15:1 Our faith is the channel through which we invite and allow God to flow into us. The more we believe, the more we trust, the sturdier and broader our channel of faith is. It is through this channel that we receive our blessings from God in all of their many and various forms: patience, wisdom, endurance, understanding, hope, strength, opportunity, ability and love.
Our God specifically tailors His method of communication to each of us individually. He's going to speak to us, lead us and sent reassurances of His love in the medium and material which is most recognizable to us (through writing, music, nature, social interactions, dance, art...). God comes to Abram in a vision with an assurance of his protection. To Abram and to you God proclaims:
- Do not be afraid for I am your shield. When we give God the reigns in our lives, we can trust that we are being lead toward health and peace, wisdom and love at all times. Our tendency to fear is reinforced by our fallibility: we make mistakes, we have shortcomings. But our God is perfect and precise. Whatever we place in our hands therefore is wielded by perfection and precision. We have nothing to fear when our shield (our God) is impenetrable. Compared to Him, human-made shields (literal and figurative, the defenses we put up) are brittle and corrode... and because of that, leave room for fear. But Abram has given his life to God's hands; he has faithfully placed himself behind God's protection... where fear is obsolete.
- I am your exceedingly great reward. A commitment to God here on earth is a reward beginning from the moment we give Him our love and trust to the moments we will live exceeding our conceptions of time. Our blessings from Him begin the moment we accept them into our lives and never leave. Even when we leave this earth, our blessings from Him remain with us.
15:2 Abram is developing his faith; a journey we are all familiar with. This journey has no end, we can always trust more, give more, seek more in a continued journey to know our divine creator. Abram is concerned that his great faith will leave the earth when he does; he and Sarai have no children to pass on their faith to.
15:3 Abram and Sarai are without children and are worried that the legacy of their faith will be passed on to someone they surely care for, but not someone made of their own material. We begin to understand why God appeared to Abram: this issue was troubling Abram. Although it seemed impossible to him (he and his wife had never been able to bear children) he wanted so much to have children born out of the love and faith between his and Sarai's souls. Children born directly out of this divine love between God, Abram and Sarai.
15:4 God is so tenderly and intimately with us when we are troubled. As he did for Abram, He assures us of His plan for us: a plan filled with productivity, purpose, love and hope. Abram did not need to fear; God knew of his concerns but also visited with him to talk them over and assuage them.
15:5 What is so beautiful about this spiritual exchange between God and Abram (and between God and you) is that not only does He answer our prayers and soothe our troubles... He does exceedingly. We pray for a glass of water from God and through our trust and patience and compassion comes to us a waterfall. A sea. Abram hopes to have an heir. Singular. One child would bring so much joy to him and Sarai. Instead, God brings Abram outside under the stars and says: "...count the stars if you are able to number them. So shall your descendants be."
We think we know our needs. We think we know our desires. God knows us so much better than we know ourselves. He knows what we need. He knows what would full us with immeasurable joy before we even ask Him. Our humble prayers inspire Him to answer them spectacularly. God shows Abram (and us) what pure and unwavering faith produces: achievement beyond measure. A sky full of stars, a universe full.
15:6 Abram's automatic, honest response was trust and belief. God told Abram of his plans and Abram believed. Believed God capable. Believed God honest. This relationship between God is goes both ways. When God feels our trust and love of Him, it warms Him. Inspires Him. Encourages Him. God accounted Abrams faithfulness to Him; He observed and made note of this beautiful trust and love for Him from Abram.
You can have a relationship identical to this one between God and Abram. Remove the limits, broader your faith... as we learn through Abram's faith, uncountable blessings are able to come through when we broaden and deeper our faith.
15:7 This is me, God proclaims. He is with us through every moment of our lives. The same divine and creative entity. He does not change. There is no transition of power. Throughout the timeline of your life He is the same One Who is there for and with you.
15:8 Abram reveals here again that he is just like us. He understands and believes in God's promises and abilities but... his excitement, his curiosity somewhat overshadows his patience. Basically Abram is saying: Coooooool! When? How? (in current terms).
In our journey with God we develop our trust and we get to a point where we believe Him when we promises protection and love, opportunity, ability and joy... but we are still impatient about waiting to receive those things. God knows of Abram's trust and faith in Him (just as He knows yours) and likely it is endearing to Him that we are excited for His gifts.
Yet we talked about God's perfection and His precision: he delivers our blessings to us in the exact moments when we are ready for them. He aligns the circumstances of our lives through time in accordance with His will. He positions the board, so the speak, in order that we may win. He does so with patience. And He has a lot of it (for example: the earth needed billions of years to form and grow and become perfectly prepared for us). Fortunately, we do not have to wait that long... but we do need to have patience for blessings to come to us in the perfect time (when things are ready to come into our lives and stay, permanently, when we are wise enough and mature enough to nourish and retain our blessings).
15:9-10 Abram prepares a sacrifice, a now defunct practice (Isaiah 1:11, Hosea 6:6). But in the beginning, people required a tangible way to establish a commitment with God. Fellow animal-lovers, God loves all of His creations... requested humanity stop making animal sacrifices (in the aforementioned verses) and certainly ensured that no animals suffered. Much of the world consumes animal meat. In Abram's case, he was enabling this animals to be with God in spirit. Abram felt he was giving God something of value rather then exterminating something of value.
15:11 Around Abram's commitment to God swirled vultures. Similarly, negativity and temptation try to encircle our commitments to God: impatience, selfishness, arrogance...etc. But we must drive those impulses and the opposition away. We must be unwavering in our faith. We must be passionately, compassionately committed.
These "vultures" appear around out commitments to faith as manifestations of doubt and fear. Expel them from your lives. God has made a commitment to your well-being, allow Him to take care of you. He can only do so through your trust and invitation. Clear the runway for Him and get everything else off of the course.
15:12-14 In a deep sleep, Abram has a vision of the life of his descendants. A vision of future generations tribulation. This is not a punishment from God. All humans experience tribulation while they are here. The point here to realize is when we keep God beside us through our journey of life, we always inevitable come out of it with blessings.
15:15 Abram also learns of his own fate on earth, a peaceful passing away after a long and fulfilling life.
15:16 Remember that the circumstances of our life serve to edify and strengthen us. Remember 1 Peter 5:10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
15:17 The covenant with Abram is established.
15:18 21 The regions of land are given to Abram's descendants (of which we all have origin from now).
