Devotion:
Read Genesis 12:4-8.
Verse 5 says, “...and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.” The journey from Harran to Canaan is depicted in only thirteen words! The brevity of this statement tells us that the details of what happened on that journey are not important. Like bookends, Abram’s call to leave a good place to go to the land God would show him and Abram’s actions upon his arrival in Canaan are the important points in the story. At Shechem in the northern part of Canaan, God appeared to Abram and told him that God would give all this land to Abram’s descendants, making it the “Promised Land.” Notice that Abram built an altar there to God, and remember that altars were places for worship. Abram moved further south to Bethel and pitched his tent. He and his family were living as nomads and aliens in a place they did not possess. Again, Abram built an altar and worshiped God.
God had called and sent Abram, who obeyed and went. God went with Abram on the journey, sustaining him by letting Abram know of His presence. Abram responded instinctively by worshiping God. We can look to Abram (Abraham) for his example of obedience and faith and his acts of worship, even as he just began to know and love God.
Personal Worship Option:
Gracious God, thank you for a church campus where we can come regularly to worship you. We do not need to build an altar as Abraham did in each new place. But help us to prepare ourselves each week to gather in-person or online with others to pray, to give you praise and thanksgiving, and to hear your Word. Amen.
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