Prayer: Lord, help me to fulfill my own faith story. To never forget that you are present everywhere I go and in everything I do. This is your house and you are in charge. You are truly an awesome God. Amen.
Reading: Genesis 28 (Click to read text) Stop and GROW: After reading the text, discuss/ponder the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's Book of Faith questions, which are part of Camp Mount Luther's GROW Time with campers. QUESTION 1: What scares, confuses, challenges, or doesn’t make sense to me in this text? QUESTION 2: What delights me in this text or is my favorite part of the story? QUESTION 3: What stories or memories does this text stir in me? QUESTION 4: What is God up to in this text? Reflection: Often we can miss God’s presence in our lives and in our surroundings. In Genesis 28 we start to read about Jacob’s call to set out to begin his own family and the role he was to play in the fulfillment of the covenant that God made with Abraham and Issac. God needed to establish his place in Jacob’s heart and life. It wasn’t enough that his grandfather and father followed after God. Jacob needed to establish his own relationship. God began that process through a dream where he showed Jacob what he would do through him and the promises he could rely on. It is important to note how Jacob responded to that dream. He began to realize just who God was. Although his life was rooted in God through his family, he needed to acknowledge the greatness and power of God for himself. He began to see God’s presence in a personal way, a concrete way. This is also true for us. We cannot rest on the coattails of our families’ faith. We must become responsible for our own faith and belief in God. The foundation of our life in faith may have been laid out by our parents through the rite of baptism, church attendance, Sunday school, and other experiences. But, as we grow in years, it becomes our responsibility to continue our journey. We need to read the Bible, attend church, study, pray, and listen to God for direction for ourselves. We need to have our own faith story, just as Jacob did. We need to respond to God with awe and wonder wherever we are, for God is present. Don’t ever forget that this is God’s house. Let that truth lead you in all you do and say. May you be God’s instrument in helping someone else begin their own faith story. --Merrill Smith
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