Believing God in the Unseen

When the Lord appears to Abram in Genesis 12:7, He makes a staggering promise: “To your offspring I will give this land.” What makes the moment so striking is not only the promise itself, but the timing. Abram is seventy-five years old. He has no children. There is nothing in his circumstances that makes this word feel realistic or attainable. And yet, Abram’s response is not argument, negotiation, or quiet skepticism. He builds an altar to the Lord and worships.

That response tells us something essential about the nature of faith. Faith does not require visible proof before it acts. It does not wait for the future to become plausible before trusting the God who speaks. Abram does not yet see how God’s promise could come true—but he believes that the God who promised is trustworthy. His altar is a quiet declaration: God’s word is enough.

This moment also reminds us that God’s redemptive work often begins long before we can trace the outcome. The promise of offspring will take years to unfold, and the story of that promise will be marked by waiting, struggle, and moments of weakness. But here, at the beginning, Abram’s worship anchors him. He responds not to what he can see, but to who God has revealed Himself to be.

For those walking with us in this season, whether you’re deeply engaged in the readings or just finding your footing, Genesis 12 invites us to consider where we place our confidence. Faith is not the absence of questions, nor is it blind optimism. It is trusting God’s promises when the future is still unseen, and choosing worship before resolution.

Abram’s altar stands as a quiet encouragement to us: when God speaks, faith responds... not by demanding clarity, but by trusting the One who has made the promise.