Footsteps of Faith

"Then Jacob prayed, 'O God of my grandfather Abraham, and God of my father, Isaac - O LORD, You told me, 'Return to your own land and to your relatives. And You promised me 'I will treat you kindly.' I am not worthy of all the unfailing love and faithfulness You have shown to me, Your servant. When I left home and crossed the Jordan River, I owned nothing except a walking stick. Now my household fills two large camps! O LORD, please rescue me from the hand of my brother, Esau. I am afraid that he is coming to attack me, along with my wives and children. But You promised me, 'I will surely treat you kindly, and I will multiply your descendants until they become as numerous as the sands along the seashore - too many to count.'" Genesis 32:9-12

What do we do in times of uncertainty and fear? Jacob is preparing to return to the land of Seir, or maybe more accurately described right now as the land of Esau. Twenty years earlier Esau swore that he would kill Jacob. It's understandable that Jacob has every reason to feel afraid. He had wronged his brother and his life is hindered by the memory and the guilt that is now consuming him. Jacob's mother, Rebekah, had promised to send for him when his brother's anger had subsided (Gen 27:45), and with that never happening it could only mean one thing: Esau was still desiring revenge.

In his distress, instead of expressing conditional faith as he had in the past, this time Jacob does the right thing with a heart full of trust. Fear pushed Jacob forward to faith. With humble thankfulness, total honesty and complete dependence, he expressed his fear but remembers God's faithfulness and His promises. Relying on God and recognizing his own unworthiness, he recounts all that God has spoken.

Oh how we need to recall God's word to us, and then being mindful and assured of what He has spoken, our subsequent actions must bear witness to our belief. 

I love the life of George Mueller. If you've never read the book "Delighted in God" by Roger Steer, I greatly encourage you to do so. He was a great man of faith and prayer. One time he was asked, "What is the most important part of prayer?" This was his answer: "The 15 minutes after I have said, 'Amen.'"

Jacob's prayer shows renewed trust in God, but the greatest testimony to his trust are the actions that follow. We can too often pray with fervency without follow-through. Rising from our knees, anxiety consumes us, the words we've just uttered forgotten. Words do not equal obedience.  Jacob did head out in obedience, relying on God. Where does the trust in your heart and the words in your prayer need to find footsteps today? The fear may not diminish, but you'll only encounter God through obedience.