[From the archives.]

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David Brickner, the Executive Director of Jews for Jesus, preached at church the other day and something he said made me think of cowboys.

He took us into Genesis 22 where Abraham prepares to sacrifice his own son. (God stops him from doing so; if you’re unfamiliar with these events, go ahead read about them now. I’ll be here waiting for your well-informed return.) Brickner spoke of how rich this passage is in imagery and significance for the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, God the Son, who took our sins upon his blameless self in order to reconcile us to God. But something else stayed with me too, one small point he made about Abraham’s response to God’s initial instructions:

“So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him and Isaac his son; and he split wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.” (Genesis 22:3, NASB.

I’ve seen enough cowboy movies to know what that means. It’s like dialog straight out of a cowboy movie – “C’mon boys, we’re burning daylight. Saddle up and ride!”

Brickner pointed out that Abraham didn’t just saddle up and ride, though; he made preparations. He selected companions, gathered supplies, and got a good night’s sleep.

That’s not a bad model for following God.

Which brought some questions to mind, since there are a lot of ways to serve God besides setting out for a distant mountain with supplies for a sacrifice. I’ve thought about these a bit, and now I’ll lay them out for you:

What types of things do you think God has given you to do for him?

How do you respond when God calls you to do something?

Have you ever been one of the companions that someone else is depending on as they serve God?

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