A Note From Genesis

CURTAINS DOWN ON THE OLD LIFE


Now the Lord said to Abraham “Go from your country and your kindred and your fathers house to the land I will show you…and Lot went with him… Abraham was seventy five years old when he departed from Haran.” Genesis 12: 1-4

It must have been a very nostalgic moment for Abraham when he started packing his bags to begin his journey into the unknown wilderness. Looking around his living room for one last time, the kitchen where he had shared many wonderful meals, going upstairs to see his bedroom, the table at his window with the morning sunlight streaming in. One last look through his window to see the familiar neighbourhood and the vast wilderness in the distance. Everything seemed so silent that day and there was a sinking feeling in his heart.

To leave the place where he had grown up and never to return. That must have been a very tough decision. Until today I have not seen a single individual who have forgotten their hometown. The last funeral I attended was in New York City, my hosts father an elderly Chinese gentleman who had succumbed to old age. His last instruction was to take his ashes back to his little hometown back in China.

We have all had the experiences of packing our bags to go on journeys here and there. But we always found our way back home. But Abraham would have to go on a journey and not return. He would be seeing his hometown and his kindred for the very last time. Painful though it must have been, the divine voice had to be heeded. The curtain had to be brought down on the past life. God had called him from a life of routines, monotony and certainty to a life of faith in Him!!

It seems whenever God appears on the scene in the Bible –its curtains down on the old life. Exodus is a classic example. And they left their nets and followed him was said of the early apostles.

If Abraham had said, “God, I am not going anywhere!! Why can’t you bless me here in my own hometown?” If Abraham had said we would never have heard about Abraham.

Perhaps life has taken a twist for you too. Suddenly the signboards pointed to a new and different direction and the roads do not look familiar at all. Nevertheless, the road must be travelled and the journey must be accepted. Somebody has once said, the will of God will never take you where the grace of God cannot keep you. And that’s a profound truth in that statement. Simon Peter the apostle stated, “For you were going astray like sheep, but now have returned to the Shepherd and guardian of your souls.” Now that’s a promise to every believer. No matter where the journey leads, God is the Shepherd and Guardian of every believer’s soul.

So take heart, it may be the end of the old life of routines, the merry go round and the familiar And God brings you into a new life where nothing seems to be certain or a merry go around where we get off at the very place we got on! No- the life of faith leads you further and further in your trust in Him- as you move from one trial to the next and to the next level of God dealing with you. And the life of faith matures you as a believer. It is when the storms hit that the roots strike deep. And when the storm has passed, we hear the divine voice again, “Behold I make all things new!”

Are you feeling nostalgic and yearning for the old relationships and comforts with its predictable routine? When we felt secure in the knowledge that everything was under our control? To bring you forward God has to change the times and the seasons. Now is not the time for regrets. It’s the dawn of a new season for you. Take courage and move on. You will be glad you heeded the divine voice. Because it’s the only voice that does not deceive. Although He hides in the shadows and does not show His face, yet He is your Eternal lover. Discard your uncertainty and do not grieve at the memories of yesterday! It’s the beginning of a new season.