#29: God Will Provide

Genesis 22:4-8

On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”

Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”

“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”

Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

Comments

Abraham was once again on a journey in response to God’s call. His first journey had begun more than 30 years earlier when God had called him to leave his homeland and everything he had known to travel to a new land where he would become a great nation.

Abraham had followed God in faith to that new land and had waited 25 years for Isaac to be born. Now God had called him to travel to another land for another purpose: to sacrifice his son and his future along with it.

Reflections

Abraham followed in faith, accepting that his son and the future God had promised were not under his control. Have you experienced times when events beyond your control threatened your life or the well-being of those you loved? How did you respond?

As Abraham journeyed to the mountain, his focus was on God’s provision rather than on his own loss. In times of crisis, have you found yourself drawing closer to God or moving further away?

Prayer

Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who calls us to trust in your provision even in the face of great loss.