Our second reading for today, which reflects on the tremendous faith of Abraham (who is rightly called our Father in faith) reminds me of the song, “Sometimes by Step, ” which was written and performed by the late Contemporary Christian Artist, Rich Mullins. It is indeed a wonderful song and is on youtube. The lyrics to the chorus and first verse are as follows:
Chorus:
Oh God, You are my God. And I will ever praise You. Oh God, You are my God. And I will ever praise You. I will seek You in the morning. And I will learn to walk in Your ways. And step by step You'll lead me. And I will follow You all of my days.
First Verse:
Sometimes I think of Abraham. How one star he saw had been lit for me. He was a stranger in this land. And I am that, no less than he. And on this road to righteousness, Sometimes the climb can be so steep. I may falter in my steps. But never beyond Your reach. (Chorus)
Imagine for a moment that you are Abraham, and that you are called by God (whom you had never heard of before) to leave everything that was familiar to you behind and to “go to a land that I will show you.” How would you respond? Well, the fact of the matter is that in a very real way, we are all Abraham. We are called to walk step by step with the Lord to a place that He will show us. And how do we do this? By faith- “the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen.” Abraham realized that God is, even though he could not see Him, and answered His call, even though he did not hear Him. And, no less than he, we are called to do the same.