Challengers of the unknown

Christians should be adventurous risk takers; they have the right stuff for it. Because we know the worst that can happen to us in life--death--has already been taken care of and because we have God's assurance that he will be with us no matter what happens, we don't need to fear the unknown.

But I have observed that many Christians are just as risk averse as the rest of the world. We commonly function like atheists, living by our own wits, as intimidated by unknowns as anyone else. What good is faith if it just stays in our heads--failing to lead us to concrete action?

In contrast, Abraham challenged the unknown. He left his familiar country, people and family because he believed God's promise (Genesis 12:1-3). Trusting God, he put everything at risk when he prepared to sacrifice Isaac (Hebrews 11:17). And although he died without seeing the fulfillment of God's promise (Hebrews 11:39), the actions of his faith were considered righteous by God and proven fruitful by time.

Not too many of us are like Abraham. Comfort keeps us in our seats; we prefer the status quo. And even those of us that manage to step out a little often give up when we don't see immediate results. How little we grasp that our attachment to the familiar robs us of what God values most: trusting Him in the unknown.