We traveled just about 1600 miles to get to South Carolina. It was a long, but fun trip. We drove through Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, a few feet in Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and finally arrived in South Carolina. We had two cars, three kids, one dog, and a bunch of fast food hamburgers. Lizzy rode with me and spent much of the time reading — which left ample time for me to think. And think I did.

I thought a lot about Abraham, or Abram, as he was known originally. I thought about God telling him to go and him obeying. I thought about him literally walking off the map, as my dad would say, to an unknown land. I also thought of the discussion of the faith that he had.

Genesis 12:1 — Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.”

Hebrews 11:8-10 — By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. 

For the record, I do not think that I am Abraham. But it seems pretty clear that Hebrews 11 is not simply written as a memorial to the faithful, but as an encouragement to all of us to be faithful. So, as I drove along, I thought of Abraham and his troop moving along their road trip. Did the travelers complain about the lunch choices? Did Sarah get exasperated at having to pass camels in order to keep up with Abraham? Did their pet smell funny? We cannot know — but what we do know is that they obeyed.

I love what the writer of Hebrews says Abraham was looking forward to: the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. I do not know what lies ahead for us — but I know the designer and builder is God. This truly is an adventure in faith. It is kind of like riding a roller coaster and not being able to see the track beneath you. Fun; scary; exhilarating; and yet we ride it faithful that there is a track leading us on.

Yesterday, Perry spoke at Catalyst — (You can see an abridged transcript here). At one point he talked about risk and a couple comments speak directly to this concept. He said, “Your church is one risk away from a breakthrough.” I would say that our lives are one risk away from a breakthrough, as well. Are we willing to take risks? One of the things I love about this new job is the aggressive support for taking risks. “We didn’t get where we are by playing it safe.”

So thanks to all of you who are journeying with us. Thanks for your prayers and your support as we take risks. We are excited and we are ready!