Jehovah-Jireh Provides All Our Needs

We are entering Noah’s favorite time of the year, Fall.  Not for the normal reasons of cooler weather, which would mean more car rides.  He likes Fall because “TOYS” from heaven rain down on his yard new every morning!  ? For those of you who have never heard me talk about Noah’s obsession, he LOVES leaves. All summer long he’s been looking everywhere for leaves. One day he finally discovered where they were being kept and ever sense, when he goes out, he checks to make sure they are still up there.  But the time has come….they are beginning to fall.  He runs back and forth sucking up leaves like a vacuum cleaner, until his mouth is completely full. Then he lays down and shreds all of them. He will spend hours doing that over and over. This morning as I was watching him methodically choose which leaves he wanted to shred next, and I thought about the term Jehovah-Jireh. I know it seems a bit of a stretch to equate Jehovah-Jireh to Noah’s obsession with leaves. But the way he was so excited so see all the new leaves on the ground, I was sure he saw them as gifts provided just for him!Jehovah-Jireh is one of the names given to God that describes our God as the God who provides. The first time we see the name Jehovah-Jireh used is in the book of Genesis, chapter 22.  We know the story – the Lord asked Abraham to take his son, his favorite son, the son of promise, up the mountain and sacrifice him. Abraham gathered up every thing needed for the deed and he and his son Isaac started on their journey to the designated place. Once there, Abraham got everything ready to follow God obediently.  Many of us wonder how in the world could Abraham have been willing to sacrifice his own son. In the book of Hebrews, we have a glimpse of what Abraham was thinking.   Hebrews 11:17-19Faith operated powerfully in Abraham for when he was put to the test, he offered up Isaac. Even though he received God’s promises of descendants, he was willing to offer up his only son!  For God had promised, “Through your son Isaac your lineage will carry on your name.”  Abraham’s faith made it logical to him that God could raise Isaac from the dead, and symbolically, that’s exactly what happened.” The Passion TranslationAbraham was so confident in God’s power to fulfill His promises that he was willing to sacrifice his own son of promise. But God saw – He saw what was in Abraham’s heart AND Abraham’s need. In fact, the word Jirah – Provide, means to see, to perceive and experience.  Abraham didn’t just think of God as a Santa Clause who gives good gifts. Abraham had a deep faith in God that allowed him to trust that God was completely aware of what was going on in his life, and God would act according to His plan for Abraham AND not only for Abraham, but for us as well.  Because in the story of Abraham and Isaac - in the test - we find a foreshadowing of God’s own sacrifice of His own Son, Jesus Christ to provide what each of us need most – the ability to have a relationship with the God of everything, lasting throughout eternity.Often, I think we get caught up in our tiny daily needs or wants. Will God provide for those things we ask? Does He know my needs, does He care? Am I left to fend for myself?Listen to the lesson from Abraham. God is Jehovah-Jirah. Our God who sees, understands and provides – beginning with our deepest need of all, to have a solution to our sin problem.But that provision is also extended to our daily needs. Listen to Jesus’ own words from Matthew 6: 25-33.   “This is why I tell you to never be worried about your life, for all that you need will be provided, such as food, water, clothing—everything your body needs. Isn’t there more to your life than a meal? Isn’t your body more than clothing?  “Consider the birds—do you think they worry about their existence? They don’t plant or reap or store up food, yet your heavenly Father provides them each with food. Aren’t you much more valuable to your Father than they?  So, which one of you by worrying could add anything to your life?  “And why would you worry about your clothing? Look at all the beautiful flowers of the field. They don’t work or toil, and yet not even Solomon in all his splendor was robed in beauty like one of these! So if God has clothed the meadow with hay, which is here for such a short time and then dried up and burned, won’t he provide for you the clothes you need—you of little faith?  “So then, forsake your worries! Why would you say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For that is what the unbelievers chase after. Doesn’t your heavenly Father already know the things your bodies require?  “So above all, constantly seek God’s kingdom and his righteousness, then all these less important things will be given to you abundantly.”In a world where everything stirred up, where prices are creeping up, where we are being warned that there are shortages coming, we have a God who sees us, and has already made provisions for everything we need. So, we need not worry, our focus is to be on Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of Heaven.  May you experience His peace as you trust His ability to see you, to know you, to provide for you.