When Abram heard that his nephew Lot had been captured, he didn’t deliberate or form a committee; he gathered his 318 trained men and rode into the night.
“They also carried off Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions, since he was living in Sodom. 13 A man who had escaped came and reported this to Abram the Hebrew. Now Abram was living near the great trees of Mamre the Amorite, a brother[b] of Eshkol and Aner, all of whom were allied with Abram. 14 When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit as far as Dan. 15 During the night Abram divided his men to attack them and he routed them, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. 16 He recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people.” (Genesis 14 v 12-16)
I’ve got some questions to ponder:
- When someone who has wronged us falls into crisis, do we calculate what they deserve or what they need?
- When did playing it safe become more important than doing what’s right?
- Does fear of failure give us permission to do nothing?
- Who around us have we written off as too far gone, too broken, or too difficult to save?
- When society calls someone collateral damage, do we agree—or do we see someone worth pursuing?
- If God didn’t leave us in our captivity, how can we leave others in theirs?
And finally, the most important question isn’t whether people around us need rescuing. Question 7 is: Will we be the kind of people who ride into the night for them?
Missions Paul 