Journey Through the Bible in a Year
Reading God's Word and learning more about His plan for my life each day!
Monday, September 16, 2002
Introduction to Journey Through the Bible
A note about online study
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, thank You for the opportunity to spend time with You in Your written word! I pray that You will open its truth to me through the presence and guidance of the Holy Spirit not only as I read, but also as I go about my day seeking to live its truth. God I pray that You will let me be a blessing to others, as You have blessed me. Show me the ways I can share Your truth with others, as well as opening my life to others—my time, my talents and my money. Use all of these things that You have given me to bring others to a saving knowledge of Your Son. This I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
My Journey Verses for Today
Genesis 12:1-20
1 Then the LORD told Abram, "Leave your country, your relatives, and your father's house, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will cause you to become the father of a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and I will make you a blessing to others. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you." 4 So Abram departed as the LORD had instructed him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. 5 He took his wife, Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all his wealth – his livestock and all the people who had joined his household at Haran – and finally arrived in Canaan. 6 Traveling through Canaan, they came to a place near Shechem and set up camp beside the oak at Moreh. At that time, the area was inhabited by Canaanites. 7 Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, "I am going to give this land to your offspring. " And Abram built an altar there to commemorate the LORD's visit. 8 After that, Abram traveled southward and set up camp in the hill country between Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar and worshiped the LORD. 9 Then Abram traveled south by stages toward the Negev. 10 At that time there was a severe famine in the land, so Abram went down to Egypt to wait it out. 11 As he was approaching the borders of Egypt, Abram said to Sarai, "You are a very beautiful woman. 12 When the Egyptians see you, they will say, 'This is his wife. Let's kill him; then we can have her!' 13 But if you say you are my sister, then the Egyptians will treat me well because of their interest in you, and they will spare my life." 14 And sure enough, when they arrived in Egypt, everyone spoke of her beauty. 15 When the palace officials saw her, they sang her praises to their king, the pharaoh, and she was taken into his harem. 16 Then Pharaoh gave Abram many gifts because of her – sheep, cattle, donkeys, male and female servants, and camels. 17 But the LORD sent a terrible plague upon Pharaoh's household because of Sarai, Abram's wife. 18 So Pharaoh called for Abram and accused him sharply. "What is this you have done to me?" he demanded. "Why didn't you tell me she was your wife? 19 Why were you willing to let me marry her, saying she was your sister? Here is your wife! Take her and be gone!" 20 Pharaoh then sent them out of the country under armed escort – Abram and his wife, with all their household and belongings.
Reflecting on God's Word for My Journey
What is the greatest blessing you’ve ever received in life?
A Deeper Exploration of God's Word for My Journey
What are the specific commands and promises that God gives Abram in today’s Scripture reading? (12:1-3)
What is Abraham’s response to the Lord’s commands and promises? (12:4-8)
What is the secondary situation in today’s Scripture? What is the outcome? (12:9-20)
Understanding God's Will for My Journey
Why do you suppose that God chose Abram of all the people on earth, to be the one through whom He established the nation of Israel?
What do you learn about Abram in today’s Scripture by his response to God’s invitation, and also by his response when living in Egypt?
Applying What God's Word Tells Me to My Journey
What specific blessing has God given you, that you can share with someone else today?
My Personal Journey Thought for the Day—“Blessed to be a Blessing!”
We find another vital principal for living in today’s reading from Genesis 12—we are blessed by God in order to be a blessing to others! God called Abram to leave his hometown and move to a place that God would show him. God’s promise was that Abram would become a great nation. God promised to give Abram a land, a people and a heritage. But God didn’t end with promising to bless Abram. He told Abram that all the nations of the earth would be blessed through Him. God takes great pleasure in blessing His people. We need never feel guilty when we receive God’s blessings, but God doesn’t intend for us to hoard or keep our blessings to ourselves. He wants us to share them with others, so that they may come to know Him and His great love and mercy as well. This principle of our being blessed to be a blessing to others is an eminently practical principle. We find in our lives that as we share our blessings with others there is the blessing of the good feeling we have in the sharing, and also the that God continues to bless us. We don’t share in order to be blessed. We share because we are blessed and in the sharing we find that we continue to be blessed. This is God’s plan for providing for the needs of every person, and not only that, but of sharing salvation with all! Let’s become part of the blessed to be a blessing cycle of life today!
To view other studies from our Journey Through the Bible, click here.