Sacrifice

I am continuously amazed at how God uses different avenues to speak to us when he is trying to teach us. Lately I have been challenged to live righteously. A couple posts ago I was talking about what exactly that meant and what is my part in it.

During one of my days of study in Having a Mary Spirit I began reading about righteousness. The author was making the point that righteousness comes by faith. Hebrews 11 is full of examples of those who walked by faith. One of the examples is Abraham. Earlier I posted about Abraham bargaining with God to find 10 righteous people in the city before he destroyed the city and 10 people could not be found. This last Sunday our pastor focused on the part of Abraham's life where he was tested to sacrifice his son Isaac.
Pastor made the following points

• God wants to know if we trust him enough to cling to him to take care of us.
• Sometimes when God tests us it doesn't make sense.
• Will we let go of what we are clinging to and trust Him with it?
• What has God asked you to give Him?

In my book here is what the author says: "True faith requires obedience. It requires being willing to stake everything on God's love and faithfulness-and then doing what He asks. Even when we don't understand. Even when He demands that we give up the things we love the most."

I had a hard time dealing with this very thing when my mom was sick. Why would the Lord ask us to give up a wonderful mother, sister and friend. I still deal with those questions, but I have come to realize that I have to live by faith and know that God has a bigger plan. There is good news in the midst of the heartache: "When we stop trying to manhandle our circumstances and start giving them to God, something incredible happens. God takes everything we give Him and begins to work on our behalf. Because we've chosen to believe and trust rather than doubt and fear, He makes all of it-the good and the bad-count for us rather than against us. And that is when we start laying up serious treasure in heaven. And treasure on earth. Faith is counted to us as righteousness-and that righteousness comes in the form of Christlikeness. For when I believe that Jesus is not only able to save me but also to make me holy, I make deposits in my righteousness bank."

I hope this encourages you if you are dealing with circumstances in your life where your faith is being challenged. Know that we serve an AWESOME God who loves you and wants you to trust him with every aspect of your life.