“By faith, Abraham heard the call to leave his home for the place he would receive as his inheritance, even though he didn’t know where he was going” (Hebrews 11:18).
To me, the most obviously difficult aspects of faith are its unknowingness and seeming invisibility. The story of Abraham is cautionary and emblematic. Every piece of the tale challenges our materialist idolatries: God said (a voice – we don’t know what kind – from the One whom no eye has seen, or can see), “Leave your family and your home (OK, those are tangible things) and go to a place to which I will give you directions as you go (turn-by-turn divine GPS, but no screen) and there I will make of you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great and you will be a blessing (and you’re going to do that with a 75 year-old how?).
Beliefs of the Heart
October 23, 2018 4:43 pmI like your two activities:
“Finding that faith – faith for today – is a necessity that requires joining two different activities. The first is connecting the past sovereign work of God to the present, remembering and recounting the grace and love that has sustained us until now. The second is, like the Israelites in the wilderness, gathering the daily manna that the Lord is sowing into our lives.”
And in many ways, doing the first will activate the second. Over and over (and over) God calls, commands, and invites us to “Remember!”
And when I DO meditate on his past acts (that is, when I obey and remember), slowly but surely a bit of manna for today is gathered.
Sam
pjbeckman
October 23, 2018 4:48 pmYes, you are right. Remembrance is motivation for harvesting. The manna is always there, but recalling the greatness and goodness of God gets me out of my short-sightedness and moves me to feast on it.