Walk the Walk
Whether you are a new believer, a long-time believer or a pre-believer this podcast is for you! Walk the Walk will help answer some questions you may have. I will talk about the Bible...and what it means to me. Not only will I share, but guests will be invited to share their own stories on how God is moving in their lives. You will be encouraged, uplifted and hopefully you will want to seek God to be a part of your life. You are welcome here.
Walk the Walk
Genesis 22:2 - Finding True Peace: From Negotiating with God to Unwavering Trust
Have you ever wondered who truly exhibited more faith—Abraham, who was willing to sacrifice his son, or Sarah, who wrestled with impatience and doubt? In this episode of "Walk the Walk," we explore the profound and challenging story of Abraham's unwavering trust in God as recounted in Genesis 22:2. We also delve into Sarah's complex journey, questioning the nature of faith and how it manifests differently in each of us. Through personal anecdotes, including my own struggle with "spot faith," I share insights from a pivotal moment when I had to leave a cherished career, seeing it later as a divine step toward a greater calling.
Negotiating with God is a topic we rarely discuss openly, yet it's something many believers experience. I open up about my attempts to bargain with God, adjusting my terms and seeking signs, only to find true peace in wholehearted obedience. We'll reflect on Abraham's ultimate test of faith and how it speaks to our own spiritual journeys. The episode concludes with a heartfelt prayer for strength and guidance, urging listeners to trust in God's plan even when faced with life's most challenging decisions. Join us for an inspiring discussion that aims to deepen your faith and encourage unwavering trust in God's wisdom.
Hello and welcome to Walk the Walk. I'm going to start doing my podcasts a little differently. I'm going to start using scripture for the beginning of each podcast and expanding on that. So I hope you like this new platform that I'm using, whereas before I didn't use scripture as much, and so I think I just feel like this is where the Lord wants me, the direction he wants me to go in.
Speaker 1:And today's scripture comes from Genesis 22, 2. And it says take your son, your only son, whom you love, isaac, and go to the region of Moriah, sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain. I will show you, every time I even think of this, what bravery Abraham showed. I want you to consider this Such faith steadfast, unquestioning, wholehearted faith that Abraham showed. Can you envision yourself being so devoted to God that you trust him to that extent? Now, remember what he had to go through to even have this son Isaac, what he had to go through to even have this son Isaac, but for you to offer your beloved child or son or daughter as a sacrifice, purely out of faith in God. Every time I think it, I have a hard time even trying to understand, and I don't even think Abraham wavered. I don't think he was like, are you sure? But I think that shows the true faith that Abraham had. I believe it would be so hard to have that type of faith because I think I would go back and forth with hmm, is that my voice telling me to do something like that? But Abraham, as far as I know, didn't do that. Back and forth. My voice, god's voice, am I making this up? Is my brain telling me to do this or is it a fact? Brain telling me to do this? Is it a fact? But Abraham still demonstrated profound faith by willing to offer his son back to the Lord. Now, remember that's what we have to remember in this Is that child was a promise from God.
Speaker 1:You also need to consider the journey that Abraham and Sarah went through to conceive that son. Now, if you know the story about Abraham and Sarah, now let's just talk a little bit about Sarah, what she went through. Now. She knew she was promised a son, but it didn't come quick enough and eventually she felt like she was just getting too darn old to be able to have a son. So then what does she do? She calls in her maidservant and we know that whole story of the maidservant who ends up having a son for abraham. But then what happens is is Sarah kind of turns on her maidservant because supposedly she is disobedient to Sarah. Such a complex story, and I think that whole situation is still. The world is still feeling the effects of that decision.
Speaker 1:Now to me, I think it kind of raises a question of who had more faith, abraham or Sarah. Perhaps Sarah? Her past mistakes made her hesitant to act similar again. But you know, I think their actions were both grounded on unwavering faith.
Speaker 1:Where do you stand in faithfulness, I think sometimes I have what I call spot faith, which means I'm faithful when it's convenient, which means I'm faithful when it's convenient. But then there are times where it's like I don't feel faithful. I feel like I need to take control, just like Sarah did Take control of the situation. God, you're not moving fast enough for me. I don't think you're really going to do what you promised me. I'm going to try to make it happen on my own, and we see what happened with Sarah when she made it happen on her own. The issues and the problems, like I said, that are still being felt to this day.
Speaker 1:But Abraham stood strong and you know, I have to even think and sometimes I kind of the thoughts that went through his mind when Abraham was given this maidservant to. You know, bear a child for him. What would have happened if it would have been a girl? I never even thought about that, that just kind of came to me. What would have happened if she would have had a female baby or girl baby or whatever? Wow, just think of all the issues that would have caused. But it didn't happen that way. But even Abraham listened to Sarah. Well, let's think about Adam and Eve. Who did Noah listen? Excuse me, adam listened to. I don't know, I'm kind of digressing there. I didn't mean to, but I will say this about Abraham he was dedicated to God 100%, without any hesitation or doubt. He took his son to be killed, to be a sacrifice and to even have to tell Sarah. Can you imagine that Having to go in and tell Sarah Listen our son, as much as we wanted him, we need to sacrifice him. I think that took faith on both of their parts.
Speaker 1:Have you ever encountered a time in your life when you had to make such a leap of faith? You know I now this is nothing compared to what Abraham and Sarah did. But I recently was encountered with a hard decision on giving up a career that I've loved for so many years, loved it and I don't know if I want to say that I loved it more than my marriage or anything else, but I'm just saying that I felt like God blessed me with this career that I had. It was comfortable, it was convenient, it was financially securing, it was everything that it could possibly be. And after 18 years, how I still felt the way I did, because we know how many of us have career or jobs that we get, that we feel that way in the first year and then after that, we're like, oh, I hate, I dread, but I never felt that way about this job, not that I didn't feel like that in times, but I'm just saying I always felt like it was a blessing from God and when it was time to close that door, I personally was not ready. But after closing that door, I see the path now. It was like God, you knew, you knew what was coming for me and I thank him for that.
Speaker 1:You know, I think sometimes we try to negotiate with God, and I did. I negotiated for several weeks with him. If this happens, then that means I shouldn't quit. If this happens, that means I should quit. And I went back and forth and then when the things that I said should happen happened, I'm like, well, let me tweak it a little bit. It was kind of like throwing out another fleece and I thought, even in the back of my mind, I thought, tina, god is not pleasing with this. We made a deal if you will I don't know if that's a great way of saying it that I would do what he asked me to do, and it happened the way that he wanted it to. And then, when I finally made that decision to follow what God was putting on my heart, I feel so much peace right now, god, I don't think God wants us to try to negotiate with him. His word is his word. His decisions are his decisions. We can't negotiate. Are you in a situation right now where you're trying to negotiate something that you want? Listen, it's tough. I know it's tough.
Speaker 1:Look at Abraham. He could have negotiated with God. Look, god, if it's raining, I won't go. If the sun's out, I will go. I mean, he could have done all of that, but he did not. And we know what happened.
Speaker 1:When he took his son, god said. An angel said stop, god was just testing your faithfulness. And you, abraham, are a faithful man. Wouldn't you love to hear God say that to you? You, tina, are a faithful woman, and in you I am proud. Well done, well done. Oh my gosh. Just to hear that from God just makes my heart leap for joy, and I'm sure it would be for yours too.
Speaker 1:Let's pray, lord. Help me to be faithful every minute of my life, when I wake up and when I lay my head back down. Allow me to always look to you for guidance. I want to have that unwavering faith and wisdom. I want to be able to hear your voice and say, yes, I will Not. What if God? Let's do it this way. If this happens, then I know this is. Keep showing me a sign, keep giving me a sign, father. God, help me to quit asking for signs and, once you tell me what it is that you want, allow me to walk in faith. Allow me to be in faith. Allow me to be unwavering. Help me, father. As you know, sometimes it is tough for us, but you know best and I thank you for that. I thank you, father, for that. In Jesus' name, I pray, amen.