change my community - learning from abram

We each find ourselves in a wide variety of communities. Some of these we choose and others we do not. Take a moment and think about all the different communities (groups of people) that you are part of. These could include your friends, classmates, those who live down your street, internet communities, team mates, those in your church, people in your youth group, or your very own family.

One of the best examples of how God calls us to live within our communities, bringing about change, as well as actually being the change, can be found when He called Abram. Here’s a few verses from Genesis 12 v 1-4

'The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your fathers household and go to the land that I will show you.

   ‘I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you;
   I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.
   I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse;
    and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."

So Abram left as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him.'

Abram and his family - who later became the people of Israel - were called by God to be a blessing to others and in turn, they themselves would also be blessed. However the first thing Abram had to do was follow God and trust where he was being led. If we want to bring change and bless others we have to first be willing to follow God and trust Him. If you feel you are able to say to God that you trust him and will follow him every day, no matter where this may take you, then find a moment to say this to God.

If we want to bring about change we cannot do this on our own. We need to be part of a Christian community that together, is willing to follow God and serve Him as their number one priority. Take a moment today to pray for the Christian community that you are a part of.

To bring about change to our communities, God has called us to bless others first and then He will bless us. It's not that we seek a blessing - that's certainly not our motivation - but God in His kindness always blesses those who seek to be a blessing to others.

Ask God how you can actively, creatively and selflessly bless those around you this week, and therefore begin to bring about life-changing, revolutionary, transforming change in their lives.