Do You Stagger?

The caution sign shows a staggered road ahead, a decent graphics choice since our paths often become staggered as we make our way through life.  There’s also the thought of a staggering man, unable to keep his way straight, whether by choice or shock.  There are times in our lives where we feel staggered.  We often waiver and stagger in our faith.

Paul tells us that Abraham didn’t:.

He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; (Romans 4:20 KJV)

This really belongs with the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, where the writer speaks of all that great cloud of witnesses:

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. (Hebrews 11:13 KJV)

Abraham lived decades with God’s promise afar off, continuing to believe them even when God required his son as a sacrifice.  His faith, and his ability to prophesy, strike me every time I read his answer to Isaac’s question about the lamb:

And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. (Genesis 22:8 KJV)

God did not provide a lamb that day. 

And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. (Genesis 22:13 KJV)

Not until John do we see God’s provision of that offering:

The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. (John 1:29 KJV)

We have much more information than Abraham.  We have record of his descendants.  We have the writings of Moses, telling of Jacob’s sons, and their tribes taking God’s promise of a promised land as literal fact.  We have the songs of David, a man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13:14), telling of God’s greatness, looking forward to a Messiah through elation and depression, pleas and praise, through sin, sorrow and salvation.
We have other writings – history, poetry and prophecy.  The story of people looking forward while always remembering the past, confirming God’s hand in all that is done.

Some of them staggered.  Some of us still do.  Mostly we stagger when we attempt to move forward alone, reacting to the prideful sinfulness that says, “I don’t need God.”  Sometimes we add, “…yet” but more often we just neglect to include Him in our daily lives.  We relegate Him to a position similar to a fire extinguisher, handy for emergency purposes when we’ve made misjudgments. 

When we seek His will, walk with His instructions, the likelihood of emergencies lessen.  Then we can, as David did, sing out about our Lord:

Give thanks unto the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people. (1 Chronicles 16:8 KJV)