How to Face a Tough Quest

Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his household, who had charge of all that he owned, "Please place your hand under my thigh, and I will make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live,
 but you will go to my country and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son Isaac." (Genesis 24:2-4 NASB)

The servant is never named, but according to an earlier chapter, Abraham has one in his household who will inherit his possessions if Abraham never had children.  This could be the same guy.  If so, the servant is from Damascus, and not from the region to which he is being sent.  Abraham came from a place called Haran, but when the servant gets there, the name has changed to Nahor, another brother of Abraham.

So the information that Abraham is able to provide to his servant is dated, and much will have changed (not just the name).  The hope here is that just as news of his family reached him in Hebron, he will have some idea of what his servant is to expect here.  Even so, this is going to be a difficult task.  The only way to be free from the oath is if he finds someone and she will not return with him.  He still needs to find someone.

Where do you start something like this?  Besides just traveling to the region, some sort of approach needs to be decided on to achieve success.  The impression from the servants chosen approach is that he had no idea of names.  That would seem strange since at least Bethuel was mentioned to Abraham in Hebron.  But without knowing the status of families, who's still alive, who's well regarded or not regarded at all, it may not be safe to just go around asking after a family.  Besides, this servant may not know the customs and practices of this region.  Who knows?

But, it could be that, among all the other pragmatic approaches open to the servant, he still decides to throw the whole thing into the lap of the God of his master.  If that were the case, once again, the faith of Abraham has touched another life, and influenced one of his household.  Of course, Abraham did say that his God would send a messenger ahead to prepare the wife for his son, still it took faith to rely on that this way.

Even the quality of the test was fascinating.  Only someone who was selfless or hospitable enough to water his camels as well as him would pass the test.  There is a quality of character required.  It's not just that he tests, but the qualifications he's looking for as well which make this an act of faith.  Abraham stipulated only that this person come from his family.  The servant goes further and seeks someone with character qualities as well.  So, he demonstrates not just faith, but devotion to his master.

The question I ask myself is, "Do I demonstrate this faith and devotion to my Master?"  Do I have the faith to approach my insurmountable tasks with a faith that relies on my Master rather than my own wisdom?  Do I have the devotion to my Master to seek the quality that will glorify Him the most, or do I simply do the minimum to achieve the plain statement of the task?  I am reminded of the parables of the talents.  What do I do, double or triple what is entrusted to me?  Or do I bury it and give it back as is?

Right now, I am being kept from doing what I want to do to work in a crisis situation at my church.  What I have tried has not worked, people have not responded, and what I had hoped to accomplish isn't going to happen.  I've been here before. 

When I was considering coming out here, I had no job prospects, but I did know that my company employs remote sales people all over.  So I tried to find something like that.  I couldn't.  Ones I had seen less than a month before had evaporated.  Every option I tried, including trying to get a position created I knew we needed failed.  This is not new ground for me.  It looks rather familiar.  In that prior experience, I had to resign myself to the work of my Master, and move on what I did know.  He had revealed that I was to go, and when.  I would just do that and leave the rest to Him.  He came through even before we left.

As it turned out, my Master provided me an opportunity I wouldn't have even considered.  In fact, had it been offered to me initially, before all my own efforts, I may not have taken it.  But by the time that I had exhausted all my options, I was ready for whatever He provided.  So, what was needed was provided only after I had exhausted my efforts.  The solution could not be claimed by me, but was clearly the solution of my Master.  Here and now I have another opportunity to experience the same problem-solving work of my Master.  I am still adjusting to letting go of my own solutions, but still.  I know where the solution will come from.  That is enough.  I think.