BODYGUARDS FOR LIFE
Mario told me he drives 23 hours straight through when he
takes his family to visit relatives in Mexico. I asked him why. He replied,
“There are many banditos in the hills along the way, and I am protecting my
family.” It reminded me of Genesis 24, where Abraham sent his servant to find a
bride for Isaac. The servant had doubts about the trip, but Abraham told him,
“The Lord will send his angel before thee and with thee, and prosper thy way.”
What did this mean?
The servant had to travel about 450 miles through rough
lands carrying a dowry for the prospective bride. Like with my friend Mario,
there were bandits along the way ready to rob the servant of his many precious
treasures. Part of the angel’s job was to go ahead of the servant and make sure
the bandits were not going to be around to attack and steal the goods. Abraham
was wealthy, so he would have had many camels with loads of gold, silver,
beautiful clothing, and other wonderful things.
The other part of “prospering thy way” was to make sure
the servant got to the right destination and receive what the Lord had planned
for him (the perfect wife for Isaac). And, indeed, it did happen.
How do these scriptures relate to us? If you consider
that our lives are a journey, then these verses from Genesis 24 relate to us in
many ways and can be applied in many circumstances. Even on a daily basis we
want our journey for that day to be spiritually prosperous, and we want to get
to the Lord’s desired destinations for each day.
Also, like Abraham’s servant, we travel with treasures. Our
true treasures include our spiritual acuity, and our mental strength, as well
as our physical ones. We want them to last and not be lost or stolen along the
way.
In Matthew 26:53, we see that Jesus could have asked for
the help of angels: “Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he
shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?”
Twelve legions equal 72,000! Then Jesus tells us we can do the same: “Verily,
verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do
shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because
I go unto my Father” (John 14:12).
Considering all that the servant took with him, he most
likely had other people with him as well, and the angel protected them, too. We
can pray as Jesus did, and ask God for protection for our loved ones, as well
as for our personal safety and the security of our goods.
Part of the angel’s mission in Genesis 24 was to prosper
the servant by making sure he fulfilled the purpose of his trip. In this case,
it was the right woman. Whatever things the Lord has given you a desire for,
you can pray that He sends an angel to prosper your way, too, and direct you to
be in the right place at the right time to receive that desire fulfilled in the
very best way.
It’s also something to note in Genesis 24 that the angel
was sent out to prosper the way of a servant. This guy wasn’t a king or a
corporate giant; he was a servant. Every single born-again person has access to
angels like it says in Hebrews 1:14: “Are they not all ministering spirits,
sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?” Galatians
3:29 says we are those heirs: “And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's
seed, and heirs according to the promise.”
I hope you will take the time this week to read the
record in Genesis 24 in light of your own life’s journeys and reflect on how
you can receive the same kind of blessing that Abraham’s servant received: “bodyguards”
to prosper your way and get you to your Godly destinations.
Love, Carolyn
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