Today I read through Genesis 16-19. It's an encouraging thought that God can still use Abraham even after he makes an unwise choice. His wife is barren, but God has promised him children. His wife says, "I'd like to have a family, so you should probably sleep with..." You can just stop right there and know it's not going to end well. Having more than one significant woman in your life is a very bad idea. Not too surprisingly, Abraham was too close to the situation to stop and think, "One woman, very good. Two women, run for the hills." So a few months later, his wife gets angry at him for successfully following her advice. (Note to self: if future wife ever suggests anything like this, the correct answer is, "That might work, but I won't agree to it. You're the only one I want, and I trust God to work things out for us.") This choice made things hard for his wife, then for him, then for Hagar, his children, and their descendants, as they lived in hostility with each other. However, God shows compassion on Hagar and Ishmael, and still promises Abraham a son by his wife. On separate occasions, this promise makes both Abraham and Sarah laugh with incredulity, but I'm sure they were laughing with joy when Isaac was born.
God again shows His mercy and patience when Abraham is pleading with Him for Sodom, where Lot lives. In the most wicked city on earth, where the outcry of its victims had at last brought God's extreme patience to give way to judgement, God promised Abraham in response to his requests that if just 10 people were found righteous in the entire city He would relent and spare the entire city, not just the righteous, for their sake. How important is it to be righteous in a wicked society? And how important is the prayer of a righteous man? It is vital. We are the salt of the earth, preserving those around us. Salt doesn't need to preserve itself. When God makes us righteous through Jesus, He does it at least partly so that we can preserve others, whether we understand that we are a preservative or not.
Even still, when there were less than 10 righteous people, God still spared the righteous man and his family - and Lot was already starting to make unwise decisions regarding himself and his family. If God had waited to judge Sodom and Gomorrah, would Lot have been spared? I believe God acted when He did on behalf of both Lot and Abraham, for perhaps that reason.
Dear God, help me understand that when I make unwise decisions You are merciful, and You will still use me to do Your will. I trust You, and I want to trust You even more, so that when those decisions come up, I would make the right ones, and follow You with everything I have, and everything I am. Amen.
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