Let’s just take our minds back to New Years Day. How many people reading this have already been wished a happy, safe and prosperous 2022? Perhaps that happened more back in January, but after a chaotic last few years, a happy, safe and prosperous year sounds pretty good doesn’t it! While there is nothing wrong with wanting some more happiness or safety in our lives, Hebrews 11 tells us that the journey of faith was never intended to be a simple or straight forward trip. It never brought what we expected. Sometimes I’m not sure that happiness, safety and prosperity is part of the deal following Jesus.

Whenever I read the opening few lines of Abram’s story (later Abraham), the same thing strikes me. God has been very quiet for a good period, but decides to call Abram to follow Him. Abram has his own life; a wife, a stack of possessions, thousands of animals to water and feed and plenty of his own issues to worry about. He has his own ideas of what happiness, safety and prosperity might look like.

But the first step of faith often is living with a sensitive spirit. We don’t know anything much about Abram before this at all and he certainly was not anyone special. We do know that his family were ‘spiritual’ in a sense. But the first thing Abram was – He was sensitive to God’s call.

We are called to be on a journey of faith following the God of the universe who made this world, and who has a plan and purpose for everything – even though it often seems like He doesn’t. Rarely do we know the outcomes, the hurdles, successes, obstacles or situations that we’ll face along the way. All we know is God – His character and His promises. The starting point for Abram on his journey of faith was sensitivity to God’s call, and then being willing to go, not knowing what tomorrow might bring.