A lonely walk.

"So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac; he cut the wood for the burnt offering, and set out and went to the place in the distance that God had shown him. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place far away."

(Genesis 22:3-4)

Any time a chapter starts with the words, "After these things God tested..." you know it's going to be rough! Genesis 22 is the infamous story of Abraham being asked to sacrifice his son, Isaac. We hear the story today and think, 'How horrible!' True. But back in the day, there were other Ancient Near Eastern religions where child sacrifice WAS definitely a thing (Google "Molech" for starters!). So in the big picture, by the end of chapter 22, the message is clear: "God will not require child sacrifice." (But the road to that point is definitely rough!)

However, early in the story, it's interesting to hear the details about the preparations. Getting the donkey ready... finding the traveling crew... cutting the wood for the sacrifice... and then they begin. God hasn't told Abe where he's going - it's just some place in the distance. In fact, it takes 3 days for them to get even within eyesight of the location! Why 3 days?!? Why not choose some place much closer? If it's a test, why not get it over with quickly? See if Abraham is up to the task? Nope. God goes for the extended plan. He gives Abraham 3 days to think about it...

That's actually kinda smart. I'm not a quick decision maker, myself. I like to "mull over" tings a bit. I find I often "change my mind" numerous times before coming to a final decision. We're currently house hunting here in the Antelope Valley. We're not in a rush, so we've been looking for a while. Sometimes we see a house that looks great... but after a day or two of thinking about it, we realize it's probably not "the one." And now, one of the houses we saw weeks ago is back on our radar. There's something to be said for time.

In the end, after 3 days of walking/thinking/praying, Abraham was ready to trust God. Completely. And God didn't let him down.

LORD, give me time to reflect on the important decisions in life. And help me to trust your guiding hand along the way! AMEN.