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The Art of Following Abraham

It is time to follow the father of faith. In order to do so, we must look closely at his life. What did Abraham do that made him such a great man? The Bible teaches that we should follow after people who have successfully inherited God’s promises. “That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises” (Hebrews 6:12).

And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south. And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.

Genesis 13:1-2

Abraham was a successful person. He was married and had children. He was very rich in cattle, silver and in gold. In our day, he probably would have had investments in banks, properties and in stocks. Abraham was a person who knew God. The Lord spoke to him many times and answered his prayers.

Abraham also fought and won some battles in his lifetime. Finally, Abraham died at a good old age having seen the mercies of God throughout his life. Even when Jesus told the story of Lazarus and the rich man, he mentioned that Lazarus was taken to Abraham’s bosom. That meant that Abraham was still an important person even after his life on earth. Some people are only important in this life. In the next world, they become insignificant to society. They are banished to hell to be punished for their sins.

If Abraham were alive today, people would be asking him for an interview. People would want to ask Father Abraham, “How did you do it? What were the secrets of your success? How did you become so famous and prosperous?” You should also want to ask Father Abraham, “Why did God choose you and speak to you?”

Although we are not living in the days of Father Abraham, we have an accurate account of his life and ministry. By studying the Bible, we can learn some of his secrets and principles.

Instead of waiting for some false prophet to ask you for the teeth of a lion and the tail of a tiger as payment for his magic, join me now and let us learn and follow the secrets of Abraham’s success.

1. The art of following Abraham is the art of obeying God.

Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

Genesis 12:1-3

The first time we hear of Abraham, the Lord was giving him an instruction. God told him to leave his country and travel to a strange land. Abraham immediately obeyed the Lord. This first and great key of obedience is something that every believer needs to follow.

If you obey God, it will bring blessings to your life. God told Abraham that He would bless him and that everybody who blessed him would also be blessed. God told him that he would make a great nation out of him. Notice that all the blessings of Abraham were on the condition that he obeyed God’s command.

There are many people in the world, and God has a blessing for everyone. However, the key that makes the blessing manifest is obedience to God. Abraham took the decision of a lifetime. He decided to leave his family and his country and launch out in obedience to God.

In our lives, we are likely to make two or three momentous decisions. These are decisions that change the entire course of our lives. Remember that greatness is dependent on obedience to the voice of God. Blessings are reserved for those who hear and obey.

And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all the nations of the earth: And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God” (Deuteronomy 28:1, 2).

Disobedience Leads to a Curse

There are many people who say, “It is difficult to obey God.” But it is more difficult to disobey God. Anyone who disobeys the Lord will experience curses and frustrations in his life.

Remember the story of Adam. God put him in a garden and told him that he could eat the fruit of every tree except one. Adam disobeyed God and look at where we are today! Adam was cursed and the entire human race was cursed with him.

All men are now cursed to sweat and struggle in their lives in order to make a living. I know of no human being on the earth that is exempt from this curse. The poor man gives several hours of hard labour and is rewarded with very little. Yet, he has to continue to work hard in order to survive. The rich man works twelve hours a day, seven days a week in order to maintain his riches. He sweats as much as the poor man but in a different way. All of us are struggling under this curse.

Women have been cursed to desire husbands, although their husbands will rule over their lives. I have rarely seen a woman who does not want a husband. “...thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee” (Genesis 3:16).

Husbands rule and dominate their wives, yet women still want to be married! Women were also cursed in childbirth. A woman will tell you that there is no pain like the pain of childbirth.

Where did all these things come from? They are a result of Adam’s disobedience! He disobeyed God and his life became frustrated. But we see a second Adam, Jesus Christ who obeyed God and brought in many blessings.

...so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

Romans 5:19

Jesus was obedient to His Father. One act of obedience has brought so much healing to the human race. A lost and dying world now has a life in Jesus Christ. God has highly exalted Jesus and given him a name above every name. Exaltation comes through obedience. If you want to be promoted in your life, begin to obey the Lord. Promotion comes through obedience to the Word of God.

As I said, a person will probably take two or three of such major decisions in his lifetime. A good example of a major decision is the decision of whom to marry. If you obey God concerning marriage, your life may be relatively peaceful. If you marry the wrong person, unhappiness will follow you like a never-ending stream.

Many people do not obey God when they get to the crossroads of marriage. They listen to the flesh and to the opinions of friends. One thing that will influence your state of happiness more than anything else is your marriage. You can never escape the reality of whom you are married to. When you come home, you will meet your marriage partner. When you go out, everything you do will be related to the fact that you are married. If you obey the Lord, He will establish you with His blessing.

Momentous Decisions of Obedience

A momentous decision to obey God was my decision to be in full-time ministry. On the 10th of March 1989, I qualified as a medical doctor. After seven years of hard labour, I had arrived at a point where many people in the world would have liked to be. I was now a medical doctor! Nevertheless, the Lord spoke to me to leave the medical practice and do His work full-time. I obeyed Him and that decision has changed my life completely. One day whilst standing in Jerusalem, I wondered, “How did I get to be in this place?” The Lord told me, “It is because you are following my voice that I brought you here.” You do not know the far-reaching effects of obedience to the Lord. Sometimes I stand in church and see all the people whose lives have been changed and I wonder, “Would these people have been saved if I was a practising doctor in a clinic somewhere?” Sometimes we don’t have any idea of the effects of our obedience.

I think that many people will not know the effects of their disobedience to God until they get to Heaven. I think some people will get to Heaven and be told, “There are sixty nine thousand people who were supposed to be in Heaven through your ministry! They are all in Hell right now, because you refused to obey my call.”

They will answer, “Oh, I thought it was just a little teaching in Sunday school that you wanted me to do. I felt that if I didn’t do it someone else would be able to do it.”

That little thing that God wants you to do has a snowballing effect. It will lead to the salvation of many souls. Just do it and be blessed! Obedience is the first key to Abrahamic success.

Total Obedience

When you do decide to obey God, do not obey him partially. Do not add on things that God did not ask you to do. God did not call Abraham with Lot. He called Abraham alone.

Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: FOR I CALLED HIM ALONE, and blessed him...

Isaiah 51:2

Abraham made the mistake of taking Lot with him. This caused many problems for Abraham.

You see, we do not always understand God’s instructions. God was trying to separate Abraham from his family. He was trying to set up a special line and a special person through whom he would bless all the nations of the earth.

The mistake Abraham made is the same mistake many people make when they are launching out in ministry. They long to take people with them. They try to form partnerships which God has not ordained. As far as ministry is concerned, God does not call a group of people. He calls a man!

And I sought for a man among them…

Ezekiel 22:30

The Bible doesn��t say that God sought for a group of men. God deals with us as individuals. God sought for a man.

Going with a Partner

Years ago in Ghana, there were not many vibrant Charismatic churches. However, there were many vibrant singing and drama ministries. With the passage of time, God began to call some of the members of such groups into the pastoral ministry. Many of the leaders of these ministries were led to establish churches.

However, some of these people made the mistake of launching out as a group into the Church world.

So Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him: and Lot went with him…

Genesis 12:4

That was a big mistake! God was not calling a group. He was calling individuals. Many people who were generally called to be successful pastors had their ministries stifled by the people they took along with them. You see, many of these people who were taken along, felt that they had equal power and an equal say with the leader. Executive committees ran the singing and drama ministries, but a committee cannot run a church. A church needs a strong leader supported by wise and loyal assistants.

If you read the Bible, you will notice that there was a time when the servants of Lot quarrelled with the servants of Abraham. Lot did not tell his servants that they were even privileged to be with Abraham. He did not remind his followers that it was Abraham who was called and that he was just taken along by grace.

Abraham had to settle the dispute. Abraham took the initiative to separate from Lot. When Abraham asked Lot to choose one section of the land, he took the best part and left Abraham, the real leader, with the leftovers. Sometimes when you do things as a group, the people around do not know who the real leader is. They think that it is the group effort that is making things work. It was only after Lot was separated from Abraham that God began to fulfil Abraham’s call. When you play for more than fifteen minutes with a child he begins to think that you are their age!

Often, when people are launching out in business they should really do it alone, but they go in for partnerships. I have watched many partnerships break up very painfully.

If God wants you to set up a factory, go ahead and do it! Believe God to be able to accomplish it.

Sometimes when you get yourself involved with partners who are like Lot, they forget that you are the one who had the vision. The time may come when they will even drive you out of the business you created. Just decide to obey God and to obey Him fully. If God has called you alone, go alone. He will bring people to help you. Don’t be afraid! Strength is not in numbers; it is in God.

Promotion does not come because you are part of a group. Promotion will come because God has called you. Promotion will come because you are obedient!

2. The art of following Abraham is the art of having faith in messages from the Holy Spirit.

And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness.

Genesis 15:6

The Bible teaches us that Abraham believed in God. That is one of the most notable things about him. He is called the father of all those who believe. Because Abraham had faith in God, God was pleased with him. To say you are following Abraham is to walk in faith.

Jesus often told those who were healed, “Your faith has made you whole.” It was the use of faith that brought the miracles to these individuals.

How is it going to be possible for you to own a car? How is it going to be possible for you to own a house? How much does a car cost? A good car costs thousands of dollars.

Many people reading this book earn less than one hundred dollars a month. This is the reason why we need faith. You must know how to believe even when it seems impossible. What do you have to lose? Faith will bring you many blessings!

You must choose to believe that God’s power will destroy the power of the enemy. As you read this book, I can show you several reasons why you may not be alive next week. You will find out that there are many reasons why you could be dead by next week. But why think about that? Why live in fear? Why not exercise faith in the goodness of God?

Choose to believe that God will keep you.

When you have faith in God’s protective power, you please the Father. Believe that God will give you long life. Believe that you will live to a good old age. Believe that you will live to see your children and your children’s children! Believe that although a nice car costs thousands of dollars, you will have one! Expect that you will also have a nice car to give away to someone one day!

Abraham was ninety years old. He had stopped committing love with his wife. He was an old man when God told him that he was going to have a child. The possibility of Abraham having a child was zero, but he believed in God. God was so happy with Abraham because he believed. God gets really excited when you have faith in His promises!

...without faith it is impossible to please him.

Hebrews 11:6

Read through the Bible and see how people looked foolish when they believed God. Do not be afraid of looking odd when you step out in faith. By faith are we saved! I promise and predict that in spite of everything, God will select you and superimpose His purpose on your life. I see God superimposing His blessings on your life in spite of contrary evidence and contradictory circumstances! God will do this because of your faith.

The more you exercise faith, the more you will prosper. But the more you are blessed, the more people will speak against you. The more you prosper, the more people will hate you. Ignore their hatred, keep on and make sure that you please God with your faith. Faith was one of Abraham’s key principles for a successful life.

3. The art of following Abraham is the art of ruling your own house.

If you are following Abraham you must lead your household successfully. One of the reasons why God chose Abraham and blessed him was because Abraham commanded his entire family to serve Him. When God was about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, the Lord thought, “Should I inform Abraham about this? Should I speak to him?” Many people would like God to speak to them. So why did God choose to speak to Abraham? The answer is in the Bible. He commanded his entire family to follow after his ways:

For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment...

Genesis 18:19

Many people do not care what happens to their children spiritually. They are concerned that their children attend “good” schools and universities. In contrast, they take the spiritual development of their children for granted.

I would not like to bring a child into the world that would end up in Hell.

If you are following Abraham, you must be concerned that your household serves the Lord. It is more important that your children serve the Lord than that they have a good education.

God said, “I know Abraham. He’s going to bring his children to Sunday school. He’s going to make them study the Bible.”

Your children should attend Sunday school and learn about David, Abraham, Joshua and Jacob. They must know all the stories of Jesus Christ. They must learn about Absalom, Lucifer and Judas. It is not just mathematics and science that are important!

You cannot attend church and leave your children at home watching demonic films. God wants you to ensure that your entire household is serving Him. God worked with Abraham because He was confident that Abraham would make his entire family serve the Lord.

If you are a young man, you must marry a Christian. Some people marry women who are not even Christians. Some men just marry a wife because she is fair and beautiful. Yes, she is a fair and beautiful barrel, but she may be an empty barrel. You must marry someone who has the Word and the Spirit.

God said, “I know Abraham, he’s going to marry a believer. He’s going to bring them to church.” God wants you to attend church with your spouse.

Some Christian men allow their wives to get out of control. They come to church on their own whilst their wives stay at home. They say, “She didn’t want to come, so I left her.”

You’ve got to keep your household under control: servants, visitors and even the dogs and cats must serve the Lord. That is the art of following Abraham.

4. The art of following Abraham is the art of believing in tithing and practising tithing.

The art of following Abraham is the art of tithing. Tithing is giving ten per cent of all you earn to the church. In every church, there is always a small percentage of people who tithe. You may also have noticed that it is only a small percentage of people who prosper. Tithing is a secret which is hidden from many people. Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek.

And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.

Genesis 14:20

Melchizedek was a priest of the Most High God. He represented God and the Church. All successful people, who have walked with God, know that it is God who gave them what they have. When King David gave an offering he said, “I’m only giving You what You first gave me.”

But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.

1 Chronicles 29:14

When you realize that it is God who gives you something, you will always want to acknowledge Him. Nebuchadnezzar the king got to a place in his life where he began to boast about what he had. God does not like people who boast about things that were given to them. God does not like it when people boast about things that they acquired by grace. God struck Nebuchadnezzar down with a disease that made him think that he was an animal. For seven years, he played in the grass like an animal. When he came to his senses, he gave the glory back to God.

Wherever you are in life, remember that God has made you what you are. Are you intelligent? Are you skilled? Are you beautiful? Everything is from God. “For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?” (1 Corinthians 4:7).

When God elevates you to a position of influence and authority, please remember that you are there by the grace of God. Every powerful position has an expiry date. Belshazzar—another king, learnt this lesson the hard way. He was so happy in his palace that he sent for drinking glasses from the church!

Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand.

Daniel 5:1

He just didn’t want to drink wine. He wanted to drink wine from the holy vessels. He wanted to desecrate the Church. He ridiculed churches and pastors.

Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king...and his concubines, might drink therein.

Daniel 5:2

That was a mistake! He drank wine from the holy vessels.

Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them. They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.

Daniel 5:3, 4

Every position you hold in this life is by the grace of God. If you do not decide to give glory to God, He will divinely displace and replace you. One of the ways a successful person can give glory to God is by acknowledging the grace of God and paying tithes. Do you have Power? Money? A husband? A wife? Cars? A position? You must remember that these things are from the Lord.

Abraham knew that secret. He knew that he had to acknowledge God for his success in life so he gave tithes.

If you want to follow Abraham you must learn how to pay tithes. I want you to notice a great blessing that came unto Abraham after he paid his tithes. God gave him a child. God was stirred to give more blessings to Abraham.

After these things [paying his tithes] the word of the Lord came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward…And behold, the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir.

Genesis 15:1, 4

This was the first time that God specifically told Abraham that he was going to have his own special child which would not be his servant’s child. Abraham had everything in the world but he didn’t have a child. God knows what you don’t have. He knows where your need is greatest. He gave Abraham what he could not buy with money.

Abraham was a great man, he was successful and rich but he didn’t have everything. He didn’t have a child. He was so powerful that he had his own private army. His private army had just fought and won a war. How many people on earth today have their own private armies? Abraham had wealth, prestige and long life but he didn’t have a child.

Please read your Bible and see for yourself whether what I am saying is true or not. In Genesis 14 Abraham paid his tithes and then in Genesis 15, in the very next few verses, God told him that he was going to have his miracle. God blesses those who pay tithes.

Go into a church and find out those who have been paying tithes consistently for years. Their lives are different from those who have not been paying tithes. Come to the Lord and honour Him every month.

Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.

Proverbs 3:9

God gave you the job you have. Successful people know that and respect that fact! The first fruit is for the Lord. Paying a tithe is not something that you must be reminded of. The fact that you are alive must remind you to pay tithes. When you give tithes to God, you become more spiritual. It makes you more committed. When your treasure is in the house of the Lord, you become interested in the church.

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Matthew 6:21

I think that the reason why some people have difficulties in giving to the Lord is because they do not believe or understand that it is more blessed to give than to receive. If it is more blessed to give than to receive, then those who give have an advantage over those who receive.

If it is more blessed to give, then those at the receiving end are at a disadvantage (relatively speaking). The so-called developing world has been receiving aid from Western powers for years. What has it done for them? Very little! The more people give to the Third World, the more their poverty deepens. Many people grapple with this reality to their own destruction.

Even if you have a little, you can still give something. God calculates your giving in relation to what you have in total. God wants you to give in relation to what you have.

And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites… and [Jesus] saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury: For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.

Mark 12:42-44

I see you rising out of poverty, as you become a giver. I see you tithing. I see you paying your first and best fruits to the Lord. I see you joining that small group of people who are successful in this life.

Listen to me, God doesn’t need your money! He doesn’t need your little offerings. Whether you pay your tithes or not, the Church will go forward. God is just trying to help you. Abraham knew that God needed nothing from him. The Word of God says that the silver, gold and cattle belong to the Lord.

As you read this book, allow your ministry to enter the realm of divine approval and divine promotion. I see God giving you divine promotion as you pay your tithes.

Divine promotion and elevation are yours for the taking if you follow Abraham. Go forward and never go backward. God is taking you from the minimum to the maximum, and from the negative to the positive. Follow Abraham and enjoy great blessings.

5. The art of following Abraham is the art of INTERCESSION.

The art of following Abraham is the art of intercession. The Bible teaches us how Abraham interceded for Sodom and Gomorrah. When Abraham prayed for Sodom and Gomorrah, he was fulfilling a divine principle. Most Christians are engrossed with their own problems. Many wives are consumed with the problems of their troubled marriages. They want to be prayed for and anointed over and over again. But the problems never seem to go away.

Abraham had his own problems but he prayed for Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham didn’t have a child. He may have been suffering from azospermia, oligospermia or even impotence. The doctors had no solutions for his medical problems.

Abraham also had family problems. He had so much wealth and he didn’t have anyone to inherit it. There were only servants to inherit his life’s work. He had no children. Abraham also had marital problems because of a maid he had slept with.

In spite of all this, Abraham found time to intercede for Sodom and Gomorrah.

His prayer was so sincere and intensive that God agreed to answer his prayers. This prayer was so significant that it was recorded in the Bible.

And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked? And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten’s sake.

Genesis 18:23, 32

I believe that this is one of the keys to Abrahamic success. Forget about your problems and make God’s kingdom and God’s problems your concern. You will begin to experience supernatural breakthroughs in your life. You will not even understand why God is blessing you.

When you begin to pray for others, you have graduated into another level of Christianity. I know that many successful Christians rarely pray for themselves. They are always praying for and counselling other people.

Most Christians think: “When everything is okay and God has blessed me, I will start to pray for other people.” But what you don’t realize is the divine order that must be followed. They are trying to put the cart before the horse, but the cart cannot go before the horse. Seek first the kingdom of God. After putting the kingdom of God first, you can then tackle your own kingdom.

In the Lord’s Prayer, the first topic is, “Thy kingdom come and thy will be done.” The first prayer is not, “Bless me, give me and help me Lord!”

I often counsel people who need God’s help: “Get involved in the work of God. Bury yourself in God’s work! Pray for other people! Let other people’s problems become your concern!” You will be surprised at how things will take a dramatic turn.

When God sees that you want to build His house, He will be interested in building your house. Many years ago I heard a great man of God say, “If you build a house for God, God will build a house for you.” I have found this to be a true and reliable statement. God wants people who concern themselves with His work. Paul said about Timothy,

For I have no man likeminded, who will naturally care for your state. For all seek their own not the things which are Jesus Christ’s.

Philippians 2:20, 21

Notice from this Scripture, an age-old problem: Everybody was looking out for his own welfare. Nobody really cared about God’s work. Everybody is thinking about himself and his problems. If you make God’s kingdom your primary concern and intercede for people like Abraham did, you will attract God’s supernatural blessings.

In 1985, while in the third year of the medical school, I took a decision for the Lord. I decided not to seek for academic laurels anymore. I had just finished the second year and had concluded that it was not worth striving for earthly crowns. I remember telling my “beloved”, “From now, I am not interested in qualifying with a distinction from this school. I don’t want any prizes. All I want to do is pass my exams.” I added, “From now on, I’m going to build God’s kingdom and the church.”

It was from that point onwards that I began to develop into a pastor and eventually established the church, Lighthouse Chapel International. It is interesting to note that when I took the decision not to seek great academic laurels, I ended up getting distinctions and winning awards.

You see, in the kingdom, the way up is the way down. In the kingdom, the way to get is to give. In the kingdom, the way to solve your problems is to solve God’s problems. Have you ever read about Job? He had more problems than any of us? Job had friends who needed spiritual help. Job decided to pray for his friends and look at what happened!

And the Lord turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.

Job 42:10

Who got the blessing when Job prayed? Who was being prayed for? It was the friends of Job who were being prayed for. But when God moved, it was Job’s problems that were solved! Is that not amazing? Job got the blessing when he made intercession for his friends. Isn’t that interesting?

You pray for others and you get the blessing! This is an eternal principle.

This is one of the principles of success. Husbands, wives, businesspeople, please turn your attention to the things of God. In Abraham’s day, God’s major concern was the deplorable state of the nation Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham made that his problem and prayed earnestly about it. Because of this, God blessed Abraham above all men in his generation.

This is one of the keys to a successful life on this earth. Seek first the kingdom of God! Intercede for others! Help other people! Build God’s church! Build a house for God and God will build a house for you!

6. The art of following Abraham is the art of taking up your cross.

God had blessed Abraham with a child. After this, Abraham faced the ultimate test. God asked him to sacrifice his only son. That was a very big request from the Lord. God wanted to see whether Abraham was ready to give up everything for Him.

I believe that God wants to have you as His own. I do not think that it is only Abraham who was tested in this way. I believe that every Christian will have an “Isaac” that God will ask for one day. Will you be prepared to give up your Isaac? You can only give up your “Isaac” if you are fully surrendered to God.

When you begin to walk with God, He will ask you about all the “Isaacs” in your life. He may start with music. Next, He may ask you to give up some friends. Then He may ask you to give more time to Him. Perhaps I should warn you, do not let anything become too precious to you.

Anything that becomes too precious will attract the attention of the Lord and He may ask for it. God wants to be the only God in your life. Our God is a jealous God. He hates the very smell of idols.

Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.

1 John 5:21

A Vision of Gold

Many years ago, when I started out in ministry, the Lord gave me a vision. I was walking on a long and winding path. On this path were heaps of some substance. They looked like heaps of sand. As I kept walking on the path, I got closer to one of the heaps and discovered that it was a heap of gold. I immediately felt like stopping and gathering as much of it as I could. But I heard the voice of God telling me, “Don’t stop! Keep on walking!”

Then God told me, “This is the road of ministry for you. As you walk on it, you will meet many of such heaps of gold.”

He said to me, “Don’t stop at the gold. The gold is not important.”

He continued, “There are many such heaps further along. Why should you stop at one of them and settle there?”

Since that time, money has in a certain way, lost its importance to me. I only see money as a tool. I see it as something I will meet along the way. It is not something I must search for and pile up.

God gave me that vision to help me to see Him as being more important than anything else is. I realized that just following the Lord in itself would lead to a supply of all my needs. As soon as something becomes too precious to you, it becomes a potential idol.

The Lord did not want Abraham to replace the love of God with the love of Isaac.

Dear friend, Abraham was about to become the father of many millions of children. Before God could trust him with such a blessing, He had to make sure that the blessing would never replace his love for God.

Before God can bless you in a special way, He needs to be sure about you. Don’t hold back anything from the Lord! Give it all to Him and He will make you a great and successful person in this life!

Follow Abraham into greatness and receive a permanent blessing in your life.

by Dag Heward-Mills

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