Genesis 12:1–9 (NRSV) 12 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” 4So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5Abram took his wife Sarai and his brother’s son Lot, and all the possessions that they had gathered, and the persons whom they had acquired in Haran; and they set forth to go to the land of Canaan. When they had come to the land of Canaan, 6Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7Then the Lord appeared to Abram, and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 8From there he moved on to the hill country on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the Lord and invoked the name of the Lord. 9And Abram journeyed on by stages toward the Negeb.
“Promises to Keep”
First in a Series, “Sons and Daughters of Abraham”
The pieces of the promise
The purpose of the promise
The persistence of the promise
The pilgrims of the promise
Key verse for the week
I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. --Genesis 12:2
Questions for conversation and reflection
In what ways have you been “blessed to be a blessing?” Have you ever “set out” for something, not knowing where it would lead in your life, only trusting that God would show you?
Possible next best step for you
· Sign up to do something that might be out of your comfort zone, trusting that God will show you the way.
· Donate clean, gently used clothing to the Mercy Closet and help meet basic needs of the Gethsemane community. Donations (and volunteers) are accepted on weekdays at the Gethsemane front office. Contact Amy Kelley at akelley@stlukesmethodist.org.