“What If” or “Even If”

Abraham experienced a famine in the land of promise.  Without consulting God, he decided that it would be better if he moved his family to Egypt to survive for a while. Perhaps he thought, what if we lose all of our flocks and starve to death. As he was nearing Egypt he had a chat with his wife Sarah.  What if Pharaoh sees your incredible beauty and takes you and kills me?  Tell them you are my sister.  It seems that at this point in the life of Abraham that he was fearful and living in the land of “what if”.  As the event played out, Abraham’s lie brings trouble to Pharaoh, dishonor to God, and endangers the plans of God for Abraham.  He should have trusted God, “even if”.  This was a tough lesson for Abraham.  A lesson that he finally learned later on in Genesis chapter 22 when he was asked to sacrifice his son.  Instead of asking God what if, this time he obeyed the Lord even if his son had to die.

Our faith will always be tested.  Daniel passed the test and continued to pray even if he was thrown into a den of lions.  The three Hebrew young men did not bow before the idol even if it cost them to be thrown into the fiery furnace.  They replied to the king: “If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king.  But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up” (Dan. 3:17,18).

Are you constantly worried about the things that may happen to you in this life? We may fearfully think, what if I run out of money, what if my health goes bad, and what if my spouse dies.  When we are living in the land of “what if” we keep ourselves from enjoying God’s best for our life.  May we determine to have an “even if” kind of faith.