Hero’s Journey Home

Oct. 24

Read: Genesis 28:1-9

Hero’s Journey Home

“God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may become a company of peoples. May he give the blessing of Abraham to you and to your offspring with you, that you may take possession of the land of your sojournings that God gave to Abraham!” (v.3)

God leads every hero on a journey away from “home” before they are brought back in victory. Jesus left heaven to come to earth before returning back to the right hand of the Father in victory and glory… think about that. (cf. Phil. 2, Hev. 12:1,2) Jesus took the ultimate “hero’s journey”! A going away and coming back is necessary for us as God’s people before we can “take possession of the land that God gave”… the “promised land”.

Another way to look at it is that the pathway to entering into the “promised land” of God will seem, at times, to be heading further away from it. It is not what we expect. We all have our turn in a “foreign land” before we come back home to the land the Lord has for us. In some ways that time away is here on earth while we await the new heavens and new earth - a return to “Eden” - our ultimate “promised land”. In other ways it is the times in our lives when we are being called to a place, task, or mission for God that we have never walked out before. We are facing fears and the unknown in places that seem to be moving away from the blessing and fullness God promises us. This is just another version of God’s “hero journey” that he has us on. Jacob is a perfect example of this.

Think back to Jacob’s grandfather, Abraham. When Abraham left the city of Ur, it was because his father Terah was leading him. (Gen. 11:27-32) The entourage left Ur headed to Canaan but only made it half of the way! They ended up stopping in Haran and making a life for themselves there. It was only after his father died that Abraham (known as Abram at that point) was met by God and called to leave that city to continue the journey. God was asking Abraham to trust him. This was the journey of Abraham to Canaan and the story of how Isaac ended up there.

Now Isaac is sending his son away, and do you see where he is going? The city that Jacob is going to is part of the very same place that Abraham was called from. Jacob is going back to Haran… it would seem like walking AWAY from Canaan. It was a literal “going backwards”… back to where his people / relatives remained. Isaac would have known this, yet take notice of this interesting truth: Isaac is confident that Jacob will return to Canaan… to the “promised land”. He says so in his blessing: “May he give the blessing of Abraham to you and to your offspring with you, that you may take possession of the land of your sojournings that God gave to Abraham!” Isaac is counting on Jacob coming back home to take possession of the land he was leaving behind. Isaac sees that this journey is necessary to prepare Jacob and provide him with what he needs to enter into and lay hold of the promised land… God’s gift to Abraham. Isaac presumes upon Jacob coming home again someday; he is not afraid that Jacob seems to be walking away from Canaan.

It must have felt odd for Jacob to walk away from his home, his father, his mother, and what he was familiar with. He was 71 years old when he left! Walking to a land he had only heard of in stories… walking into someplace virtually unknown. Jacob was trusting his father Isaac and ultimately his Heavenly Father to provide for him, strengthen him, and bring him back to where he belonged. God certainly maps out some strange routes for us in life!

I am sure that all of us at some point have been called to our own “hero’s journey” of sorts… God calling us into the unknown, away from what we are familiar with and into something challenging or even uncomfortable. Know that these journeys are a part of preparing us to receive what God is giving us as his children… as his people. Our Heavenly Father may send us on a journey… an errand… that carries us to far-off places (both literally and figuratively) but his plan is always to bring us back home to him. God our Heavenly Father has a plan, and anytime he sends us on a journey like that it is to prepare us and equip us with the knowledge, relationships, and resources we will need to come to the places he has prepared for us… those places he has promised us. We are his “portion”. (cf. Deut. 32:9) It is in Paddan-aram (Haran) that Jacob will meet his bride and the Lord will bring from his offspring the 12 tribes of Israel. There is blessing in the journey. There is growth in the journey. God is working out HIS plan through you on the journey. Never fear, he will get you “home”… he will get you to the “promised land”! Trust HIS route. Here is to coming back home! Love you guys. - JDP