Living in the Spirit
July 1, 2014
Scripture Reading: Genesis 24
They said, ‘We will call the girl, and ask her.’ And they called Rebekah, and said to her, ‘Will you go with this man?’ She said, ‘I will.’ So they sent away their sister Rebekah and her nurse along with Abraham’s servant and his men. And they blessed Rebekah and said to her,‘May you, our sister, become thousands of myriads;may your offspring gain possession of the gates of their foes.’ Then Rebekah and her maids rose up, mounted the camels, and followed the man; thus the servant took Rebekah, and went his way. —Genesis 24:57-61
Abraham’s servant was successful in finding a bride for Isaac. Her name was Rebekah. Although she probably had no actual say in the matter, her family did give her the choice of when she would leave. When asked if she would go with the servant, she simply said, I will and she left with family blessings and well wishes. Her response is reminiscent of Mary’s response to Gabrielle’s announcement that she had been chosen to be the mother of the Messiah. It also reminds me of Abraham following God’s instruction to leave his home and travel to another land.
Jesus describes the immediacy of our call from God in a rather terse manner in Luke 9:58-60: And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.’ To another he said, ‘Follow me.’ But he said, ‘Lord, first let me go and bury my father.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.’
The reality is that there is never a perfect time to answer a call to action. Most of us do not live in a vacuum with nothing to do until one day the phone rings and someone says, Could you help…? I was working as a supervisor in a county office in March 1974. I had been turned down for a work related scholarship to graduate school the year before, and had just experienced the ending of a relationship. I thought I had reached the apex of my career and decided to just be the best county supervisor that I could be for the rest of my life. Then a got a call asking if I would be willing to transfer to Children’s Hospital in Oklahoma City to supervise its social work unit. I said yes and they said come tomorrow and stop by the state office to pick up your id tag. It had already been created. I have never known if I really had a choice or not, but looking back, it was one of the most pivotal events of my life, got me out of my funk, and put me on a different path of meaningful service then I had ever imagined.
Prayer: Lord, keep me alert to your calls for my service and let me see the doors that you open to make it happen when I say yes. Amen.
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.