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Genesis 14

Oct11

Good morning y’all. Today we in chapter 14 of Genesis. Here we see Abram going to rescue lot from captivity. He was blessed by Melchizedek and gave a tithe offering to him.

Be blessed 🙂

Even though Abram and Lot had seperated when Abram heard he had been captured along with all his possessions, he rallied his fighting men and his friends and went to rescue Lot. Abram showed compassion and care towards Lot. He could have easily said well we are now seperated so let him fight his battles but he was moved to rescue his nephew.

Abram showed courage as well. He was gonna fight against 4 kings who had just won a battle. He wasn’t scared but courageously strategised with his men on how they were gonna fight the kings..V15 says:
That night, Abram divided up his troops, attacked from all sides, and won a great victory. But some of the enemy escaped to the town of Hobah north of Damascus,(Genesis 14:15 CEVUS06)

God gave them victory, even though they were small in number compared to the armies of the kings they went to fight. This tells me that it’s not about how many we have with us but who we have on our side. Our strength is not in numbers but in God. Abram had the Most high God on his side and he pursued and recovered all that the kings plundered incl Lot and all his possessions. When God is on our side victory is assured.  Romans 8:31 says:
What can we say about all this? If God is on our side, can anyone be against us? (Romans 8:31 CEVUS06)

Abram after the victory was met by King of Salem – Melchizedek the High Priest of God. He blessed Abram and thanked God for the victory. He recognised the victory was only possible because of Gods help. We also need to recognise that all we have been able to achieve is from God. The victories we’ve won it’s all because of his help. We need to return all the glory back to him.

Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of all that he recovered. This was the 1st tithe mentioned in the bible. I have to admit I’m still not sure why Abram gave the tithe but I guess it was his way of offering thanks back to God for the victory. Melchizedek was a high priest of God and so who better to give the offering to than the priest himself. Remember a high priest of God is one who mediates between man and God. Hebrews refers to Jesus as our high priest. He is constantly mediating on our behalf.

King of sodom met up with Abram and decided to strike a deal with him. Told Abram he can have the spoils of the war but he wants the prisoners of war. I am impressed by Abram’s response. I can only imagine how bountiful the spoils of war we are referring to here. I’m guessing if we were to convert them to our terms today, we will be talking about millions or billions of money and property here. But Abram didn’t want to have anything with all the ill gotten possession plus he had made a vow to God not to take anything from the spoils. Rem we established in chapter 13 that sodomites were wicked people who constantly sinned against God.  He didn’t want to compromise himself so he refused the offer and told him he can have all his spoils back. The only request he made was for the king to give the men who fought their share of the spoil.

Abram was blessed and he knew he didn’t need the money from the world to make him rich. He had God already. Come on this is a man who was on speaking terms with God…not just any God but the Most High God, the Creator of heavens and earth. He knew the source of his blessings was God and he wasn’t about to let some king take that glory. When you have God there’s nothing this world can offer you that can compare with what God can offer you.

Prayer:
Dear Lord we thank you for today. We pray you help us show compassion to those around us who need help. Help us remember to always give the glory back to you for all you do for us. Thank you for reminding us that with you on our side nothing and no one can stand against us. Thank you Lord. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Thank you for joining us today.

Have a blessed Saturday.  Rem, if God if for you no one can be against you 🙂

***With God all things are possible***

Genesis 13

Oct10

Good morning y’all.  Today we in chapter 13. This chapter we see Lot and Abram go their seperated ways and God reaffirming his promise to Abram.

Be blessed 🙂

Right from the beginning, I think Lot was an additional baggage that Abram didn’t need on his journey (I might be wrong though 🙂 ). I say this because in chapter 12 when God called him, God told him to leave his family and relatives behind of which I think Lot was one of those that was meant to be left behind.

Eventually in this chapter we see that Abram had to be seperated from Lot before he could fully progress.

Abram and Lot had acquired so much that the land couldn’t contain both of them together. Abram realised it was time to separate for the sake of peace. He told Lot it was time to part. I like what Abram did here even though he was the older one, he could have used his older status to dish out a section of the land to Lot and dismiss him, but he didnt do that, rather he humbled himself and gave Lot the option to choose which part of the land he wanted. He also let him choose first.

Now I ask myself why would Abram do that. What If Lot chose the best places and left Abram with the not so good places. Well that’s exactly what happened. But I guess Abram decision was based on the fact that he had finally understood that God is able to provide for him and bless him irrespective of what he has and where he was. He knew that even if Lot chose all the best parts of the land, God can still bless him and prosper him in the left over part that seems not so good. And that’s exactly what happened :). When we truly understand God and His nature, it will positively affect the way we deal with people and circumstances. Abram displayed humility and selflessness.

So Lot looked and the plain lands of the Jordan valley looked so appealing and beautiful. Infact the NLT Version says it was like the garden of the lord…that is the land was so beautiful and fertile, had everything going for it, full of flowers  animals everything you could think of and so Lot chose this land. What he didn’t know was that even though the land was beautiful, the people were very wicked and constantly sinning against God and it was only a matter of time before God’s anger was kindled against them and He will eventually destroy the land.
What looks good on the surface may not necessarily be good after closer inspection. We need to always seek God’s face for direction and guidance so that we don’t miss his best for us and end up where we ought not to be.

The begining of verse 14 jumped out at me while i was reading. It says: “After Lot had gone….” That is until Abram was separated from Lot, God didn’t appear or speak to him again. We need to examine ourselves. What are the things or people we need to be separated from so that God can fully do his work in us. Could it be a relationship God is telling us to break off but we are holding back or someone God is asking us to forgive but we choose to hold on to unforgiveness. Just like Abram until we separate ourselves from those things or people we might never be able to enter and enjoy the best that God has for us.

Now lot had gone and God spoke to Abram and reassured him again that he was gonna bless him and give the land as a permanent possession to his descendants. God said to him to look around as far as his eyes can see. Whatever he could see was gonna belong to his descendants forever. Wow! what a great promise :).

What are you seeing today? Ask God to open your eyes so you can start to see the great future He has in store for you. It may look bad now but remember God is able to turn around a bad situation into a good one. Abram was left with what seemed like the not so good land yet God promised to bless him beyond his wildest imaginations in that land. Wherever you are today, trust God he can make things work for you. Be encouraged 🙂

Again Abram built an altar to the Lord. He thanked God even though he had not yet seen the promise fulfilled. Infact he was childless yet God said I will give this land to your descendants. Still he praised and worshipped God. Friends let’s do the same. Let’s believe the promise, knowing that he who has promised, is faithful to the end. Heb 10:23 and 1 Thessalonians 5:24 says it well.

Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Hebrews 10:23 NLT

God will make this happen, for he who calls you is faithful. 1 Thessalonians 5:24 NLT

Prayer:
Dear Lord we thank you for today. We ask you teach us to be humble and selfless in our dealings with people. We ask that you will guide us and direct us so we don’t stray from the path you have ordained for us. We ask you help us get rid of the things in our lives that are hindering us from moving and entering the rest you have for us. We ask for the grace to trust you more and to continually praise and worship you even in the difficult times. Thank you Lord. In Jesus Name.  Amen.

Thanks for joining today. I’m blogging with Good Morning girls. Check us out at http://www.goodmorninggirls.org

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Have a wonderful friday and remember, God is faithful.

***With God all things are possible***