In Genesis 12 God calls Abraham or Abram as he was called then, to leave his country and family to follow Him. God also promises him that he will be made into a great nation. Abraham obeys God and exhibits great faith in believing the promise.

Later there is a famine and Abraham decides to go to Egypt. The Bible does not indicate that God told him to go to Egypt but he decides to go there anyway. Was that the start of the problems on this occasion trusting in his own initiative instead of God’s leading? He then instructs his wife to lie to the Egyptians and say that she is his sister rather than his wife. This led to Pharaoh almost marrying her.

Why did Abraham lie? Genesis 12 tells us it was because he was scared that the Egyptians might kill him. Basically fear of man. It seems incredible that in the first section of Genesis 12 Abraham has absolute trust in God and obeys Him yet a few short verses later he is scared of man. What a contrast! Logic says that if God was going to fulfil his promise then surely Abraham would have to stay alive! The book of Proverbs tells us that the fear of man is a snare and that was certainly true in this situation. Fear can lead us to do things that we know are wrong.

In Genesis 16 Abraham’s wife persuades him that he should consider sleeping with her slave Hagar to continue the family line. Now instead of telling his wife that God would fulfil the promise through them he agreed to what she said. The birth of Hagar’s son Ishmael has of course had consequences that are being played out today. Was it a lack of faith on Abraham’s behalf that led him to follow his wife’s suggestion rather than trusting God? Was it again a fear of man, or in this case woman! Where was his strength of character to say no?

I think that all of us can take encourage from these two episodes in the life of Abraham. He was a man greatly used of God however like us he also had very human failings. When we look at it like this I believe that we can identify easier with Abraham. And if God can still use Abraham despite these failings then He can also use us if we are open to Him.

In Genesis 13 we see an example of Abraham’s generosity shown towards Lot. The herdsmen from both men had been quarrelling, as the land where they dwelt was unable to sustain them both. Abraham decided that they needed to split up and live separately to resolve this dispute. However, instead of choosing the part of the land that he preferred to live in Abraham let Lot make that decision. He would then live in the other part that Lot had not chosen.

Abraham could have pulled rank on him as he was the older of the two but instead his generosity is displayed in allowing Lot to make the choice. Now before Lot made the decision of where he wanted to live, he viewed the land to see which part of it was best and then chose that part. Abraham as a result of being generous towards Lot did not get the best land and ended up with the lesser of the two sections of the land. There will be a cost for us when we are generous towards others but for Abraham this was something that he was prepared to pay. Are we too prepared to pay this cost?

The second example of Abraham’s generosity is towards Melchizedek, as seen in Genesis 14. Melchizedek is described as a priest of God Most High. After Melchizedek blessed him Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. Thus we see another generous and costly act by Abraham. He was not only generous towards his fellow man but also in his worship of God.

Likewise we should be generous towards God as well as to man. This does not mean that we should just give God 10% of our possessions and say that is sufficient. The important thing is not the amount of money we give God but our attitude towards that giving. An attitude of heart that loves God and gives accordingly is one to desire.

Next week we shall again look at Abraham and see what further lessons we can learn from him.

We first come across Abraham or Abram as he was formerly known as, in some family listings at the end of Genesis 11. However it is not until Genesis 12 that he takes centre stage. God calls Abram to leave his country and his father’s household and go to a land that He would show him. Most of us would find it difficult to leave our normal surroundings and go to another country that we know. However Abram was called to go and was not even told his destination. Yet he obeyed. That takes a lot of faith. Abram obviously had a deep trust in God and this would suggest a close relationship with Him too.

After a slight detour due to a famine and some time in Egypt, God again speaks to Abram and tells him that his offspring will inherit the land. Abram responds by worshipping God.

Later God again appears to Abram and encourages him. God tells him that he will have a son. Abram believed the promise from God and this was credited to him as righteousness.  What a description! Abram had complete confidence in God and once He said something he believed it. Oh that we would have such faith! God was pleased with his response and proceeded to reveal the future to him.

After many more years had passed, during which Ishmael was born, Abram who now had become Abraham, finally saw the birth of his son Isaac. God had been faithful to His promise and Abraham’s faith was rewarded.

There then followed a few years later one of the greatest tests that Abraham encountered when God told him to sacrifice Isaac. One can only imagine the pain, doubts and confusion that went through Abraham’s mind when God said that to him. All his dreams humanly speaking were about to be shattered. Yet incredibly Abraham obeyed! He must have had such a deep trust and unwavering confidence in God to even contemplate obeying. He truly loved and feared God more than anything or anyone else. Once again God commends his faith and says that He will bless Abraham.

At the end of his life Abraham wanted Isaac to marry someone from his own country and sent his servant off to find him a wife. Abraham believed that God had promised to bless his descendants and therefore it was essential that Isaac married the right person. The promises of God were a living reality to him and he wanted to ensure that Isaac followed God faithfully. Once again Abraham’s faith was rewarded as his servant was led to Rebekah who returned to Canaan and married Isaac.

As he finished his life on earth Abraham could look back and marvel at God’s faithfulness to him and God was able to also commend him on his faith in Him (Hebrews 11: 8-12). I wonder if God is pleased with our level of faith and trust in Him or do we sadden Him by our unbelief?

Next week we shall look at another aspect of Abraham’s character and see what we can learn from him.

This got me thinking about myself at work. How often do I criticise my colleagues at work? Do I ever go through a single day without criticising someone?

If I want to shine the light of Christ in my workplace, home, neighbourhood and church then I am not going to be effective if I am constantly criticising people.

“Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless” (James 1:26)

Those familar with the story will know that Miss Havisham is a wealthy spinster who was left at the altar shortly before she was due to marry Compeyson. This rejection dominates her life and she is unable to let go of the bitterness she feels and move on. Miss Havisham then adopts a daughter named Estella and she sets about training her to breaks the hearts of men in revenge for the anguish she personally experienced.

Whilst this is of course only a novel I expect many of us, if we are being honest, have sometimes allowed bitterness to hold sway in our hearts. Perhaps someone at work got that promotion rather than you or a colleague has said hurtful thngs to you. If we are not careful and alert, bitterness can take over us and we become prisoner to it.

It is sad when you hear someone who has been hurt by an event that occurred many years ago still talking about it and letting that event define their life. I’m not saying that it is easy but we have to learn how to hand any bitterness we have over to God and put it at the foot of the cross – and then leave it there! If you have not made any New Years resolutions yet then perhaps avoiding holding onto bitterness could be one for you to consider?

Would it surprise you though to hear that if you read your Bible for 15-20 minutes each day then you would read the whole Bible in 2012? That is less time than an episode of Eastenders or Coronation Street! When you look at it like that it’s not such an impossible task and maybe you could achieve the goal of reading the whole Bible in 2012.

How do you start then as there are many different ways of reading through the Bible in a year? I personally would recommend reading the Bible chronologically and have myself used the Cover to Cover Through the Bible As It Happened reading plan which is produced by CWR.

The advantage of reading the Bible chronologically is that it enhances our understanding of the historical context of the individual books of the Bible. So the reader can see for example how books like Ezra, Hosea, Amos and Nahum fit into the history of God’s dealings with his people and helps us realise how every book in the Bible is important.

Why not make 2012 the year in which you read the whole Bible chronologically?

For some it is the giving and receiving of presents, whilst others enjoy sending and receiving cards. Many of us will visit families and friends at this time of year and enjoy the celebrations together. Parents will go and see their children taking part in a nativity play and maybe take them to visit Father Christmas. Then there is carol singing and maybe attending either midnight mass or a church service on Christmas Day.

All of the things mentioned above are fine and enjoyable too. However if our Christmas celebrations only consist of these activities then we are missing out on the true meaning of Christmas.

You may have seen the poster below in the run up to Christmas. To me this sums up perfectly what this time of year is all about. However we dress it up Christmas starts with Christ. If we remember this we will surely be able to truly celebrate Christmas this year.

For the last few years I have been buying my dad a bottle of whiskey as a present. Yet for some reason whenever I buy the whiskey I start getting nervous and convince myself that people in the shop will think that I have a drink problem and that they all will be staring at me. I picked up the whiskey and headed quickly to the cashier who had the shortest queue and thankfully there was only one person in front of me. I was very relieved to pay for the whiskey put it in a bag and get out of the shop quickly.

Now I don’t know why I always experience this nervousness when buying the whiskey for my dad. Am I worried that someone from church will see me and they will think I have a secret drink problem? Do I think the cashier will be thinking the same thing too? I don’t know what it is but I generally am worried about what other people will think about me making this purchase.

As I think about this I’m reminded of Proverbs 29:25 which says, “Fear of man will prove to be a snare.” I wonder how many people if they are being honest will know that to be true for themselves? Fear of man can stop us from obeying God and doing what we know is right. It can lead to a mediorce unfulfilled life because we are scared to make decisions or take risks due to fear of man. Let us pray that God will set us free from the fear of man and instead rightfully fear Him.

I have heard policeman say that when drivers know that they are being watched their behaviour changes accordingly, i.e they drive differently – slower and safer. However when they are not being watched such things do not concern them and they drive normally. Thus giving the police the opportunity to stop them for either driving too fast or dangerously.

I did think afterwards about how easy it is for me to change my behaviour if I think I am being watched not just when I’m driving but also at work too! The apostle Paul said the following on this matter:

Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favour, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. (Colossians 3:22)

Obey them not only to win their favour when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. (Ephesians 6:6)

In addition to that we sometimes forget that even if no one else is watching us then God still sees us:

The eyes of the LORD are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good. (Proverbs 15:3)

It might be good for us (or me anyway!) if we thought about that verse and let it have an influence on our behaviour. Fearing police cars is ok but it’s far better for us to fear God:

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. (Proverbs 1:7)