Topic: Step-by-Step Obedience [Joyce Meyer Devotional 13 August 2021]

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Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.”— Genesis 12:1 (AMPC)View Previous DevotionalAUGUST 13, 2021

Step-by-Step Obedience

Abraham, later known as Abram, was a man of great faith. Having faith comes more easily to some people than to others simply because of the way they are wired, but I don’t think anyone is born with the tremendous faith that Abraham had. It has to be developed over time, as we see God prove Himself faithful in one situation after another. God gives all of us a measure of faith, but our faith grows, like Abraham’s, over time as we learn to trust God to lead us one step at a time. We do have to face difficult and challenging situations, but they become the tools that God uses to stretch our faith to new levels.

Abraham’s first step of faith was to leave his home and his family, not knowing where to go next. All God said was that He would show him the right place, and Abraham trusted that and obeyed. He had to do the first thing God told him before God would tell him anything else.

By the time Abraham’s faith was truly tested, he had developed such complete trust in God that he was willing to sacrifice his own son—the son God had promised him with his wife, Sarah, and the son he had believed God for and had waited for, for a very long time. When God asked him to sacrifice his son, he obeyed. But before he could do it, God spoke to him and told him not to. He even provided a ram in a nearby thicket so that Abraham would have an animal to sacrifice instead (see Gen. 22:1–14). We have to wonder if Abraham would have had the faith to sacrifice his son had he not seen God prove Himself faithful on each step of his journey to that point.

Abraham’s story is very dramatic when it gets to the part about sacrificing his son. I haven’t heard of another story like that in history, but it is a great example for us as we walk the journey of healing in our soul. We would like for God to heal us instantly, but that’s not the way it works. God strengthens and restores us little by little, one step at a time, and each time He does, our trust in Him grows.

As God heals our soul, there are times He is gracious enough to take us forward in a seemingly miraculous way, but there comes a time for everyone when He requires us to walk through a difficulty because that is the only way we will gain strength. There are many people who simply refuse to take the first step until they see every step along the way. But the best way to follow God as He heals your soul is to take each step He leads you to take, when He leads you to take it, without questioning or hesitating. Once you take one step and see the faithfulness of God, you will have more faith for the second step than you had for the first. As the cycle continues, you will find yourself making great progress on your journey of healing.

Prayer Starter: Father, Your Word is full of truth, and examples of the wonderful faith others have had in You. Help me as I build my faith and put all my trust in You! In Jesus’ name, amen