Open Heaven 28 April 2025: Avoiding Strife
MEMORISE: James 3:16
For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.
READ: Genesis 13:1-18
And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south.
2 And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.
3 And he went on his journeys from the south even to Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Hai;
4 Unto the place of the altar, which he had make there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of the Lord.
5 And Lot also, which went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents.
6 And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together: for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together.7 And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram’s cattle and the herdmen of Lot’s cattle: and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land.
8 And Abram said unto Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren.9 Is not the whole land before thee? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left.
10 And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.11 Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other.
12 Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.
13 But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lordexceedingly.
14 And the Lord said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward:15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.
17 Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.
18 Then Abram removed his tent, and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the Lord.
Read Yesterday’s Open Heaven Devotional Here
Strife is dangerous; it damages relationships and destroys homes, especially when it is allowed to linger. When Abraham took his nephew, Lot, with him to the land God promised him, he didn’t think that issues would arise between them. Lot enjoyed God’s blessings because of Abraham, yet he wasn’t wise enough to tell his herdsmen to honour and respect Abraham’s herdsmen. Despite this, Abraham didn’t get offended. Instead, he settled the issue with Lot amicably.
He called Lot and said, “Please, let there be no strife between us, for we are brethren.” Abraham valued his relationship with God and his brotherhood with Lot above the issues they were having. He even humbled himself and asked Lot to choose where he wished to go first. Abraham understood something many people do not understand; he knew that whenever you allow strife, you give room to the devil.
During a Festival of Life event of RCCG in London, a Polish couple that had been waiting for the fruit of the womb shared the testimony of how God blessed them with a child. When the husband was sharing the testimony, because English is not his native language, he said, “Last year, I came from Poland to the ministers’ conference because somebody told me that anybody the G.O. touches becomes pregnant.”
My wife was sitting next to me, and she said jokingly, “Don’t touch me; I don’t want another pregnancy.” While we were able to laugh about what the man said because we understood his background, it could also have been misunderstood because of what touches in that context could imply. Indeed, there are more complex cases where misunderstandings can arise between two people because one or both of the parties are not taking account of the background of the other party as they relate with them.
Beloved, learn to consider people’s backgrounds when relating with them; this will help you to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings. There are people who, because of where they are from and the fact that l am old enough to be their parent or grandparent, when they come to see me, l expect them to prostrate. Whereas there are others who, because of where they are from, I do not expect them to prostrate; in fact, I will be surprised if they do. What is a greeting to some people may seem like an insult to you, and if you regard their greeting as an insult, you will develop unnecessary anger and strife, which will give room to satan.
KEY POINT:
Avoid strife like a plague; it is a doorway to the devil.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR
1 Chronicles 1-2
Open Heaven 28 April 2025
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