March 4, 2013

Good Morning Ladies!
We’re back to our Are You Walking in Fear or Faith? series this week.  Take some time today to sit and reflect on truth from God’s Word.

 

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Are You Walking in Fear or Faith?
“Isaac” Experiences
Questions …
  • What did the Lord ask Abraham to do?
  • Did he obey?
  • Based on the promise God had made Abraham regarding his offspring, why was it strange for God to ask Abraham to do this?
  • What did the Lord do as a result of Abraham’s obedience?
  • What name of God do we see in Genesis 22:14?
Imagine that you are Abraham and God has told you to take the thing that is most precious to you, the thing you waited so long for and kill it.  What would that be like?  Would you be able, like Abraham, to take a step of faith and obey?  Or would you cower in fear and disobey?
We are faced with scenarios like this often.  Think about it.  No, God doesn’t ask us to physically kill someone, but He does ask us to place our most precious things on the “altar” and offer them as a living sacrifices holy and pleasing to Him as our act of worship (Romans 12:1).  Perhaps He’s asked you to walk away from a job that you love or leave a ministry that is near to your heart.  He may be asking you die to your own desires and replace them with His.  He may even ask you to give Him your fertility, bank account or health.  Worse yet, He may ask you to trust Him with the health of your child.  We never really know how the Lord may choose to test our faith.  But rest assured, He will test it at some point.  And He usually tests that which is the most valued and precious to us because He desires to be King of our heart. 
Yes, that is usually the purpose in His testing.  God wants to be our number one.  He wants there to be “no other gods before Him.”  God does not waste a thing either. He desires to take us higher with Him and show Himself as the all-powerful, provider He is.  In revealing our “Isaac,” He is able to refine us and keep us walking humbly before Him.
When my daughter, Leanna, was four months old I had an “Isaac” experience.  Leanna became very sick and had to be hospitalized because of a severe upper respiratory infection.  I was scared to death!  I can remember taking her upstairs to the hospital room.  It was just the two of us.  It was only my precious little baby girl that I had waited so long for and her very scared mommy.  As I stared at her tiny body and watched her labored breathing, I had no choice.  I had to lay her on the altar and offer her up to the Lord.  I had to give her back.   I had to tell the Lord that no matter what He chose to do, I would still love Him and love Him well!  As much as I loved Leanna, I loved Him more.  By the way, I was wrong.  It wasn’t just the two of us in that room.  There were three of us – God was there.  His presence flooded that hospital room and I felt nothing but peace!
We went home the next day and after some time she recovered, but that was the most significant “Isaac” experience I had ever had at that point.  Oh, I’ve had many over the years … job related, other child related “Isaac” experiences, money, health.  Each time I’ve had to choose whether or not I would worship the creation or the Creator.
Something else I’ve noticed when I’ve had these experiences is that God really does care about how we respond to His testing.  He’s looking for our obedience level, our attitude, how quickly we respond and our confidence level in Him.
So the next time you are walking in an “Isaac” experience, ask yourself these questions:
  • Am I choosing to obey what God has asked me to do?
  • How am I obeying?  Quickly?  Half-heartedly?
  • Do I have a good or bad attitude toward God and the circumstance?  Am I “blaming” God for it?  Am I speaking words of life and truth about the circumstance or words of death destruction?
  • Am I asking God to work out His best in the situation, and am I confidently expecting God to be “Jehovah-jirah,” God the Provider?
“Isaac” experiences are not easy, but they do provide us with growth opportunities that teach us how to better walk worthy and reflect our Savior.
Blessings,
Jacqueline Heider
Women’s Ministry

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