This week, we are re-reading that familiar story of the calling of Abram to leave Haran and to trust YHVH to lead him... and Abram listened. Not only did he listen, he obeyed. Ah... there's that calling to sh'ma.
It would also seem that apparently Abram's father Terah had at one point also been called to leave. He appears to have gotten distracted, somewhere along the way from leaving Ur and landing in Haran. Scripture does not elaborate, so there is no need for me to be presumptuous and come up with an excuse. Suffice it to say, Terah did not sh'ma.
(Teraḥ took his son Aḇram and his grandson Lot, son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Aḇram’s wife, and they went out with them from Ur-kasdim to go to the land of Kena‛an. And they came to Ḥaran and dwelt there. And the days of Teraḥ came to be two hundred and five years, and Teraḥ died in Ḥaran. - Genesis 11:31-32)
I'm not here today to go through the whole re-telling of the story. If you grew up going to Sunday school, you probably know the story by heart. Besides, I have to assume that anyone reading my randomizing is also able to read the story for themselves.
Telling the story is not the point. I want to talk about what we all can sh'ma here. And I think this is it:
• YHVH calls each one of us to trust Him enough to leave our comfort zones.
• YHVH wants us to keep our eyes on Him, and not get distracted by the events and enticements that would divert our attention from following Him.
• YHVH wants to use us to bring blessing to those He puts us in contact with.
If we listen closely, I think we can find a lot of similarities in our walk, and opportunities to bring the presence of God into our surroundings.
Lech Lecha: Genesis 12:1-20
Haftarah: Isaiah 40:27 - 41:16
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