The Virtual Pew Daily: Sarah

Showing posts with label Sarah. Show all posts

Monday, September 28, 2020

Daily Devotional, Genesis Chapter 25, 26, Remarriage, Deceipt, Peace

Daily Devotional, Genesis Chapter 25, 26

Remarriage, Deceit, and Peace

These two chapters seem to go all over the place in regards to themes. It is one of the reasons that I hope these daily devotions encourage you to check out the scriptures yourself, think about them and were possible, apply the concepts learned into your life.

We see that Abraham has remarried after the death of Sarah, despite his age he has more children. There are several things to think about here but one of the things that sticks out to me is the knowledge that this is a continuation of the story of the separation of Jews, Muslims, and to some extent, later on, Christians.

One of the things that causes me to ponder here is that despite the differences in belief that would later develop, Isaac and Ishmael came together to bury their father. There is a recognition of family among these half brothers. They found a way to come together and accomplish something despite their differences. Family and the love of Abraham had for his children, especially these two sons was a contributing factor as to why these two could come together to honor their father. As I write this, it is known in America as National Son's Day; Abraham was a father who was also honored by his sons.

We also read about other decedents and some of the early history of the decedents of Ishmael and Isaac. We also see aspects of deceit among family. There is the desire for power and wealth we see in the story of Jacob and Esau where one brother tricks the other out of his birthright. While it can be debated as to what is right or wrong, one could also debate if one appreciates what they have or do they take these things lightly.

Today, many of us are in the same boat. Do we appreciate the things we have? Do we take what we have for granted and live in the moment or do we plan for the future? I'll admit, I'm guilty and as a result I know how much better things could have been.

There is so much more in these two chapters, but you can check them out for yourself. It would be interesting to know your thoughts and what stuck out to you. What caused you to ponder?

To see Genesis Chapter 25 and 26 Click the following link:

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+25%2C+26&version=CEV

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Thursday, September 24, 2020

Daily Devotional, Genesis Chapter 23, 24, Lost and Found Love, a Godly Woman

Daily Devotional, Genesis Chapter 23, 24

Lost and Found Love, A Godly Woman

I can so relate do the deep love Abraham has had for Sarah, although I don't always understand his reasoning in some things. There comes a time when all of us will leave this planet and so was the case for Sarah who has died. Abraham wants the best for her, even in death, so he goes out of his way to honor her. He insists on buying land to have his wife buried on even after he was offered the land for free. I've learned, grief does that. There is no doubt of the love Abraham had for his wife; we saw it through his life, we see it in the death of his wife Sarah.

I can't help but think; while there are many lessons we can learn here; do we show the love we have for others in the now? I'm convinced, the more we love in the now, the more we grieve in the loss. I've experienced that, we see it with Abraham and Sarah.

After the death of Sarah, Abraham turns to his son Isaac. He wants the best for him. Abraham realizes it is through his son that God will do the things He has promised. Abraham sends out a servant to find a wife for Isaac. Through a rather unusual set of circumstances the servant finds the wife that God has for Isaac, Rebekah. Rebekah and her family see the hand of God in all of this. They allow Abraham's servant to take back Rebekah to Isaac where they will wed and have a deep love for each other.

The one lost person in this story is the servant. A servant who saw the sincerity of Abraham's faith and prays to the God of Abraham as he sees the power of God. Do we display a faith so strong that others around us are moved by that faith? I'm not talking about a lot of the things people relate to faith like healings, money and so forth, (although that can be a part of it,) but a faith that recognizes and accepts the ways and reality of God?

I know that in the scheme of things, I'll never be wealthy like Abraham, but, I realize I can have faith in my life, as messed up as I am that can inspire others. Of course I have to walk in faith to demonstrate that May we all have a faith that produces results and inspires others.

To see Genesis Chapter 23 and 24 Click the following link:

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+23%2C+24&version=CEV

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Thursday, September 17, 2020

Daily Devotions, Genesis 17, 18. The Promise of God and a Man Who Would Barter With The Lord

Daily Devotional, Genesis Chapter 17, 18

The Promise of God and a Man Who Would Barter With The Lord

Genesis Chapter 17, and 18 bring out a number of interesting topics. One of the reasons I encourage you to do your own study is to check out and discover the things God wants to show you. I always pray before studying Scripture, Lord, show me something in this passage. The amazing thing to me is He does.

In this reading we see Abram and Sarai have their names changed by the Lord to Abraham and Sarah. We see as they enter their old age that God still hasn't forgotten the promises he made them regarding having children and their ancestors being more numerous than the stars in the sky. We even see that Sarah is beyond child bearing years but God reminds Abraham, that He is God and can do as He chooses, including giving them a son to be named Isaac.

In the process, God makes Abraham promise that he will do right for the remainder of his life. It is if you will a sort of contract or covenant between the two. As we may guess, we see that God is faithful in the things He promises. We also see that sometimes there are conditions to those promises, It is a sort of contract that is called a covenant.

God after leaving for a brief period of time returns to tell Abraham that within a year that Sarah will have a son. She laughs at the suggestion. She knows her age, she even lies about the laughter but God reminds her who He is and of the promises He has made.

After Abraham spends time with the Lord they take a walk towards the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah along with what I believe are angels. The Lord states that He wants to see for himself how bad things are there. The Lord makes it known, that His plans are to destroy the city. An interesting thing takes place here, we see Abraham's compassion for the cities and people. He barters with the Lord, if they have 50, 40, 30, 20, 10 good people will God not destroy the cities. It's an interesting exchange. God responds favorably each time, showing a willingness to show mercy but also a willingness to listen to Abraham and his passion for others.

Do we keep our promises to God? Do we love others enough to be compassionate towards them. Do we barter or ask God for things? I'm certain that if we will we will answer these things honestly but we need to remember, just like Abraham, we better understand who God is. Each time Abraham asked God for a favor, he did so with an understanding of who God is and had a bit of fear and concern about asking those things. We also must understand who God is. We must not forget His power and authority. Of course we have the Bible to help us understand the nature of God and the directives He gives us in order to experience joy, purpose and ultimately relationship with God.

We need to remember that with Christ we are not saved by works, but, as James states in the book of James, faith without works is in reality non existent or dead. God is willing to help us, work with us, keep His promises to us, are we willing to show our appreciation and do our part?

To see Genesis Chapter 17 and 18 Click the following link:

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+17%2C+18&version=CEV

Click here to follow The Virtual Pew on Twitter

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