DAY 83 - BIG PICTURE IN A YEAR - THE PROMISE

Tehrah took his son Abram... and they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. But when they came to Haran, they settled there.

Genesis 11:31

Reading: Genesis 11:26 – 32; 1 Peter 5:7; Hebrews 11:13-16.

God’s promises unfold progressively through the stories of the Bible, and not in a bullet-point format. The story of Abram’s father, Terah, that we learn about in today’s Reading, is able to speak to our lives so graphically because it is a universal tale of the journey that we are all on.

The reason why Terah left his home country and all the things that made him feel safe and secure in his familiar surroundings, is probably the tragic death of his son Haran. We can relate to that, can’t we? So often when we face sadness or disappointment we just want to get away from the place where it all happened. But we can never really escape our pain and disappointments and, like Terah, we generally carry them to our deaths. Terah was dealt a double-blow. In Genesis 11: 30, we read that his daughter-in-law, Sarai, was barren. No grandchildren. This double blow must have made him give up and settle in Haran, rather than forging on to the land of Canaan, the land of promise.

What will cause you and I to get ‘stuck in Haran’ and not forge on in the journey of life to the promises that God has given us? Let us throw our cares on Jesus and not “get stuck” in the pain and disappointment that tries to hold us back.

Prayer

Lord Jesus I come before you today and cast all my cares upon you. Holy Spirit “unstick” me. I declare that I will not pick up those cares again. Help me to complete my journey.

FOR THE FAMILY

Read the story of Terah together. You can use a Children’s Bible if the kids are very young. Highlight the factors that caused Haran to stop forging ahead with God. Discuss the pains and disappointments of life and pray through these things.