Graves Into Gardens: Restoring Hope in Dead PlacesSample

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For the One who gave me life

Nothing is a sacrifice

Use me how You want to, God

Have Your throne within my heart

If you were honest about your priority list, whose wants usually come first — yours or God’s? And when His desires clash with your own, what’s your first response? 

For Abraham, no matter what God tasked him with, his first response was one of obedience. 

When God called Abraham to leave his home and travel to an unknown land, he listened and obeyed. And when God finally blessed Abraham with a son and told him to offer up his child as a sacrifice, he answered by saying, “Here I am” (Genesis 22:1).

Can you imagine the pain and angst that Abraham must have experienced? God instructed him to do something that would not only bring him great sorrow, but was also in direct conflict with how he felt about his son. However, Abraham pushed aside his own feelings and chose to trust God and be obedient to His will.

And just as Abraham was about to carry out God’s command, an angel of the Lord stopped him. Because of his faithfulness, he and his descendants were blessed abundantly. 

When we’re faced with an uncomfortable request, we tend to run from it. It’s hard to always see the bigger picture, so we become fearful when God asks us to do something that seems contrary to the vision He gave us. To give Him everything, whether that be our finances, our time, or our plans can sometimes be the hardest decision to make.

But if we have faith in His plan and vision for our lives, then when He calls us into the unknown, we can say, “I trust you. Use me how you want to, God.” We don’t need to worry that the step He’s asking us to take doesn’t match where He said we would go.  

The path may be rocky, but we can trust that if He has gone before us, we’ll be that much closer to what He has for us.

Today, make God’s will your priority. And when He calls, respond with, “Here I am” — the first time. He’s waiting to reveal the blessings He has for you.