4/25/23 - Genesis 13: 1-18

Genesis 13: 1-18

Observation:

Abram returns from Egypt with his wife and along with Lot. And upon Abram's return, he came back with an enormous amount of wealth in livestock, silver and gold. Abram travelled as far as between Bethel and Ai where he worshipped God at the altar he previously built. At some point, there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram and Lot and because of this strife, it has caused Abram to come up with a solution to Abram to part ways. Abram offered Lot to choose which land to settle, which Lot chose the valley of Jordan (Sodom) and Abram continued to live in Canaan. The men of Sodom were evil and full of sin. God informed Abram His promise to him the land of Canaan and to Abram's seed. This is when Abram moved to Hebron and set up an altar to worship God. 

Interpretation:

God in His sovereignty allowed Abram to be rich after returning from Egypt back to Canaan. Abram travelled all the way back to Bethel and felt the need to worship or call on the name of God. One thing to point out that in v6 it states "for their possessions were so abundant" meaning both Abram's and Lot's families and herds were rich. It goes on to say in v7 that "there was strife between herdsmen of Abram's livestock and the herdsmen of Lot's livestock." So it wasn't a difference in class or wealth that separated the people but more of their "abundance." Therefore if both sides were wealthy and there was no difference there then we can "assume" that there were factors that lead to this strife such as gossip, lying, difference in opinion and/or beliefs as well as pride and lack of humility. What made matters worse there were also Canaanites and Perizzites that were living amongst them. Without going into much detail on who exactly the Canaanites and Perizzites were, it's implied here that both tribes do not worship God (Yahweh). 

At some point Abram goes to lot and seeks for a peaceful solution on going their separate ways to keep the peace between both sides. Abram even goes as far as allowing Lot to pick first on which land to settle and Lot's eyes mainly focused on the fruit of the land as seen in v10 "Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the valley of the Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere." Lot takes his herd and his possessions to Sodom where in v13 it states how the men of Sodom were evil and sinners. Lot was so infatuated by the land where he did not consider the inhabitants. After Lot had left, God goes to Abram and informs him about His promise to Abram and his generations on the land they will own and enjoy. At the end of the passage, Abram goes to Hebron to build an altar and offer his praises and worship to the Lord.

Personal Reflection:

Looking at it from Lot's point of view, I can see myself doing the same thing that Lot did by allowing my eyes be the final decision maker as opposed to God's voice and presence being the ultimate guide. One primary example for me is my lustful relationship that I had during my college years. I truly believed the girl that I was dating was someone who would eventually be the person I would end up calling my wife; however, it did not end up being the case. We were virgins and remained that way even up to the end of our relationship but still we were lustful towards one another. Our relationship was on-and-off throughout our college years but I was blinded by my lust towards her and not following God's true direction for me. In the passage, we can see Lot not clearly thinking things through and not doing his own due diligence before settling in Sodom where it's full of evil and sin. We already know what happened to the city of Sodom and Gomorrah and ultimately what happened to Lot's wife including his relationship with his daugters. If we're not careful and we continue to allow our own judgement get in the way of what God wants to do with our lives then it'll ultimately lead to failure or even disaster. 

Seeing Abram, it's amazing to see him being even keeled throughout all the turmoil that was going on. He checked his emotions and allowed God to be in full control. What's even more astounding is him giving Lot the choice of land to settle on (going off tangent, I wonder if Abram would have chosen Jordan if he had first choice). I can see myself allowing my anger get in the way of things if there's turmoil between two different sides whether I'm directly or indirectly involved. In the working environment, it can get really easy when two sides don't agree and one side is being more aggressive or defensive. I'm not the type of person who wants to get back at anyone but I do admit I will get angry at the other person while having bad thoughts going through my head. Same thing can be said about family, too, as I do not have the greatest of relationship with my mother and we often butt heads since we normally don't see eye-to-eye on several things in life.   

Application:

There is a Lot in all of us where we don't allow God to be the guide of our lives where most of us tries to handle life's challenges on "our own." We tend to let our eyes and our views get in the way of things and our final judgement. Right now, we're at a cross road in our life right now where it can make serious impact on not only my life but my entire family's lives. We're praying to see if it is a good time to buy a home or should we rent instead or should we simply stay pat. I'm hoping we do not get into a situation where the homes we're only able to afford, the neighborhoods are not considered to be safe. Jiyoon and I need to seriously pray and trust God that he's in full control.

At the same time, it's cliche to say I need to pray more and spend more time with God so that His spirit manifests in my heart, my mind and my soul. But I do need to seek more patience with others as I get easily riled when it comes to repeating myself over and over again to those who are not willing to listen to what it is that I'm trying to say. I need to pray for love and acceptance that not everyone is willing and able to compromise as they're not like me and don't think like me. At the same time, while I'm praying for myself, I should also pray for the other people/party, too, that one day they will learn acceptance and understanding and God's grace if they are not believers.