Dear Friends,

The Lord said to Abram, ‘Leave your country, your kinfolk and your father’s house and head for a land that I will show you, I will make a great nation of you. I will bless you, and make your name be celebrated, so that you can be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and curse whoever curses you; and through you all the families of the earth shall be blessed in turn.’ So Abram set off, as the Lord had told him. GENESIS 12:1-5

A question for you – what are you most afraid of? – spiders, snakes, failure, the dark? According to those who claim to know such things there is one thing probably all of us are scare of still more, and that, quite simply, is the unknown.

Familiarity may breed contempt but it also brings a sense of security and the thought of venturing out into uncharted waters can be a daunting challenge, that most of us prefer to avoid. It can be traumatic enough moving to a new house or new job – any more radical change can be bewildering indeed.

This though, was the challenge faced by Abram (later to be called Abraham). Comfortably settled he suddenly felt the need to move on. The destination was unclear, as were any of the details as to what he might find when he got there. This was to be a step into the unknown. Few of us face quite such a challenge but we are asked to think about new ventures, make new friends, try new ideas and explore new horizons. Are we ready to respond if we believe God is calling us – not putting off any decisions so that we can weigh up all the pros and cons or brushing aside what we don’t really want to hear – but following in faith?

We may not know what the future holds but we do know who holds it – and let that be sufficient inspiration for us.

God bless you all.
Yvonne.