Follow God’s Plan

This year, here at South Church, we are following the One Year Bible Reading schedule. This schedule breaks down the entire Bible into 365 daily readings. Every day there is one reading from the Old Testament, New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs. If one follows the schedule, they will have read the entire Bible by December 31.

I will choose a scripture to preach on from whatever readings fall on Sundays and teach at Bible Study from whatever readings fall on Wednesdays. Keeping with that schedule, one of today’s readings was from Genesis 24. Abraham was an old man by now. Knowing his time here on earth was coming to a close, he instructs a servant to find a wife for his son Isaac, saying, “‘Go to my homeland, to my relatives, and find a wife there for my son Isaac.’ The servant asked, ‘But what if I can’t find a young woman who is willing to travel so far from home? Should I then take Isaac there to live among your relatives in the land you came from?’ ‘No!’ Abraham responded. ‘Be careful never to take my son there. For the Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and my native land, solemnly promised to give this land to my descendants. He will send his angel ahead of you, and he will see to it that you find a wife there for my son. If she is unwilling to come back with you, then you are free from this oath of mine. But under no circumstances are you to take my son there’” (Genesis 24:4-8).

Why such a vehement reaction to what appeared to be a pretty practical question? Perhaps Abraham had learned. You see, God has a plan and a purpose for everyone and everything. He is not an absent Father. He is deeply invested in us. In our lives and well-being. He knew you were coming and what was to come in your life. “You [God] saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed” (Psalm 139:16).

Yes, God had a plan for Abraham and Sarah and yet they were impatient. They couldn’t wait any longer for a son, so they thought they would “help God out” by using Hagar as a surrogate. The result was Ishmael. God tells Hagar, “This son of yours will be a wild man, as untamed as a wild donkey! He will raise his fist against everyone, and everyone will be against him. Yes, he will live in open hostility against all his relatives” (Genesis 16:12). Ishmael (Isaac’s half-brother) is the forebear of Prince Kedar whose descendant is Muhammed. Yes, Abraham and Sarah’s lack of faith in God’s plan leads to the creation of Islam. And Ishmael’s descendants have lived in open hostility with his relatives (the Jews) ever since.

So, yeah. When God tells Abraham that the land of Canaan was promised to him and his descendants, this time he chooses to follow God’s plan. He insists that Isaac not marry a pagan Canaanite. He will marry a Hebrew and inherit the land God has promised. It wasn’t about just having any descendants. It was about the descendants that were a part of God’s plan. 

Friends, it is always best to trust in God’s plan. Sure, He often does things in odd ways that we don’t understand. In His way. In His time. But do not think for a moment that we might have a better idea. Trust the LORD. He knows what He’s doing, and He always has our best interests at heart.

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Remember you can email praises and petitions to southchurchprayer@gmail.com. I lift them up every Wednesday at 4:00 pm on Facebook Live.