has done the same for all His children.  There are numerous examples in the Bible.  Three notable ones are Abraham, David, and Peter.  We find a four step process visible in the lives of these three men.  First God calls them.  Second, they accept His call and begin following Him.  Third, each one makes a huge mistake, and fourth, each one is forgiven by God and called back into service.  

   Let’s look at Abraham today.  

   In Genesis 12:1,2 we learn of God’s call to Abram:  “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 a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing’” (NIV).  God’s instructions were a little vague at first, “Go…to the land I will show you.”  That’s like telling me to go get the kids, pack the car, and go.

   “Okay, Lord, we are in the car.  Now what do we do?

   “Drive to Houghton Road and turn south.”

   “Okay, we are driving south on Houghton.  How far do we go?”

   “Go to I-10.”

   “Lord, we are coming up to I-10.  What direction do we go?”

   “Head east.”

   That may seem a little strange, but we have no clue that God gave Abram directions any farther ahead than that.  It seems that Abram had to trust God on a daily basis, and that’s just what He asks us to do.  God wants us to listen for Him and to Him for His Word for the day.  

   Okay, so far, so good.  Because of a famine, Abram went to Egypt, but there was a problem.  Abram’s wife, Sarai, was very beautiful, and Abram was afraid that Pharaoh would kill him and take Sarai for himself.  So he asked Sarai to say that she was Abram’s sister.  She did, and Pharaoh spared Abram, but he took Sarai into his harem.  He treated Abram very well, but Sarai was now in Pharaoh’s harem and likely to be called into his bedroom for the night.  

   Abram was at stage two, and he messed up big time.  But God rescued him by causing various illnesses to fall upon Pharaoh’s household before He could sleep with Sarai.  Pharaoh summoned Abram and said, “What have you done to me?...  Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife?... Now then, here is your wife.  Take her and go.”  God forgave Abram, and He still had plans for him.  

   As Abram and Sarai left Egypt, they entered another place where Abram feared for his life because of Sarai’s beauty.  Guess what?  He did the same thing again.  Sarah was taken into another harem, and God rescued her again, and still kept Abram in His plan. Abram seems to have been in a circle from stage two to stage three and back to stage two again.  

   But Abram was not done messing up.  His next mistake was a beauty.  God had promised Abram a son for him and Sarai.  Many Years went by and Abraham and Sarah had no children, so Sarah suggested to Abraham, “Take my maidservant and have a son by her.  We will raise him as our own.” 

   Abraham said, “Okay.”  

   Yep, this was the big mistake.  Back to step two.  (It seems that we all spend too much time going through step two to step three and back to step two again.)  Hagar, Sarah’s handmaiden had a son, Ishmael, by Abraham, but it was not the son God had promised.  Abraham was once again forgiven by God, and God was still calling him to be the Father of the people that God would call His own.  But, Abraham had to wait another twelve years for the promised son, Isaac, to be born.  God is not obligated to go by our timetable, but we will abide by His.  There, of course, is enmity still today between the descendants of Abraham’s two sons, Ishmael and Isaac.

   God’s will was done.  Abraham was called, and He accepted the call.  He made several mistakes, and God forgave Him.  It is of utmost importance to note that God did NOT abandon either His plan or Abraham.  He was faithful to accomplish all that He said He would.

   Perhaps you have been called, and you have accepted.  Perhaps you have made mistakes as Abraham did.  Be encouraged by the story of Abraham and Sarah.  God forgives and He continues to work His will in your life when you allow him to do so.