Bible Verses to Read - Genesis 12:1-3

Genesis 12:1–3

In many ways, Genesis 12 is where the main relationship story between God and people begins in earnest. God calls Abram to “be a blessing,” so that “in [him] all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Since the Bible traces our religious heritage to Abraham and Sarah, we must remember then, that the purpose of our calling as the people of God goes back that far too: to be a blessing to the world.

Even during regular times of stress, it’s tempting for people and churches to turn inward—to hunker down in more ways than one—in order to ensure that our lot is secure and nothing changes. So now, in these times of extreme stress, it is extra tempting for everyone to turn inward and shelter even their compassion in place. But we can’t forget our larger purpose as God’s called children: to be a blessing to the world, to be light in the world.

In some ways it feels harder to follow that calling now, since the regular things we’ve done aren’t available to us. But in other ways it’s now easier to follow that calling because there are big definite needs out in the world that we can minister to. We have to keep being creative about it, but our church (its great people) has so much to offer our community. And we’re not giving up on our calling. The world needs us to follow it now more than ever.

So let’s take inspiration from Abraham and Sarah, who followed God’s calling on their lives, even though it took them to a different place they had never lived in before. But by doing so, they blessed the world.