Genesis 13:14-17

And the Lord said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward:

For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.

And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.

Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.

Abram had just stepped back and let Lot choose first. He did not argue. He did not claw for the greenest part. He did not say, “Now hold on, I am the elder here. I ought to get first pick.” He just opened his hand and let Lot have what Lot wanted.

And what happened?

The moment Lot was out of the way, the Lord spoke to Abram.

That is not accidental. After that Lot was separated from him, the Lord said, “Lift up now thine eyes.” Lot had lifted up his eyes to see what looked best to him. Now God tells Abram to lift up his eyes in a different way entirely. Northward, southward, eastward, westward. In other words, “Abram, you did not lose a thing by trusting Me. In fact, what you refused to grab for, I am giving to you.”

I love that. Abram did not demand his own way, and the Lord promised him the entire land, including the very portion Lot had just taken. Abram let go, and God enlarged. Abram deferred, and God reaffirmed the promise. Abram stood back, and the Lord said, “Now arise, walk through it. It is yours.”

That is such a needed word, because we are all a little afraid of getting the short end of the stick. We think if we do not assert ourselves, push ourselves forward, protect our turf, and insist on our rights, we are going to miss out somehow. But Abram shows us another way. The man who trusts God does not have to live with his fists clenched.

He can yield.

He can defer.

He can let another man choose first.

Why? Because he knows that what God has for him cannot be stolen by someone else’s decision.

That is freedom.

It reminds me of what Jesus said to Peter.

Mark 10:28-30

Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee.

And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s,

But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.

You just cannot outgive God.

That is what Abram is learning here. He lets Lot go first, and God says, “I am giving you the land.” Peter says, “Lord, we have left everything,” and Jesus says, “No one who does that for My sake will ever come up empty.” Not just in the world to come, but even now, in this time, there is a hundredfold blessing in the family of God.

And that is true, is it not? If my house burned down tonight, I know there would be brothers and sisters who would say, “Come stay with us.” Go just about anywhere in the world where there are believers, and there are people who would open the door. Houses a hundredfold. Brothers and sisters a hundredfold. Family a hundredfold. Even on this side of heaven, you cannot outgive God.

Now Jesus also says, “with persecutions.” So this is not some slick promise that everything will be easy. Abram would still have troubles. We do too. The Christian life is not a soft life. But it is a rich life. And the richness is not merely in stuff. It is in seeing over and over again that when you put your future into God’s hands, He is faithful.

Abram may have looked like the man who got left with less. But he was actually the man standing in the center of the promise.

That is how it works so often. The one who grabs may look smart for a moment. The one who yields may look like he lost. But give it a little time. Let the Lord speak. Let the story unfold. And you begin to see that the man of faith never really loses what he lays down in obedience.

Beloved, do not be afraid to let go when the Lord tells you to let go. Do not be afraid to take the second place. Do not be afraid to trust Him with what looks like your loss. What Abram gave up was never really lost. It was waiting in the hands of God to be given back in a better way.