Now Isaac was Abraham’s son, a second generation descendant. And the land he was in was a foreign land, with another famine, in his time. Isaac was now in charge. The Lord told Isaac to stay in this land that He promised to Abraham and his descendants, and not go to Egypt where circumstances were better. Does Isaac hear and obey the Lord, or does he follow his own reasoning? In obedience, Isaac stays and sows in the desert during the famine. Watch how God does the impossible! He blesses Isaac’s obedience, bypassing natural agricultural growth, and causes him to thrive, reaping the hundred-fold crop in the very same year.

It takes faith to obey God in spite of our current circumstances. The Lord wants to break every limitation and every ceiling we have set over our lives. His promises are true and unchangeable. He wants to change what we see, to see as He sees. His vision.

We grow our faith by digging deep in His word, hiding it in our hearts, a faith that is unaffected by the trends and rules of this world. An unchangeable faith that changes landscapes.

Not only will He help us in our personal lives, but He will cause us to thrive and make impact on the world around us. We have been handed the baton from those who have gone before us. “Therefore we also surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith …” Hebrews 12:1,2

It is our turn to run the next lap of the race. This will require faith, surpassing the glory of past days. It is our responsibility to trust and obey the Lord, just as Isaac and Abraham did. God still loves to do the impossible, and will do the same for us, if we believe.

Dear Heavenly Father,

I thank You that I can trust You to bless my obedience just as You blessed Isaac's. I confess I often wonder if I've heard You speak as clearly as You spoke to Isaac in the above passage. Help me to confirm Your Word through Scripture, through the Holy Spirit, through wise counsel, and through circumstance. And once Your Word is confirmed in my heart and mind, help me to obey so that I can yield a crop, 30, 60, 100 fold for Your Kingdom. In the Name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Don’t let the phrase pass you by: “He shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river.” In English grammar, it would be called a simile. But in Jesus, the living water, it is truth. Read Psalm 1 aloud today. It explains in more detail the characteristics of the person who can be a tree with deep roots by the water. Like Isaac, this person is fruitful even in the desert.