Not all that glitters is gold

CALL TO PRAYER

Date: 23/10/2021

By: Owusu Clifford S.

Title โ€“ Not all that glitters is gold

 

Genesis 13:10 & 13 โ€“ 10: And Lot lifted up his eyes and saw that the Jordan Valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, in the direction of Zoar. [This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.] 13: Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord.

 

There is often the saying that โ€œwhat you see is what you getโ€. However, this is not true in all cases. Recently, my sister ordered a very beautiful dress from one of these online-based shops. The dress looked very nice on the online platform, but when it arrived there were so many deficiencies with the dress that got her disappointed. As I watched her lament about the dress and how she has been deceived by the advertisers, I told her that in life what you see is not always what you get.

As humans, we are often driven by what we see. We want to attend the best schools, live in the best places possible in terms of safety and security, do the jobs that we love and believe will grant us financial stability. The truth, however, is that every decision made without the consultation of the Holy Spirit will have major flaws despite the human appeal of the circumstances surrounding the decision.

Genesis 13 tells us that there got to a time that Abraham and Lot had to separate because the land they were both occupying was not enough to support them and their possessions. So, Abraham offered Lot the opportunity to decide where he would want to dwell. The first part of our verses (Genesis 13:10) tells us that Lot lifted his eyes and saw that the land in the Jordan Valley was beautiful, hence he chose to settle there. Thus, Lot based his decision on what he saw, the beauty.

But going further, we read that the people in the land were great sinners in the eyes of God. Logically, the decision Lot made would be what every rational human being would make. He wanted a place that could support himself and his family as well as his cattle and livestock. Hence, the Jordan Valley was a wise decision per human logic. However, in this beautiful land were very sinful people in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The place he chose to dwell was soon to be destroyed by God due to the sins of the people (Genesis 19:23-25).

How Lot made his decision is how many Christians make decisions these days. He did not inquire of God as to whether the place was right for his settlement. He based his decision on what he saw. Decisions involving places of settlement, marriage, career, and ministry are decisions that should not be made based on what we see. We need to seek the direction and guidance of God concerning these decisions before making them. Though Lotโ€™s life was spared by God because of Abraham later on (Genesis 19:29), else the consequences could have been detrimental. God is interested in our life as His children, and this includes the decisions we make. Let us invite Him into our decisions and we can be assured that there will not be any regrets. May God help us!

Prayer:

Let us thank God for His word and the answers to our prayers. Let us pray for the consciousness to seek the direction and the guidance of God in every decision we make today and the days and years ahead of us in Jesusโ€™ name.

 

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God bless you all


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