Abraham and God's Blessing
To explore the story of Abraham's being called to the Promised Land and to consider its implications for us
by Ronni Lamont
Suitable for Whole School (Pri)
Aims
To explore the story of Abraham’s being called to the Promised Land and to consider its implications for us.
Preparation and materials
- Read through the story in advance.
Assembly
- Tell the following story. Ham it up as much as you like, with increasing annoyance at the repetition, which is used to emphasize the importance of what is being said.
A long, long time ago, in the land we now call Iraq, there lived a man called Abram. Abram was old. He was also very rich. He believed in God, and heard God’s voice when God spoke to him.
Normally, Abram and God just talked. But one day, God called Abram in a different tone of voice:
‘Abram.’
‘Here I am, God.’
‘Abram.’
‘Here I am, God.’
‘Abram.’
‘Here I am, God.’
‘Abram.’
‘Here I am, God.’
‘Abram.’
‘O, for goodness sake! Here I am, God.’
‘Good,’ said God, ‘listen carefully. I want you to do something very special for me.’ And God told Abram what it was that God wanted Abram to do for him.
‘You cannot be serious!’ cried Abram.
But God was.
Abram was married to Sarai. They didn’t have any children.
One day, Abram went up to Sarai.
‘Sarai.’
‘Here I am, Abram.’
‘Sarai.’
‘Here I am, Abram.’
‘Sarai.’
‘Here I am, Abram.’
‘Sarai.’
‘Here I am, Abram.’
‘Sarai.’
‘Oh, for goodness sake! Here I am, Abram.’
And Abram told Sarai what it was that Abram wanted Sarai to do.
‘You cannot be serious!’ cried Sarai.
But Abram was.
Abram had a nephew, called Lot, and they worked together quite a bit. Lot was Abram’s herdsman, and looked after all the sheep and goats that Abram owned. One day, Abram went up to Lot.
‘Lot.’
‘Here I am, Abram.’
‘Lot.’
‘Here I am, Abram.’
‘Lot.’
‘Here I am, Abram.’
‘Lot.’
‘Here I am, Abram.’
‘Lot.’
‘Oh, for goodness sake! Here I am, Abram.’
And Abram told Lot what it was that Abram wanted Lot to do.
‘You cannot be serious!’ cried Lot.
But Abram was.
And now I shall tell you what God wanted Abram to do. God wanted Abram to pack up all his belongings, including his flocks of sheep and goats, and take everyone and everything off to a new country.
A country that was far away. A country that God wanted to give to Abram.
And Abram didn’t know where this country was, just that God would guide him there, and tell him when he’d arrived.
And not just Abram, for Abram wanted Sarai to come too. And not just Sarai, for Abram wanted Lot to come too. And not just Lot, for Lot was married and had children.
When Lot told his wife, guess what she said?
‘You cannot be serious!’
But they went. They went to a country that was far away. A country that God wanted to give to Abram and Sarai, and Lot and his wife. And Abram and Sarai and Lot and his wife didn’t know where this country was, just that God would guide them there, and tell them when they’d arrived.
They went to the country, and made it their home, and eventually Abram and Sarai changed their names, to Abraham and Sarah. And later still, Abraham and Sarah had a son, called Isaac.
They had lots more adventures, and God blessed them, because, when God asked them to do something really hard, they did it. They did what they knew God wanted, and God blessed them.
Time for reflection
Reflection:
Do you ever feel that you ought to do something that you don’t want to do, something that feels difficult and that other people won’t understand? Do you ever imagine people saying, ‘You cannot be serious’? How do you cope when you feel like that? How do you decide what is the best thing to do?
Prayer:
Usually, God just asks us to be good people. To be kind and loving. To look out for people who need help, and to tell people how much God loves us.
Only occasionally does God ask us to do difficult things, but when he does, we need to be able to recognize his voice.
Sit still, and think about how you recognize God’s voice. Sit still and feel the calm of God’s love in your heart, and just for a moment, listen.
Song/music
‘Shalom’ (Come and Praise, 141)
