"Leave Me Alone"

Introduction

There comes a moment, in the Christian life, when you would just like to catch your breath. Serving, giving, getting up, starting over every week, it eventually weighs on you. You look at your life, it is stable, it is blessed, and a sentence rises in your heart: "Leave me alone."

That is the title of the message Jeremie Poulet brought to Eglise La Chapelle, in Montreal. A message for those who have loved Jesus for a long time, who have been deeply involved, and who sometimes feel the fire dimming. Drawing from the life of Abraham, he points to a truth that gently disturbs: blessing is not the finish line. God saved you for his Kingdom, not to settle you down.

If you are tired, if you doubt it is still worth it, this message is for you. Not to make you feel guilty, but to relight the fire.

Outline of the article

1. Look at where your tamarisks are planted
2. Are you still ready to hear God call your name?
3. The wood, the fire, and the lamb: what you truly lack
4. From emotion to devotion: how to respond concretely

1. Look at where your tamarisks are planted

In Genesis 21:33, we read: "Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the LORD, the Eternal God." Abraham has just made a covenant of peace with Abimelech. Peace at last. And wells of water, the equivalent, in that era, of our oil wells. He can settle down, plan ahead, build.

So he plants a tamarisk. For a nomad, this gesture is huge: it means getting off the camel, stopping the movement, choosing comfort. The tamarisk is not a fruit tree, it is a tree for firewood and construction, a tree of energy independence. Abraham is preparing his long-term comfort.

And you know what? You too long for Beersheba. Everyone longs to be at peace and blessed. That is not a sin. God can bless you in the land of the Philistines, that is, in a context that does not celebrate him, that lives in idolatry, materialism, and every man for himself. The land of the Philistines, frankly, sounds a lot like our generation.

But here is the trap: the goal of your life is not to prosper here on earth. It is not a sin to prosper, but it is not the mission. You were saved to accomplish the good works that God prepared in advance (Ephesians 2:8-10). You are not saved by works, you are saved for works.

If you do not tend your passion for the Kingdom of God, you will end up tending the passion for your own little kingdom: your business, your career, your bank account, your pension, your tamarisks. Thank God for the blessing, but thank him above all for being the God of the blessing. It is him you must pursue, not the scenery.

2. Are you still ready to hear God call your name?

The verse that immediately follows the story of the tamarisks is Genesis 22:1-2: "Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, 'Abraham!' 'Here I am,' he replied. Then God said, 'Take your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.'"

After the peace. After the tamarisks. After the comfort. God asks the unthinkable. A test.

All around Abraham, the surrounding peoples were sacrificing children to their idols. God has to check: have you adopted the mindset of the land you live in? Do you think I am like the other gods? Where does your trust in me stand? Rest assured right away: God never wanted Isaac to die, and he never wants the death of children, ever, under any pretext. What he is looking for is a consecrated heart.

And Abraham answers "Here I am." That means he can still hear God's voice. The blessing did not make him deaf. The blessing did not make him indifferent. The blessing did not make him unavailable.

Jeremie testifies: in 2005, while he was a financial advisor with a solid career plan, God called him to become a pastor. His son Baptiste was three years old at the time. The passage about the sacrifice of Isaac frightened him, and God answered in his heart: "I am not asking you to sacrifice your son. I am asking you to consecrate yourself, you and your family." To consecrate yourself is to fully trust God for whatever he asks of you.

So the question becomes personal: in the middle of your blessings, can you still hear your name spoken by God? Often, what we hear most is other people's names. We even keep a list of people God should call to make sacrifices in our place. But God calls your name.

3. The wood, the fire, and the lamb: what you truly lack

In Genesis 22:6-8, Isaac watches the scene and asks a fearsome question: "The fire and wood are here, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" A sacrifice, at that time, required three elements: wood, fire, a lamb.

Look closely at the text: Abraham did not buy wood, he did not gather wood, he did not steal wood. He split wood. And you only split your own wood. Try it if you doubt it: grab an axe and go split your neighbor's wood, you will understand quickly.

Abraham is telling you something powerful: when you are blessed, take a part of what God has entrusted to you and offer it as a sacrifice. Isaac understood, by watching his father, that in this household we deprive ourselves of certain resources to honor God. That is what transmission looks like. And have our children understood it? How do you talk, at home, about the sacrifices you offer to God?

Consecrating part of your possessions, your time, your talents to the house of God (not occasionally, but consistently) is the normal movement of a saved life. There will be cycles: sometimes a lot, sometimes less. That is life. But you want to keep the dynamic of sacrifice going, even when everything is going well.

Today, you have the wood: the blessings, the tamarisks, the resources. You have the lamb: Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, offered once for all (John 1:29). You no longer need to bring an animal to church, the lamb has already been provided.

So what do you lack? The fire.

If you no longer feel like serving, giving, getting involved, if you are starting to think "leave me alone," chances are it is a lack of fire. Not a lack of wood, not a lack of a lamb. A lack of fire. And the fire is understanding who Jesus is. Jesus is king, Jesus is alive, Jesus reigns, Jesus loves you, Jesus saved you, Jesus calls you, Jesus restores you, Jesus instructs you, Jesus guides you, Jesus lifts you up, Jesus heals you, Jesus lives in you. "I am not done with you. I still believe in you," says Jesus. That is the fire that gives meaning to every sacrifice.

4. From emotion to devotion: how to respond concretely

Be careful, do not react on emotion alone. A message that moves you is not enough. The emotion has to become devotion.

Concretely: go home, pray over this message, take stock. Look at your tamarisks. Assess where your blessings, your graces, your gifts, your talents, your resources are, at every level: financial, material, in talent, in time. Then look at what you are going to split. What you are going to consecrate to God. Remember that the Lamb of God loved you, and let the Spirit relight in you a new desire to serve alongside your family.

Abraham lives out what we might call a virtuous circle: his faith feeds his obedience, his obedience feeds his worship, his worship feeds his faith. The man keeps moving, even when blessed, even in the land of the Philistines. That is what God wants for you.

Key takeaways

• You were not saved for your kingdom, but for the Kingdom of God. Blessing is a gift, not the destination.
• Blessing must never drown out the voice of God. Stay available to answer "Here I am" even when everything is going well.
• You only split your own wood. To consecrate is to draw from what God has entrusted to you, not from what others have.
• Jesus has already provided the lamb. What you lack is never the sacrifice of Christ, it is the fire, the revelation of who he is.
• Turn emotion into devotion. Do not make an impulsive decision: pray, assess, commit for the long haul.

Personal application

1. What are the "tamarisks" you are watching grow right now (comfort, career, security), and that occupy the place God should have?
2. When was the last time you answered God with "Here I am"? Can you still hear him calling your name?
3. What are you willing to "split" this week (time, a resource, a talent), to offer it concretely to God's work?
4. Is your fire going out? What about Jesus needs to become alive in you again right now?
5. How does your family see the sacrifices you offer to God? What are you passing on to your children, without saying it out loud?

Verses cited

• Genesis 21:33 - Abraham plants a tamarisk tree at Beersheba and calls on the eternal God
• Genesis 22:1-14 - God tests Abraham and provides the ram
• Ephesians 2:8-10 - Saved by grace, through faith, for good works
• John 1:29 - Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world

FAQ

Is it wrong to want to be at peace and enjoy the blessing?

No, it is not a sin to prosper or to want peace. God himself led Abraham to Beersheba. What becomes a problem is when peace drowns out the voice of God and blessing becomes the goal instead of a means of serving. You can rest, but do not settle down to the point of no longer hearing God call you.

Why does God ask Abraham to sacrifice his son if he does not want the death of children?

God never intended for Isaac to die, the ram was already provided. It was a test of consecration after a long season of comfort among peoples who really did sacrifice their children to idols. God wanted to verify that Abraham had not confused him with the gods of the nations, and that he still trusted him completely.

Concretely, what does it mean to "consecrate your family"?

It does not mean offering your children as a sacrifice, as God made clear to Jeremie Poulet. It means bringing your family into a dynamic of service: consecrating part of your income, your time, your energy, your vacations to the work of God. It means teaching your children, by example, that we give up certain things to honor God, and trusting that he will provide for what is missing.