Give Testimony

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

GIVE TESTIMONY

Gen 24:42-54

42 "When I came to the spring today, I said, 'O LORD, God of my master Abraham, if you will, please grant success to the journey on which I have come. 43 See, I am standing beside this spring; if a maiden comes out to draw water and I say to her, "Please let me drink a little water from your jar," 44 and if she says to me, "Drink, and I'll draw water for your camels too," let her be the one the LORD has chosen for my master's son.'  45 "Before I finished praying in my heart, Rebekah came out, with her jar on her shoulder. She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said to her, 'Please give me a drink.' 46 "She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, 'Drink, and I'll water your camels too.' So I drank, and she watered the camels also. 47 "I asked her, 'Whose daughter are you?' "She said, 'The daughter of Bethuel son of Nahor, whom Milcah bore to him.' "Then I put the ring in her nose and the bracelets on her arms, 48 and I bowed down and worshiped the LORD. I praised the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me on the right road to get the granddaughter of my master's brother for his son. 49 Now if you will show kindness and faithfulness to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so I may know which way to turn." 50 Laban and Bethuel answered, "This is from the LORD; we can say nothing to you one way or the other. 51 Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master's son, as the LORD has directed." 52 When Abraham's servant heard what they said, he bowed down to the ground before the LORD. 53 Then the servant brought out gold and silver jewelry and articles of clothing and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave costly gifts to her brother and to her mother. 54 Then he and the men who were with him ate and drank and spent the night there.

NIV

We hear all this as it was happening and now the servant of Abraham is telling the family of Rebekah the whole account of what happened and how this was a direct sign from God, that she was meant to be the wife of Isaac. It is always good to give a testimony of how God’s hand is working in our lives. The servant asks if they would show kindness and faithfulness to his master. It is good for us to always show kindness and faithfulness to others, but especially toward our Lord. Now the servant brought more costly gifts to Rebekah, her brother, and her mother. Interestingly, we are not told he gave anything to the father. What is our lesson for today? What do we find within this portion of the exchange between the servant of Abraham, the brother, father, and mother of Rebekah, that gives us something to ponder? We have already touched on one that could be the one we need to explore. This gives how he gave a testimony of how God had directed his footsteps right to the correct place. We should always be ready and willing to give our testimony regarding all that God has done in our lives. Of course, the first and foremost testimony is the story of our salvation, how God intervened in our lives and revealed himself to be the Almighty God of heaven and earth. We should always give an account of the miracles he did in us, for us, and how he is working through us. How can we remain silent when God is so powerfully ordering our footsteps, so we will be in the right place at exactly the right time. Not only does our testifying of God’s hand on us, and all that he has done, his faithfulness, but it helps to boost the faith in those who hear our testimony of God’s power at work. We do need to be mindful not to boast in ourselves but always boast in the Lord. Yes, we have received so much from him. Yes, he has blessed us abundantly, way more than we deserve. Yes, he has provided materially for us. But, in the spiritual realm, in the calling on our lives, the mission he has given us, to be able to share his word with others, to speak up and be heard. Abraham’s servant gave testimony of how the Lord ordered his footsteps right to the place he was supposed to be. We always need to give the Lord all the credit for his direction in our lives. Sometimes, we might get too inward in our thinking and believe we choose where to live, work, worship, and play. But never ever are we in control, although he gave us the freedom to choose, but that is regarding serving him or rejecting him. Once we elected to serve the Lord, we need to follow his leadership, hear his voice, and walk the path he has laid out before us. Then testify of his ordering all our footsteps. We should never fail to give testimony.