Family Feud (Gen. 13:5-12)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 05/19/2006

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  Family Feud

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Genesis 13:5-12

            Message of the verse:  “5 Now Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents.  6 And the land could not sustain them while dwelling together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to remain together.  7 And there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. Now the Canaanite and the Perizzite were dwelling then in the land.  8 So Abram said to Lot, "Please let there be no strife between you and me, nor between my herdsmen and your herdsmen, for we are brothers.  9 ‘Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me; if to the left, then I will go to the right; or if to the right, then I will go to the left.’

10  Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the valley of the Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere— this was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah—like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt as you go to Zoar.  11 So Lot chose for himself all the valley of the Jordan, and Lot journeyed eastward. Thus they separated from each other. 12 Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled in the cities of the valley, and moved his tents as far as Sodom.”

This story seems to be a result of Abraham going down to Egypt, because Lot went with him down there and Egypt seems to represent the world in the Bible. Whenever they all came back from Egypt, Lot still had the world in him, and that is why this family feud broke out.  There are three types of people in this world and they are all represented here in this scene.  The natural people are people who have not come to know the Lord, the carnal believer who know the Lord but walk in the world, and the spiritual people who know the Lord and walk with Him.  Lot is a picture of the carnal believer, for when he went down to Egypt and lived there for a while Egypt began to live in him, and so his prospective began to change and Egypt began to live in him, just like when he would go to Sodom and Sodom began to live in him too.

Lot looked towards Sodom, then he moved towards Sodom, then Lot moved into Sodom, and then Sodom moved into Lot.  Because of all of this Lot would lose everything that he had when he chose to go to Sodom, unlike Abraham who would not lose his spirituality nor his wealth.

Abraham on the other hand came back to the Promised Land and came back to his altar where he worshiped God and he is seen as the peace maker in this story.  Abraham was the oldest in this camp and he was the leader of it and so he could have told Lot where he was going to go, but instead he left it up to Lot, and Lot choose based on the worlds way of thinking, and it was wrong.

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  My desire is to live my life like Abraham lived his life, and that means being a spiritual believer who seeks to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord.  I am not perfect, but when I do sin and fall out of fellowship with the Lord I do not want it to be for a long period of time, but to confess my sin to the Lord and get back into fellowship with Him and follow the paths that are directed by Him.  Worldliness is a big temptation to all believers, but I do not want to get too attached to this world for it is not my home as I am only passing through.

The Word of God has been a challenge to my heart as I read and studied it this morning.

My Steps of Faith Today:  Trust in the Lord with all of my heart and lean not on my own understanding, in all of my ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct my path.