The Greener Grass

"So Lot chose for himself all the valley of the Jordan, and Lot journeyed eastward. Thus they separated from each other. Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled in the cities of the valley, and moved his tents as far as Sodom. Now the men of Sodom were wicked exceedingly and sinners against the Lord." Genesis 13:11-13

Abram, later known as Abraham, obediently followed the word of the Lord when He told him to leave his home and his family and go to a land that would ultimately be given to his descendants. Along the way, he and his nephew, Lot, would become so prosperous that their herdsmen began to fight amongst themselves over grazing and watering their respective herds. Not wanting any strife between the two of them Abram suggested that they separate. He gave Lot the choice. Lot, surveying all in front of him chose the fertile valley (the greener grass if you will). Along with this choice he also put himself and his family in proximity to arguably the worst and most godless people on earth at the time.

Beloved, we make choices every day of our lives. Some are minor and require little thought while others are momentous and should be made after considerable thought, research and prayer. Too often, we choose based on what seems to be most advantageous at the time. And while this may make some sense, prayer and the weighing of all pros and cons will likely produce better choices. Life has given us the colloquialisms that "the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence" and that "all that glitters is not gold." These sayings, no doubt, came from hard lessons experienced by many over a long period of time, yet we continue to fall victim to bad decisions.

Though it may have appeared to be a wise choice at the time (the evil of Sodom notwithstanding), we know that Lot endured kidnapping (Genesis 14:12), the vexing of his righteous soul (2 Peter 2:7) and ultimately the loss of everything, including his wife, during the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Abram, on the other hand, kept his trust in God rather than what he could see and became the father of a nation and the one from whose faith, all believers are descendants.

Let us not make choices based on the greenness of the grass but on the faithfulness of God.

Increasing in faith,

Lee