I’ve heard the story of Abram in Egypt many times. It’s the classic story of a half-truth getting a good guy into a lot of trouble. However, I hadn’t really read the story like I did today.
Like many cross-cultural workers, I can identify with Abram’s call: Go. Leave your family and go to the nations, and trust that God will make it clear as you go. That’s what Abram did… went from place to place, pitching his tent and building altars in the name of the Lord. Being a light wherever God called him.
Until Egypt. Genesis 12:10 gives us the reason for Abram’s trip to Egypt: “Now there was a famine in the land…” Abram went down to Egypt because there was a famine in Canaan, the Land that God had called him to. In the midst of what could have been supernatural provision for Abram and his family, he decided to seek help from other sources.
For awhile, this provision seemed to work out beautifully. “[Pharaoh] treated Abram well for [Sarai’s] sake” (16). He gave him what he needed. No more famine worries! Then things started to go wrong.
When we take things into our own hands rather that trusting in God and His provision, deception slips in. With deception came consequences… but, oddly enough, not for Abram and his household – but for the very people to whom Abram was called to be a blessing (part of the “all nations” earlier in the chapter). Abram’s lack of trust in God resulted in the opposite of his goal.
Amazingly, Abram left Egypt and the situation turned around: the first few verses of chapter 13 let us know that “Abram went up from Egypt… Abram was very rich…” God then brings Abram back to the place he started: “He went on his journey… to the place where his tent had been in the beginning… And there Abram called on the name of the Lord.”
Watch out for detours in Egypt. If circumstances seem tough, call on the name of the Lord first. Trust Him to bring the provision, to bring the solution. It will keep you effective in the ministry that God has called you to.
Some detours are, indeed, God-ordained! When I was planning to come to Bogota to meet my parents, the flights from Monteria were really expensive. I asked the Lord what I should do, and He opened a door: take a bus (7 hours) to Barranquilla, meet up with some friends for the night, and fly from there for almost half the price. I had a great time with siblings Julian and Andrea last night, along with their grandma and aunt. It was a beautiful time of sharing and encouraging.