Bible Challenge – Genesis 12

“The Lord had said to Abram, ‘Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. ² I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. ³ I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.’” v.1-3 (NLT)

Has God ever called you to do something that seemed extreme?  Think about it for a minute.  Ok, maybe extreme was intense, but has God ever called you or lead you to do something whether big or small? Did you do it?

Could you imagine what would have happened if Abram backed out on Gods calling?  Where would we be today? That’s probably another blog post. But the reality is that Abram responded to Gods call with obedience.  Let me say that word again, Obedience.  It’s a word that many of us struggle with because Obedience to God requires Faith.  God promised to bless Abram and make him famous, but God had one condition: Abram had to do what God wanted him to do.  This meant leaving his home and friends and traveling to a new land where God promised to build a great nation from Abram’s family.  Abram obeyed, walking away from his home for God’s promise of even greater blessings in the future.  This was a step of faith that required obedience.

So lets go back to the question, has God ever asked you to do something? Have you done it?  God may be trying to lead you to a place or greater service and usefulness to Him. Don’t let the comfort and security of your present situation make you miss God’s plan for you!

Today, will you take a leap of Faith and obey the Lords calling and leading?

Bible Challenge – Matthew 19

“Jesus told him, ‘If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”” v.21 (NLT)

What must I do to have eternal life? This is one of the greatest questions in all of Scripture.  Jesus gave this answer because there is nothing that we can humanly do to earn or achieve eternal life.  In His response Jesus tells this man to give up everything he owned, then told him to come follow Him.

Our stuff, position, and pride, many times keeps us from following Jesus.  The call to eternal life is simple, Follow Me! But the expectation and commitment meant that I have to give ALL of me, so I can experience ALL of Him!

Today, what are you hanging on to? What are you trying to do to gain God’s Approval? Jesus simply asks us to follow! Will you follow Him today, or will stuff get in the way?

Bible Challenge – 1 Corinthians 3

“Stop deceiving yourselves. If you think you are wise by this world’s standards, you need to become a fool to be truly wise.” v.18

Sometimes I am my own worst enemy! It’s easy for me to deceive myself by looking at my life and thinking that I am doing pretty good.  I can see sin, call it sin, but then justify it if I indulge in it.  There are times that I try to fix things on my own, serve on my own, and simply live in the way I want to live. I can have knowledge of a lot of things and still be foolish. But I don’t want to live like this!

I want to experience the Power of God that raised Christ from the dead, healed the sick, made blind men see, and the lame walk.  This can only be found when I step away from everything I know, and experience the unknown by putting my faith Christ.  Until I am willing to truly step out in faith, I will be trapped by my own knowledge, good works, and pride!

Today, think about the areas where you deceive yourself. Are you willing to face the known and unknown and truly put your Faith in Christ?