Beyond What You See…

“Having faith is almost never the problem, letting go and being still is..

– Osione Abubakar

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A thousand light years seem to have passed😅… Who else agrees that time slows down when you’re being torn into a million pieces? I was musing on pain and the dangers of preconceived notions in hearing from God, as well as the place of restoration/rewards in obedience to God when this piece was born. The choice of the feature image was made cos it fit with the title of this piece – at first glance, my eyes seem shut and it is easy to conclude that they are but looking beyond that initial assumption formed reveals that they are however, not shut… Silly reason for choosing a picture? Maybe not🙃…

I apologise for skipping the usual pleasantries, there’s so much to say but I tire of talking without actually saying a word. I do hope this finds you well and trust that God’s strength is being perfected in any area where you feel faint. It’s good to be back, thank you for having me❤️.

Moving on to our conversation today😊… The story of Abraham and Isaac is one that is used a lot to teach about faith in God and obedience, citing how because of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac, God provided a lamb. We also see the story of the 3 Hebrew men and how they were not burnt in the furnace – again, because they obeyed. We are told the story of Ruth’s sacrifice and perseverance and how she was given Boaz.

On and on, the great accounts of faith in God, sacrifice, obedience and its rewards are told and man in our fallible nature has not been able to keep from tainting even this truth, turning what should’ve been halo to a hangman’s noose. You see, logic and the need for answers demands that we find a rationale explaining every move of God, we have focused so much on these “happily ever afters” that we confine our submission to God’s sovereignty into this box.

Do we have faith? Yes… Do we submit to his will? Yes… Only, we do so because we believe that when he says sacrifice your Isaac, he’ll stop us before we severe the jugular. We hold on so much to this manifestation of God regarding our obedience that we feel betrayed when we aren’t given a lamb in its stead. We say we believe he is good, yet somehow want his good to fit into our descriptions and preferences of what “good” should be.

The reality of God’s sovereignty however, is not in providing a lamb and thus, stopping us from sacrificing our Isaac… To be submitted to his Lordship is to acknowledge that whether he gives you a lamb or provides a stone to sharpen the knife used on Isaac, he is good and he is right. To be submitted is to understand that whether Ruth had remained a widow or the 3 Hebrew boys had burned, God would be glorified in their lives.

I guess the message I’m trying to pass here is that it’s hard giving up something that makes us bleed, when calls for such sacrifices are made we want to hear the angel saying that God has seen our obedience and we need not go further. We cling to the glory of not having to let go and forget that sometimes, like with the sacrifice of the cross, the real glory is in the aftermath of the sacrifice and can in no way be compared to whatever glory we had deemed to get from not going through with it – he sees beyond what we could ever see or imagine.

It’s imperative that we learn in letting go, to not confine God’s will to our ideas of what restoration or rewards should be and realise that Genesis 22:17 would’ve come to pass whether there was a lamb provided or not. Basically, God’s will and his ways are not tied to Isaac 🙂. More so, if we claim to truly love him, we must be ready to look beyond our personal desires and focus on the person of Christ.

A beautiful fact to bear in mind is also how God is able to use every situation and aspect of our lives for his glory if we only let him; even if they are mistakes of our own making. Bear in mind these words from ‘The Garden’ by Kari Jobe; “you will stop at nothing, to heal my broken soul”. Do not lose sight of the fact however, that beauty isn’t always what we define it to be (with regards to beauty for ashes). 

My prayer for us all, is that as we walk through our regions of Moriah and get to the mount of sacrifice, whether we find the lamb caught in the thicket or a stone to sharpen the knife for Isaacs throat, that we can truly and completely find his glory even there.

… I will trust in only You
No one can add to Your perfection
You’re the beginning and the end
More than I can comprehend…

– In Control by Hillsong

 

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Thank you for joining me even though it’s not Saturday and has been light years since our last rendezvous. Your love makes me better❤️

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