Abram

January 17

Genesis 12:6-17

A bad plan

After a long journey, Abram, Sarai and Lot arrived in the land of Canaan.

While Abram was in Canaan, there was a famine in the land. Because there was hardly any food, Abram decided to go to the land of Egypt, to live there.

When he got there, he was afraid that the Egyptians would kill him and take His wife away. So he said to her, “Say you are my sister so that I will be treated well.”

When Pharaoh saw how beautiful she was, he treated Abram well and took Sarai into his palace.

But the Lord brought a serious disease on Pharaoh because he had taken Abram’s wife.

Is it okay to tell a lie in certain situations?

In a tricky situation, doing things our way usually leads to trouble. When we put our trust in our own plans instead of putting our trust in God, we usually mess things up.

Abram was afraid for his life. He thought that if he pretended that Sarai was just his sister the Egyptians would not kill him. His plan seemed to work at first, and Pharaoh gave him sheep, cattle and camels. But in exchange, he wanted Sarai.

Abram’s plan had gone wrong! But God stepped in and brought a disease on Pharaoh. Only then did Pharaoh find out that Sarai was actually Abram’s wife and immediately gave her back to Abram.

Do you think God had a better plan lined up so that Abram would not have had to deceive Pharaoh?

Verse for today

Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask…. 1 John 3:21