Look Around

Genesis 13: 14, 15

The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever.

When God called Abram from the land of Ur, he left everything and followed God into the unknown. However, he left the place with his father and nephew Lot. His father died shortly but Lot was still hanging around with Abram. The Lord blessed Lot as well because of Abram. Now the time has dawned for Abram to be separated from one last link to his past – Lot. When strife broke among the herdsmen of Lot and Abram, Abram, being a wise man requested that they shouldn’t fight as they are family. Abram besought his nephew to choose the land that he prefers so he could go the other way. Lot, drawn by the lush, fertile valley of Jordan, chose to settle near Sodom. And thus, uncle and nephew parted ways amicably.

As Abram’s eyes searched the fading caravan of his nephew Lot with a broken heart, the Lord nudged Abram to look north and south, east and west. As Abram scanned the landscape not knowing what the Lord was hinting at, Lord promised Abram that He will give all the land in all four directions to his offspring. Abram looked around and probably wondered if he would actually have an offspring who would inherit all this land that the Lord God was promising him.

God is asking us to do the same. God is nudging us to look around us. He is showing us opportunities where we could grow, be a blessing, and bring glory to His name. However, we seem to look at ourselves, our shortcomings and our infirmities. Unlike Abraham, we trust our weaknesses rather than trust in God’s strength. We are limiting ourselves. We are still clinging to our past. We believe in luck rather than God’s supernatural favor. When God is imploring us to look beyond ourselves and our circumstances, we are wallowing in our own pride and accomplishments. Thereby, we are missing out on God’s best for our lives. We fail to grasp that we have a God who is bigger than anything we can imagine. It is time, dear sojourners, to rise up and step out in faith. Not limiting ourselves but trusting Him to lead on, we are more than conquerors in Christ. May God lead you on to places beyond your reach where your tents are pitched in pleasant places.