The story of Abraham & Isaac is so much more than a tale we share with our kids. As a matter of fact, how is it we had relegated this as a children’s story? It’s about a dad who, even though it’s obedience to God, is willing to sacrifice his own child as an act of worship. He follows through on the request of God to bind Isaac, kill him with a knife and burn him on an alter. Now, I don’t know about you, but as a kid if it had been explained that way……I’d have nightmares for weeks!

The reality is that this is a story that has much more meaning than obedience in function. It is the story of making sure we are willing to sacrifice even the most precious thing(s) in our lives in order to fully worship God. We truly worship Him when we realize and believe He is all sufficient to fill the void of the things we never want to release! When we lay those things at the feet of Jesus, He can truly work through us. If we cannot, those things become the roadblock that keeps us from walking in the life that God designed for us.

I challenged the people of Grace Church this week to take an inventory of their lives. I ask them to consider what things they had no sacrificed. The people then wrote those things on Post-Its and put them in the offering basket as a way of symbolically letting them go. It was a powerful time of response and worship. The key was to indentify those things and keep them from having power in our lives. Here are some of the things people wrote down……

Time, Money, Family, Pride, Fear, Relationships, Bitterness, Addictions, Sex, Alcohol, Cigarettes, Pregnancy Problems, Lust, Stress, Job, Computer, Forgiveness and Sex

I have been praying over these things this week. I have been searching myself and my family to find the things I need to lay down. This is serious stuff. We need to realize how important this sort of sacrifice is! That includes me too.

What is in your life that is holding you back? What do you need to sacrifice so God can work through you effectively?

Most of us will never sacrifice the most precious things in our lives because we do not believe God is sufficient to meet our needs. We do not believe that God is exactly who He says He is! Is that you?