OH to be like Abraham

The story is just not fair. It is not right at all. How can God ask that of anyone?

Imagine the day-going about your everyday life, working , being with family, enjoying what God has given you...and THEN, God visits you and tells you to go offer Him what is Most dear and precious to you.
This is the story of Genesis 22.
Aside from the story of the Crucifixion, no other chapter in the bible affects me more.
It is in this story, that the LORD tells Abraham to go sacrifice his son, Isaac as a burnt offering. You know, the son that Abraham waited for 100 years for. The son that God had promised him would be his heir.
And the Bible tells us "that early the next morning" Abraham left on the mission God had commanded him.
Talk about a restless night. Abe , I am sure , did not sleep that night.
What is God asking me to do? Why is He telling me to offer Isaac? And what in the world do I tell Sarah?

But Abraham went and the story tells us that when he found the exact place God had told him on Moriah, that he built an altar, arranged the wood, bound Isaac and laid him on the altar, and just as his knife was about to slay his son,an angel of the LORD stopped him.
And people say the BIBLE is boring??
God, in the bushes, had provided a ram to be the sacrificial lamb.
And because of Abraham's obedience all the nations of the world would be blessed.
That means us. Thru Abraham's offspring, we all are blessed; because of one man's complete trust and obedience to God.
As a parent of four, nothing scares me more than losing one of my children.
I have some dear dear friends who have lost their precious daughter recently, and my heart still aches daily for them.
I love Kristi, Todd, Katie and Ryan with ALL that is within me. I would do anything for them. I would do anything to save their lives-even if it meant forgoing mine. A parents love for a child, cannot be adequately explained. Words can't express the deep deep love I have for my kids.
And i know Abraham felt the same about Isaac. And yet he was willing to sacrifice him in order to obey God.
To be honest, I don't know if I could.
That could be troubling.
And yet, this morning I am reminded again, that this is exactly what God the Father did for us.
He sacrificed His only begotten son for us. JESUS CHRIST became the sacrificial Lamb for my sins. God could have saved Him. He could have done it another way. Jesus could have called on legions of angels to stop His death. But neither did.
Because this was the ONLY way we could be saved.
I know that God the Father loves so much more than me. His capacity for love outweighs more than my mind could completely comprehend. He loved His Only Son with all that was within Him. And yet He sacrificed Him for us...for all mankind.

Genesis 22 is an amazing story of obedience.
One that challenges me and causes me to pray for that kind of obedience. One that challenges me to believe God and Trust Him, when everything in life tells me not to.
But Genesis 22 is a love story too.
A love of a man for his God. A love that trusted God enough to provide another lamb to offer. And a tremendous fortelling of the greatest love story of ALL time.
Yes, I want to be like Abraham.
I want to obey God even when it seems illogical, impractical.
When everyone around me might think I am crazy.
I want to obey God like Abraham. Because GOD loved me (and you) enough, to sacrifice His Most Precious Son, so that we might know and enjoy His love to us.