And Isaac said to Abraham, My father! And he said, Here I am, my son.
[Isaac] said, See, here are the fire and the wood,
but where is the lamb for the burnt sacrifice?
Abraham said, My son, God Himself will provide a lamb for the burnt offering.
So the two went on together.
Genesis 22:7-8

We all know the story.  Abraham is asked to give the ultimate sacrifice.  He obeys and, at the last minute, as Abraham is about to kill his son…God stops him.  He hears a word from the Lord.  It was a test to see if Abraham was willing to be obedient, and he was.

It’s almost beyond our comprehension, right?  That we would take our child by the hand and lead them to a place where we knew we would take his life.  Abraham truly loved God and trusted Him above all else.  He knew that if God made a covenant with him that He would follow through.  Remember, Isaac was the promise that Abraham would be the father to many nations.  But how would that happen if God was telling Abraham to kill Isaac?  Abraham believed that God would provide.  As the two walked up the mountain, Abraham trusted His Creator.  Abraham built the altar…still no word from God.  He laid Isaac on the altar…God still had not provided.   Abraham took the knife to sacrifice his son…and still no provision.  Then a word from God came, saying the sweetest words that Abraham had ever heard, telling him not to lay a hand on Isaac.

But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said,
Abraham, Abraham! He answered, Here I am.
And He said, Do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him;
for now I know that you fear and revere God,
since you have not held back from Me
or begrudged giving Me your son, your only son.
Verses 11 and 12

Abraham then saw a ram and offered it up to God. He even called the very place, “The Eternal One Will Provide.”

In verse 8, Abraham states, “…God will Himself provide the lamb….”  What is it that God is asking you to do today?  Is it something you are putting before God that He’s asking you to sacrifice?  Maybe it is your time. I know today He asked me to step out of myself and do flood relief cleanup.  Oh yes, it was a beautiful day on the beach, the last pretty day for a while and I would’ve loved to relax but I knew my time was better spent helping clean houses that were still saturated.

Friend, if this is you and you don’t know what God is asking or telling you He wants you to give up, I encourage you to spend some time at His feet, praying and seeking His will for your life.  Prepare your heart to hear and then be obedient.  It may be a test—like Abraham’s—or it may be for your own good. But this we know for sure…it will be for His glory!

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Let us pray:  Dear Lord, thank You for always providing a lamb.  We are in awe of Your love for us and Your sovereignty.  Thank You for guiding us and asking us to do Your will.  And that we can have faith that no matter what…You have our best interest at heart.  Your will is perfect and I hope that I would lay down my life to serve You.  Help us to listen, and prepare our hearts to be willing to serve You.  We love You so much!  In Your Son’s name we pray, amen.