The Only Seat

"Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about." 
Genesis 22:3 (NIV)

What does it look like to put God first when it costs more than you want to give?

Abraham hears God's request. He doesn't argue, bargain, or ask for a week to think it over. Verse three begins, "Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey." This man shows no hesitation. No deliberation. That kind of immediate, total obedience doesn't come from willpower. It comes from understanding who God is.

The truth underneath Abraham’s response is that God doesn't want a seat at your table. He wants to be the one around whom your whole table is set.

Most people give God a role in their lives without giving Him the throne. He gets Sunday morning or the prayers when things get hard. But the daily decisions, the attitudes, the plans, and the futures stay in their hands. Abraham's story is God saying that arrangement doesn't work.

What area of your life has God been asking you to surrender that you've been keeping for yourself? You probably already know. Maybe it's the plan you've been building without ever actually bringing Him into it, or the decision you've already made and are just waiting to announce. 

Before you go any further with it, stop and open it up to Him today. Sit down with a piece of paper or a note on your phone and write at the top: 'God, this is Yours.' Then list whatever you've been holding back underneath it. Abraham's obedience was his testimony. Yours can be too.

Prayer: Lord, Master, and Creator of heaven and earth. I've made room for You at my table, but I've kept the seat at the head for myself. Help me put You on the throne of my life. Teach me, each day, how to love You more than I love anything You've given me. In Jesus' Name, Amen.